The Chinese Student and Scholars Association hosted its fifth annual karaoke competition the Illini Union on Saturday.

Songs ranged from the English song “Someone Like You” to traditional Chinese songs such as “Na Xie Nian.”

The songs were chosen by the participants of the competition before they sang to compete for the qualification into the semifinals. Each participant was required to sing a song for at least one minute. Five judges evaluated their performances. If all five judges approved a participant, he could go directly into the semifinal. Otherwise, it was decided by the level of scores.

Judges included Chao Xia, who was the winner of last year’s karaoke competition, Xiao Yu, who is a musician on campus, Cheng Wan, who is in charge of sports and entertainment at CSSA, Xi Li, and Dawei Oin.

Tian Lu, freshman in Media, said she planned to sing “Hu Die” by Liu Ruo Ying.

“I know the words, and it’s easy to sing. Moreover, I love singing and willing to perform in front of the audience,” she said.

Zuhui An, freshman in Media, said she loved singing. Zuhui is a karaoke regular and already has her own personal album, so she said she was not at all nervous to get up on stage. She sang “Shi Fei Ti” by Fan Wei Qi, “because it’s a romantic song and expressed the feelings of my heart,” she said.

Baijia Sun, host for the competition and staff member of CSSA, said the goal of the event was to find singers with “good music skills and performance capabilities.”

“If you are scared, just take it easy. Imagine you are singing with your friends and relax. It works every time, I swear,” she said before the competition.

Qiuse Ji,freshman in Engineering, said he practiced at his dorm with his friends on a karaoke set before coming to sing. Qiuse sang “Yi Qian Nian Yi Hou” by Lin Jun Jie.

As Qiuse Ji sat back down after performing, he said it was more difficult than it seemed.

“It’s difficult to sing and read up there, I was so nervous,” he said.