‘Alter Ego’ Judge Nick Lachey Previews ‘Powerful Combination’ of Tech & Talent

“There’s absolutely nothing like this that has ever been done on TV before,” Nick Lachey says of Fox’s new singing competition series Alter Ego.

The show puts singers in motion caption suits to help create digital avatars that work as vehicles to deliver their voices to Lachey and his fellow judges, Alanis Morissette, will.i.am, and Grimes. Designed by the competitors themselves, these avatars serve as their Alter Egos and are visual representations of how they’d like to be seen.

(Credit: Greg Gayne/FOX)

“It is unique, and we’ve all seen so many singing competition shows over the years,” Lachey says, “but this is definitely on another level, which is why it’s so exciting.” The 98 Degrees singer admits that the concept definitely perplexed him at first. “I wasn’t sure how this was going to work and I’m not an especially tech-savvy guy. So this whole world of avatars and computer-generated Alter Egos, felt kind of surreal to me.”

The experience of watching these digital figures come to life before their very eyes is addressed in the show’s premiere, and it’s nothing like Lachey could have imagined. “I think my biggest takeaway is just how incredible the combination of great singing talent and cutting edge technology is.”

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“It was fantastic to watch that happen before my eyes,” he adds excitedly. “So, I don’t want to say I was a skeptic,” says Lachey. “I was excited about it, but I was just unsure of how it was all going to work.”

How does he feel about the finished product? “Now I can say with complete confidence that it does work and it’s a really powerful combination.” Don’t miss out on the fun, check out Alter Ego on Fox this fall.

Alter Ego, Series Premiere, Wednesday, September 22, 9/8c, Fox