The awards director, Glen Maake, said they were alerted of the singing competition by concerned community members. “We would like to confirm that we are aware of a certain singing talent search competition bearing a similar name and offering some services akin to our services within the same industry in the Bushbuckridge region.

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“We were alerted to this confusing situation following a social media uproar and frantic enquiries from the public regarding the said singing talent competition. For that reason, the Golden Stars Awards brand wishes to distance itself from the singing competition that uses a similar name to that of our famed annual awards,” he said.

“We, therefore, wish to categorically make it clear that we are by no means whatsoever partners or working closely with the organisers of that organisation or brand. Those who are sending enquiries to the Golden Stars Awards regarding any treatment they receive from the organisers of that competition, must contact the organisers of that event and not us, because they are not with us.”

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At the time of going to press, the organisers of the similarly named awards had not yet responded to media enquiries. Maake stressed that the only other event they are associated with is the annual Miss Golden Stars South Africa beauty pageant.

“We have consulted with our stakeholders and we will surely get to the bottom of this matter. And we are hopeful that this will be resolved accordingly in order to avoid further confusion,” added Maake.

“As a result, we wish to assure our followers, partners, associates and the public at large that, as the Golden Stars Awards, we are going to continue to inspire many people from various walks of life by organising, celebrating and honouring top-performing local stars who are actively involved in television and film, media and entertainment sectors. We are in this for a good cause,” he concluded.