Call Me by Fire () is a 2021 Chinese singing reality television show broadcast on Mango TV. It features 33 male celebrities who have been in the entertainment industry for close to ten years or more competing to form a 17-member performance group. The show aired from August 12 to October 29, 2021, with 12 episodes in total.
It is a spin-off of the well-received Sisters Who Make Waves, which featured a similar premise with female celebrities. Both shows followed in the footsteps of trending idol group audition programs like Produce 101 and Idol Producer, with Call Me by Fire aiming to put together a range of experienced male entertainers and provide them opportunities to collaborate on stage.
Aside from the main episodes, there are also special "Plus" episodes that can be accessed through paid subscription to Mango TV, featuring additional behind-the-scenes footage not aired in the main show.
A second season premiered on August 19, 2022, featuring 4 members of Season 1's final "Singing Family" group, alongside 28 new celebrity contestants.
Format
The competition is carried out through a series of concerts, with the contestants performing in groups. Depending on the round's specific rules, the audience and a panel of industry experts vote for their favourite group performances and/or individual contestants. The resulting rankings determine which contestants are eliminated and/or how groupings are shuffled. Voting scores are also tabulated as "firepower," which acts as currency for contestant groups during bidding for the following concert's song selection and performance order.
The show opened with a "Premiere Concert" introducing the 33 contestants. This was followed by five rounds with different groupings and concert themes. At the end of the fifth round, the remaining 22 contestants competed in a final "Family Formation Night" concert that determined the successful members of the ultimate 17-member performance group.
Aside from segments related to the formal competition such as rehearsals and bidding, the show also features contestants' dormitory life and informal group activities like a talent show or cook-off.
Contestants
The contestants' names within both the English and Chinese language entertainment industries are shown. Top 17 contestants will debut as a group on the show's finale.
Synopsis
Premiere Concert
Theme: The First Meeting, Pleased to Meet You
The contestants are introduced to the rules and to one another. They are then assigned to groups of similar skills for their first introductory performances. Each group stage featured short individual performances of different songs, with the final song continuing into a full group performance to end off. After each stage, the audience voted for their favourite member in the group, with the top-ranking member gaining 100 firepower for the next round. After all 8 group stages, the 33 contestants performed a closing song together.
This premiere concert was hosted by alongside three contestants from Sisters Who Make Waves: Baby Zhang and Shen Mengchen from Season 1, and Yang Yuying from Season 2.
First Performance
Theme: Outer Space Message Board
The contestants are split into 8 tribes with three to five members each, named after the respective tribe leader. Every tribe performed one song in the concert, with the two lowest-ranking tribes having to select one member to transfer out to another tribe.
Second Performance
Theme: The 25th Hour
In this round, tribes had to form an alliance with a second tribe to perform one "Vocal" category song and one "Perform" category song together. A limit of six performers per song was imposed. The voting scores for both songs were combined, with the lowest-ranking alliance having to select three members to send home.
Third Performance
Theme: Wait for Me to Find You
The alliances of the previous round were dissolved and the eight tribes reorganised into four larger camps, named after the respective camp leader. Like the previous round, each camp had to perform one "Vocal" category song and one "Perform" category song. However, this round was conducted in two halves, with two camps competing directly in each half. Audience and expert panel voting determined the losing camp of each half, as well as the individual contestant ranking in each camp. The losing camp would then have to vote within itself to eliminate one of its three lowest-ranking members.