After the first cross-country search for Canada’s next young musical talent, season two of YTV’s The Next Star is premiering on Friday July 17 at 6 pm, with Toronto-Based Hilroy as an integrated sponsor on air and online for the 12-episode run. In the show, sixteen singers are chosen from an audition process and then narrowed down to six who will be mentored by professionals in the music industry. Degrassi: The Next Generation‘s Adamo Ruggiero hosts, while musician Suzie McNeil, songwriter Christopher Ward and music marketing exec Steve Cranwell are judges (pictured.)

Hilroy is providing the six finalists with tote bags, binders and pencils so that they can keep track of their experiences. The idea is also for the contestants to write songs and take notes on how to improve their performances. Products will be visible during a ‘look back’ episode where the singers’ thoughts are recorded.

In addition to supporting the program on Hilroy.ca with a The Next Star viewer contest (to receive the same swag as the contestants), Hilroy is sponsoring an online competition called The Virtual Next Star, which provides viewers the opportunity to record their own performance and submit it to the judges online. The winner who submits the best performance wins a trip to Toronto to see a live taping of the finale at Canada’s Wonderland.