Australian Idol is an Australian singing competition, which began its first season in July 2003 and ended its initial run in November 2009. As part of the Idol franchise, Australian Idol originated from the reality program Pop Idol, which was created by British entertainment executive Simon Fuller. Australian Idol was televised on Network Ten for its first seven series and was broadcast on the Southern Cross Austereo Radio Network between 2005 and 2007. The series returned in 2023 after Seven Network announced they would be picking up the show.
Shannon Noll is an Australian singer-songwriter who first came to prominence as runner-up of the first season of Australian Idol in 2003, which led to him being signed to Sony BMG. He has released five top-ten albums, including two number-one multi-platinum sellers. Noll's first ten singles all peaked inside the ARIA top ten, including three that reached number one. He is the only Australian male artist in Australian chart history to have ten consecutive top-ten singles. Noll's debut single, "What About Me?", was certified 4× platinum and became the highest-selling single of 2004 in Australia.
Robert Mills is an Australian actor, television host and singer-songwriter. He was one of the finalists from the first season of Australian Idol in 2003. He co-hosted the late-night quiz show The Mint with his childhood idol, J-Dawg, the two would go on to star in the hit show Young Talent Time, and was a regular singer on the game show The Singing Bee both on the Nine Network. Mills took part in the ninth season of Dancing with the Stars, and appeared on Celebrity Apprentice. In 2008, Mills won the lead male role of Fiyero in a production of Wicked, and continued the role when it moved around Australia. He has since starred in a number of popular large scale musical theatre productions. In 2012, Mills was announced as the host of Network Ten's revamped Young Talent Time. He played teacher Finn Kelly on Neighbours from 2017 until 2022.
Brian Nicholas McFadden is an Irish pop singer and television presenter. He rose to fame in 1998 as a member of the Irish boy band Westlife. Following his departure from the group in 2004, McFadden released his debut solo album, Irish Son. He has since released four studio albums: Set in Stone, Wall of Soundz, The Irish Connection, and Otis.
Anthony Cosmo Callea is an Australian singer-songwriter and stage actor who rose to prominence as the runner-up in the 2004 season of Australian Idol. Callea's debut single, a cover of Celine Dion and Andrea Bocelli's song "The Prayer", is the fastest-selling single by an Australian artist; it held the number-one spot on the ARIA Singles Chart for five weeks, a record for the debut single of an Australian Idol contestant, and was the second-highest-selling Australian single of the 2000s.
Joel Turner is an Australian beatboxer, singer, songwriter, instrumentalist and record producer best known for the Australian hit song "These Kids". As a beatboxer, he is recognised for his trademark sounds such as his "third voice", cowbell, teeth beats and bass guitar. He was the victor at the Beatbox Battle World Championship in 2005 and retained the title until 2009.
Tim Campbell is an Australian television and stage actor and singer, best known for playing the character of Dan Baker in the soap opera Home and Away between 2004 and 2007. In 2007, he came third in series 6 of Dancing with the Stars.
Katherine Jenna DeAraugo is an Australian singer-songwriter who in 2005 was the third winner of Australian Idol. After Idol, DeAraugo signed to Sony BMG and released her debut single, "Maybe Tonight", in November 2005. The single debuted at Number 1 on the ARIA Charts and was certified platinum. Her debut album, A Place I've Never Been, was released in December 2005 and was also certified platinum. DeAraugo later became a member of the multi-platinum-selling girl group Young Divas, which disbanded in 2008.
"I Believe" is the debut single of American Idol third season winner Fantasia. The song was co-written by Louis Biancaniello, Sam Watters, and former American Idol contestant Tamyra Gray. Released in the United States on June 15, 2004, "I Believe" debuted at number one on the US Billboard Hot 100, selling 142,000 copies during its first week and winning three Billboard awards. The song also reached number one on the Canadian Singles Chart and number four on Australia's ARIA Singles Chart. It was included on Fantasia's debut album, Free Yourself, released on November 23, 2004.
Dean Stanley Geyer is a South African Australian singer-songwriter, actor and martial artist who finished third in the 2006 season of the talent show television series Australian Idol, and has had a notable role in the Australian soap opera Neighbours as Ty Harper. He joined the cast of the US show Glee in the 4th season as NYADA Junior Brody Weston and appeared in Terra Nova as Mark Reynolds.
Jessica Hilda Mauboy is an Indonesian and Aboriginal Australian singer, songwriter and actress. Born and raised in Darwin, Northern Territory, she rose to fame in 2006 on the fourth season of Australian Idol, where she was runner-up and subsequently signed a recording contract with Sony Music Australia. After releasing a live album of her Idol performances and briefly being a member of the girl group Young Divas in 2007, Mauboy released her debut studio album, Been Waiting, the following year. It included her first number-one single, "Burn", and became the second highest-selling Australian album of 2009, certified double platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA).
Joel Turner and the Modern Day Poets is a collaborative studio album by Joel Turner and the Modern Day Poets. It was released on 1 November 2004, peaking at number 28 on the ARIA Albums Chart and number 2 on the AIR independent charts, additionally achieving platinum status.
Ferras Alqaisi is an American singer-songwriter from Los Angeles, California. He is well known for his single "Hollywood's Not America" from his debut album Aliens & Rainbows, which was featured as the exit song during the semi-final round of American Idol season 7. He is signed with Unsub Records, a subsidiary of Capitol Records founded by Katy Perry, being the first artist to sign with her label. In June 2014 he released his self-titled EP through the label.
The first season of Australian Idol was produced by Fremantle Media subsidiary Grundy Television in association with UK company 19TV, and was broadcast on Network Ten for 19 weeks in the latter half of 2003. The judges were Mark Holden, Marcia Hines and Ian "Dicko" Dickson.
"I Don't Do Surprises" is the debut single by Australian singer Axle Whitehead, from his debut album Losing Sleep. It peaked at number eight on the ARIA Singles Chart, and was certified Gold by ARIA. It spent a total of fifteen weeks in the top 50. "I Don't Do Surprises" also reached a peak position of #2 on the Australasian Singles Chart.
Losing Sleep is the debut album by Axle Whitehead, released on 23 August 2008. Whitehead began working on material for his debut album shortly after he resigned as host of Video Hits with several songwriters and producers in the twelve months preceding the album's release. The album's first single, "I Don't Do Surprises", became Whitehead's first top ten single, peaking at number eight on the Australian ARIA Singles Chart, and also reached number two on the Australasian singles chart, and was certified Gold by ARIA. The album's second single was "Anywhere". The album's third single was "Satellite".
Wesley Dean "Wes" Carr, also recording as Buffalo Tales, is an Australian singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, best known for winning the sixth season of Australian Idol in 2008. He released his first studio album, Simple Sum, independently in 2008 shortly before entering Australian Idol. After Idol, he signed a record deal with Sony Music Australia and released his debut single, "You". The song peaked at number one on the ARIA Singles Chart and was certified Gold by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). Carr's second studio album, The Way the World Looks, soon followed after. It reached number two on the ARIA Albums Chart and also achieved Gold certification. The second single "Feels Like Woah" peaked at number 14 and gained Gold certification. In June 2011, Carr released "Been a Long Time", the lead single from his third album. It peaked at number 33 on the ARIA Singles Chart. In November 2011, Carr announced that he was no longer with Sony and would be releasing his album independently. In August 2012 Carr released an EP titled Blood & Bone under the pseudonym Buffalo Tales. His third studio album "Roadtrip Confessions" was released in June 2013 and debuted at number 83.
Australian singer and songwriter Ricki-Lee Coulter has released five studio albums, one compilation album, twenty two singles, and twenty music videos. Coulter placed seventh in the second season of Australian Idol in 2004, and subsequently signed with independent label Shock Records. Coulter's self-titled debut album Ricki-Lee was released in October 2005, which debuted at number 30 on the ARIA Albums Chart. The album produced two top-ten singles, "Hell No!" and "Sunshine", which were both certified gold by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). Coulter briefly became a member of the Australian pop girl group Young Divas the following year, before resuming her solo career early in 2007.
Liam Murphy is a fictional character from the Australian Channel Seven soap opera Home and Away, played by Axle Whitehead. The character debuted on-screen during the episode airing on 5 March 2009. Whitehead auditioned for the role and stated it would help improve his acting skill. Liam was created by executive producer Cameron Welsh and is described as a "badboy minor rockstar" who comes to Summer Bay to start a new life. His storylines have focused on his addiction to drugs and many relationships. Liam has also been involved in controversial scenes in which it featured "sexually charged content" with fellow character Martha MacKenzie. Whitehead's departure was announced in November 2012. He made his final appearance as Liam on 3 April 2013.
The discography of Young Divas, an Australian pop girl group, consists of two studio albums, one compilation album, four singles, two album appearances and four music videos. The group was formed in 2006 by Sony BMG Australia which included previous Australian Idol contestants Ricki-Lee Coulter, Paulini, Kate DeAraugo and Emily Williams. Young Divas released their self-titled debut album in November 2006, which debuted at number four on the ARIA Albums Chart and was certified double platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA), for shipments of 140,000 copies. A cover of Donna Summer's "This Time I Know It's for Real" was released as the album's lead single and peaked at number two on the ARIA Singles Chart. The song was certified platinum by the ARIA, for shipments of 70,000 copies. The second single was a cover of Lonnie Gordon's "Happenin' All Over Again", which peaked at number nine and was certified gold for shipments of 35,000 copies. A cover of Hazell Dean's "Searchin'" was released as the third and final single from the album, and peaked at number 40.
