Israel Cruz is an Australian singer-songwriter and record producer. Cruz was born in Quezon City, Philippines and at the age of 3 moved to Melbourne, Australia with his family. He lives in Sydney, Australia with friends and has written and performed with Australian singer Stan Walker.
Audius Tonderai Mtawarira is a Zimbabwean singer-songwriter and record producer, who often works mononymously as Audius. From 1996 to 2012 he lived in Australia. At the APRA Music Awards of 2009 he was co-winner of Urban Work of the Year for writing "Running Back" with its singer, Jessica Mauboy, and with American rapper, Sean Ray Mullins.
Jessica Hilda Mauboy is an 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).
Australian Idol was a televised talent contest, screened on Channel Ten for seven seasons between 2003 and 2009. Several contestants were signed to record labels, while others released their music independently. Since 2003 Australian Idol acts have placed well on the Australian music charts, with 35 number ones and 158 platinum and 41 gold certifications. Eight Idol releases appeared in the 2000 – 2009 ARIA End of Decade Charts, and 24 releases have been nominated for Highest Selling ARIA Music Awards. Idol contestants have also been nominated for 33 ARIA Awards in public vote categories, where the nominees are most commonly selected from the highest selling acts of the year. There have also been 48 industry judged ARIA Award nominations. To date there have been 11 wins in sales and public vote categories, and in 2013 season one winner Guy Sebastian and season four runner up Jessica Mauboy became the first Idol contestants to win industry voted ARIA Awards.
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.
"Running Back" is the debut single of Australian R&B recording artist Jessica Mauboy, featuring American rapper Flo Rida. The track was written by Mauboy, Audius Mtawarira, and Sean Ray Mullins, and was produced by Audius. "Running Back" was released for digital download on 19 September 2008 as the lead single from Mauboy's debut studio album, Been Waiting. Mauboy felt "so excited and honoured" to work with Flo Rida, calling it a dream come true.
Been Waiting is the debut studio album by Australian recording artist Jessica Mauboy, released on 22 November 2008 by Sony Music Australia. While Mauboy was still a member of the girl group Young Divas, she began to work on what became Been Waiting. She co-wrote several of the album's songs and worked with many songwriters and producers, including Israel Cruz, Cutfather, Audius Mtawarira, Michael "Fingaz" Mugisha, Kwame Holland, Jonas Jeberg and Adam Reily, among others.
"Inescapable" is a song by Australian recording artist Jessica Mauboy. It was written by Diane Warren and produced by Youngboyz, Anthony Egizii and David Musumeci. "Inescapable" was sent to Australian contemporary hit radio on 4 July 2011, and was released for digital download on 15 July 2011 as the first single from the deluxe edition of Mauboy's second studio album Get 'Em Girls. The song's lyrics revolve around "a relationship all gone wrong but also a celebration."
"Burn" is a song by Australian recording artist Jessica Mauboy. It was written by Taj Jackson, Jonas Jeberg, and Mich Hansen and was produced by Jeberg and Cutfather. "Burn" was released digitally on 17 November 2008 as the second single from Mauboy's debut studio album, Been Waiting (2008). Musically, "Burn" is an R&B-dance track that incorporates electronica influences. The song became Mauboy's first number-one on the ARIA Singles Chart and was certified platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association for selling over 70,000 copies. "Burn" also became Mauboy's first charting single internationally, reaching number 92 on the Japan Hot 100.
Australian singer and songwriter Jessica Mauboy has released five studio albums, one live album, three soundtrack albums, one extended play, and forty singles. Mauboy was the runner-up on the fourth season of Australian Idol in 2006, and subsequently signed a contract with Sony Music Australia. She released her debut live album The Journey in February 2007, which features songs she performed as part of the top twelve on Australian Idol. The album debuted at number four on the ARIA Albums Chart and was certified gold by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA), denoting shipments of 35,000 copies. Mauboy briefly became a member of the Australian pop girl group Young Divas later that year, before resuming her solo career early in 2008.
"Because" is a song by Australian R&B recording artist Jessica Mauboy. Written by Michael "Fingaz" Mugisha, Mauboy and Dion Howell, "Because" was released as the fourth single from Mauboy's debut album Been Waiting on 12 June 2009. The song is about a past relationship of Mauboy's and she has stated that it is her favourite song off the album. "Because" peaked at number nine on the ARIA Singles Chart and was certified gold by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA).
Stan Walker is an Australian New Zealand singer, actor, and television personality. In 2009, Walker was the winner of the seventh season of Australian Idol. He subsequently signed a recording contract with Sony Music Australia. It was on December 2009, Walker released his debut studio album, Introducing Stan Walker, which included the hit single, "Black Box". The album debuted at number three on the Australian ARIA Albums Chart and was certified platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). It also appeared on the New Zealand Albums Chart at number two and was certified triple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ).
New Zealand-Australian singer Stan Walker has released seven studio albums, two compilation albums, two extended plays, forty-seven singles—including seven as a featured artist—and twenty-one music videos. In 2009, Walker won the seventh season of Australian Idol, and signed a recording contract with Sony Music Australia. Walker's debut studio album Introducing Stan Walker, which contained selected songs he performed on Australian Idol, was released on 11 December 2009. The album debuted at number three on the Australian ARIA Albums Chart, and number two on the New Zealand Albums Chart. It was certified platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association, and triple platinum by the Recorded Music NZ. The album's lead single "Black Box" peaked at number two on the ARIA Singles Chart, and number one on the New Zealand Singles Chart, eventually being certified double platinum in both countries.
Get 'Em Girls is the second studio album by Australian recording artist Jessica Mauboy, released on 24 August 2010 by SRC Records and Universal Republic Records. Mauboy recorded the album in Los Angeles, New York City and Atlanta. She worked with various American songwriters and producers she had not worked with before, including Bangladesh, Harvey Mason Jr., Chuck Harmony, Brian Kennedy, and Alex James, among others. Musically, Get 'Em Girls contains up-tempo and ballad-oriented songs, which derive from the genres of pop, hip hop and R&B. The album features guest vocal appearances from Snoop Dogg, Ludacris, Jay Sean, and Iyaz.
"Saturday Night" is a song by Australian recording artist Jessica Mauboy, featuring American rapper Ludacris. It was released as the second single from Mauboy's second studio album, Get 'Em Girls, on 27 October 2010. The song was written by Angie Iron, Mauboy, Ludacris and Brian Kennedy, and was produced by Kennedy.
"What Happened to Us" is a song by Australian recording artist Jessica Mauboy, featuring English recording artist Jay Sean. It was written by Sean, Josh Alexander, Billy Steinberg, Jeremy Skaller, Rob Larow, Khaled Rohaim and Israel Cruz. "What Happened to Us" was leaked online in October 2010, and was released on 10 March 2011, as the third single from Mauboy's second studio album, Get 'Em Girls (2010). The song received positive reviews from critics.
Let the Music Play is the third studio album by Australian-New Zealand recording artist Stan Walker, released through Sony Music Australia on 18 November 2011. Walker worked with several record producers on the album, including Richard Vission, Chico Bennett, Nicholas "RAS" Furlong and Static Revenger, among others. The album featured several guest vocalists, including Jessica Mauboy, Annabel Fay and Walker's mother April, who is featured in a remake of Eva Cassidy's version of "Songbird". Musically, the album features more up-tempo dance-pop and R&B genres than Walker's previous album, From the Inside Out (2010), which included deep and emotional tracks.
"Music Won't Break Your Heart" is a song by Australian-New Zealand recording artist Stan Walker, from his third studio album Let the Music Play (2011). It was released digitally on 23 March 2012 as the third single from the album. "Music Won't Break Your Heart" peaked at number 25 on the ARIA Singles Chart, and number 32 on the New Zealand Singles Chart.
The Sapphires: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is a soundtrack album for the film The Sapphires (2012), released on 27 July 2012 by Sony Music Australia. It features the vocals of Jessica Mauboy, Jade MacRae, Lou Bennett, Juanita Tippens and Darren Percival, with Mauboy singing in ten of the sixteen songs. Produced by Bry Jones, the soundtrack contains songs from the 1960s, including: "Land of a Thousand Dances", "I Can't Help Myself ", "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" and "What a Man". The track "Ngarra Burra Ferra" is a song based on the traditional Aboriginal hymn "Bura Fera" in the Yorta Yorta language of Victoria, Australia, the language spoken by the indigenous Yorta Yorta people of the Goulburn Valley and Murray River valley centred on modern-day Echuca.
"Never Be the Same" is a song recorded by Australian singer Jessica Mauboy. It was written by Mauboy, Anthony Egizii and David Musumeci, and produced by DNA. The song was released on 7 March 2014 as the fourth single from Mauboy's third studio album, Beautiful. "Never Be the Same" is a mid-tempo pop and R&B power ballad that speaks about "the confusion of growing up and the fact that changes in life are inevitable." The song received positive reviews from critics, who noted it as an emotional and powerful track and praised Mauboy's vocal performance.
