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.
Pauline Curuenavuli, known professionally as Paulini, is a Fijian-Australian singer and songwriter. Born in Suva, Paulini moved to Sydney with her family at the age of four. She rose to fame in 2003 as a contestant on the first season of Australian Idol and placed fourth in the competition. Paulini subsequently signed a recording contract with Sony BMG Australia and released her debut studio album One Determined Heart (2004), which debuted at number one on the ARIA Albums Chart and was certified platinum. The album included the platinum single "Angel Eyes", which spent three consecutive weeks at number one on the ARIA Singles Chart. Paulini received two ARIA No. 1 Chart Awards for both the album and single.
Lee Harding is an Australian singer from Frankston, Victoria. He is best known for placing third in the third season of Australian Idol in 2005.
Emily Williams is a New Zealand singer, songwriter and actress. She rose to fame in 2005 on the third season of Australian Idol and became the runner-up of the competition. After Idol, Williams signed with Sony BMG Australia and enjoyed commercial success as a member of the Australian girl group Young Divas. The group released two top-ten albums, Young Divas (2006) and New Attitude (2007), and achieved three top-fifteen singles, including the hugely successful "This Time I Know It's for Real". After the Young Divas disbanded in 2008 and Williams' contract with Sony BMG ended, she began releasing her solo music independently. Williams' debut solo single "Spellbound" was released in 2010, followed by the release of her debut solo album Uncovered in 2012.
"Maybe Tonight" is a pop song written by Dave Bassett, Jess Cates and Lindy Robbins, produced by Bryon Jones and Adam Reily for Kate DeAraugo's first album A Place I've Never Been (2005). It was released as the album's first single on 28 November 2005 and was successful in her home country of Australia, becoming her first number-one hit.
"Wasabi" is a song written by Adrian Hannan, Barbara Hannan, Emma Graham and Tommy Rando, produced by Adrian Hannan for Australian singer Lee Harding's debut album, What's Wrong with This Picture? (2006). Harding was a contestant on season three of Australian Idol.
Australian singer-songwriter Delta Goodrem has released seven studio albums, one extended play (EP), four video albums and thirty six singles and an additional five as a featured artist. Goodrem signed a record deal with Sony Music Entertainment in 1999 and, since then, has achieved five number one albums and nine number one songs in Australia.
"Turn Me Loose" is a hit song recorded by the Canadian rock band Loverboy. It was released on their eponymous debut album in 1980, and as a single in 1981. With a strong rock synthesizer start to the song, followed by a steady build on the guitars, it peaked at #7 on the RPM singles chart in 1981 and #6 on the Billboard Top Tracks chart in the US.
Young Divas was an Australian pop girl group formed in 2006 by Sony BMG Australia, initially for a one-off single and national tour to promote all members as solo artists. The original line-up consisted of former Australian Idol contestants, including season one finalist Paulini, season two finalist Ricki-Lee Coulter, season three winner Kate DeAraugo and season three runner-up Emily Williams. Young Divas released a cover version of Donna Summer's "This Time I Know It's for Real" to attract attention for the tour. The song peaked at number two on the ARIA Singles Chart and was certified platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA).
"Rain" is the second song released by Australian Idol series two runner-up Anthony Callea. The song appears on his self-titled debut album, Anthony Callea (2005). It was released as a double A-side with his recording of Simon & Garfunkel's song "Bridge over Troubled Water", which he performed on Australian Idol.
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. In 2021, Geyer also starred in Christmas in the Pines, where he met his wife Jillian Murray.
Damien Leo Leith is an Irish-Australian singer–songwriter. He was the winner of the Network Ten music contest Australian Idol 2006. Since winning the title, Leith has released nine studio albums, four of which peaked in the top two of the ARIA Charts, including two number ones. He has been awarded seven platinum and one gold certification for albums and singles by ARIA, which equates to sales of just over half a million.
"Night of My Life" is the title of the debut single of 2006 Australian Idol winner Damien Leith. This single was performed by the final two contestants - Leith and Jessica Mauboy - during the penultimate episode of Australian Idol 2006, and both contestants recorded and had their versions pressed by Sony BMG, ready for the winner's version to be released immediately after the competition.
Rush is the first album by Australian singer Dean Geyer, released by Sony BMG in Australia on 28 May 2007. The album "sums up everything that" Geyer has felt in the past year, he states "the process of creating, writing, recording and promoting has been a rush. But it's been such a joyous ride for me." Rush debuted in the top ten on the Australian ARIA Albums Chart making it his first top ten album. It also produced Geyer with his first top ten hit with "If You Don't Mean It" which spent twelve weeks in the top fifty. The album features a cover version of the Edwin McCain's song "I'll Be", that Geyer also sang on Australian Idol.
The Journey is a live album by 2006 Australian Idol runner-up Jessica Mauboy, released on 24 February 2007 by Sony BMG Australia. The CD/DVD contains recordings of Mauboy's live performances from her time in the top twelve on Australian Idol. Upon its release, The Journey debuted at number four on the ARIA Albums Chart and was certified gold by the Australian Recording Industry Association.
"This Love" is a dance-rock song written by Toby Gad and at that time-unknown pop singer Kesha, produced by Gad for The Veronicas' second album, Hook Me Up (2007). It was released as the album's third single in Australia as a digital download on 30 March 2008 and CD single 14 April 2008.
No Turning Back: The Story So Far is the first compilation album by Shannon Noll. The album includes tracks from Noll's three studio albums to date, That's What I'm Talking About (2004), Lift (2005) and Turn It Up (2008) and five brand new tracks. The album was released in September 2008 and peaked at number 7 on the ARIA Charts, becoming Noll's fourth consecutive top ten album.
Fijian-born Australian singer and songwriter Paulini has released four studio albums, one extended play, nineteen singles, and twelve music videos. Paulini placed fourth on the first season of Australian Idol in 2003, and subsequently signed a recording contract with Sony BMG Australia. Her debut studio album, One Determined Heart (2004), debuted at number one on the ARIA Albums Chart, where it remained for two consecutive weeks, and was certified platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) for shipments of 70,000 copies. Its lead single "Angel Eyes" remained at number one on the ARIA Singles Chart for three consecutive weeks and was also certified platinum, while the second single "We Can Try" peaked at number 30. Paulini followed with the release of her debut EP, Amazing Grace: Songs for Christmas (2004), which peaked at number 70.
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.
