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.
Pauline Curuenavuli, known professionally as Paulini, is a Fijian-Australian singer, songwriter and actress. 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.
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.
Emily Williams is a New Zealand-born Australian 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.
A Place I've Never Been is the first studio album by Australian Idol series three winner Kate DeAraugo, released in Australia by Sony/BMG Australia as well as 19 Recordings on 12 December 2005. DeAraugo chose the album title from album track "The Most Beautiful Place" which is her favourite song from the album. The album has a mixture of genre between pop rock and ballad songs – some written by Brooke McClymont, Jewel Kilcher and The Veronicas. A cover version of the Bryan Adams song "Heaven" was featured on the album. The singles released from the album "Maybe Tonight" and "Faded" became top ten hits on the Australian ARIA Singles Chart.
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).
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.
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).
Damien Leo Leith is an Irish-Australian singer–songwriter. He was the winner of the Network Ten music contest Australian Idol in 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.
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.
The Winner's Journey is a live album and DVD based on Australian Idol 2006 winner Damien Leith's performances on the show. The full-length album features remastered versions of Leith's live performances from the show, along with the studio version of his debut single "Night of My Life" and two of his original tracks, "Come to Me" and "Sky". The album was certified platinum on its first week release, and was certified four times platinum on its second week. It remained the number one album on the ARIA Charts for five weeks, and remained in the top ten for a total of ten weeks.
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.
Where We Land is the first studio album by Australian Idol 2006 winner Damien Leith. It was released by Sony BMG in Australia on 18 August 2007, and in Ireland on 28 September 2007. Leith produced the album for seven months and created the album entirely with acoustic songs. He wrote or co-wrote nine of the twelve songs, collaborating with Alex Lloyd and his music director Paul Gray in a few songs. All of his original songs were inspired by his friends and family. Leith included two cover songs in the album, Fleetwood Mac's "Songbird" from the album Rumours and the traditional Irish song "Danny Boy". Where We Land received mostly average reviews from critics. It debuted in the Australian Albums Chart at number-one and was certified platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The album spawned the singles "22 Steps", "All I Want Is You" and "Not Just for the Weekend". Leith embarked on a national tour across Australia to promote the album in November 2007.
Natalie Rose Gauci is an Australian musician, producer and teacher. Gauci undertook music tuition at the Victorian College of the Arts, formed her own band that played gigs in Melbourne, while also working as a music teacher. After an appearance on national radio station Triple J's talent contest, Unearthed, she successfully auditioned for the fifth series of Australian Idol in 2007 and went on to win the series.
"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.
"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 four studio albums, one live album, three soundtrack albums, one extended play, and thirty seven 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.
Stan Walker is an Australian-born 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. In 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).
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.
The discography of Damien Leith, an Australian singer-songwriter, consists of nine studio albums, one live album, two EPs and 19 singles.
