Australia: SBS unveils final set of national final candidates

by Sanjay (Sergio) Jiandani 783 views

SBS, the Australian national broadcaster, has unveiled the final set of candidates who will compete at the forthcoming Australian national final set to be held on the Gold Coast in February.

Australia is gearing up to hold its very first Eurovision national final on Saturday 9 February at the Gold Coast Exhibition and Convention Centre on the Gold Coast, Queensland. A total of 10 acts will fight for the golden ticket to Tel Aviv during the live televised show.

Joel Creasey & Myf Warhurst at the Eurovision: Australia Decides Launch Party (photo credit: SBS)

The show will be co-produced by SBS and Blink TV Australia and will be hosted by radio host, presenter and music buff Myf Warhurst, and comedian Joel Creasey.  Eurovision – Australia Decides is set showcase the best of Australian music and bring the nation closer to the Eurovision action.

SBS has revealed the names of the final three who will compete in the 2019 Australian national final:

  • Ella Hooper
  • Tania Doko
  • Alfie Arcuri

The three candidates will be joining Courtney Act,  Leeia Nano,  Aydan, Sheppard, Mark Vincent, Electric Fields and Kate Miller Heidke in their quest to represent Australia in Tel Aviv, thus competing in the 2019 Australian national final.

The complete line up for Eurovision: Australia Decides

Mr. Josh Martin ( SBS Commissioning Editor) says:

These final three world class performers complete the line-up for the first ever Eurovision – Australia
Decides and the songs released today are incredible. Australia has a new summer music festival, and it’san event not to be missed – either on-ground on the Gold Coast or on-air around the country!

Alfie Arcuri

Alfie Arcuri

Alfie Arcuri was crowned the winner of The Voice 2016, beating out one of the most competitive fields the show has ever seen. Since winning the television show, recording artist Alfie has focused his sights on writing and releasing his own original material.

After completing his first widely successful ‘My Story’, Our Journey’ tour across the country, Alfie has spent the last year collaborating with some of the world’s most sought after-songwriters and producers both locally and in the US, and has tapped into a surprising, vulnerable space.

If They Only Knew’ released in July 2017 has already in excess of 3 million streams and second self-penned track ‘Love is Love’ headlined as the official anthem song of the Marriage Equality campaign in 2017. Alfie just finished a national tour supporting Samantha Jade and is in the studio preparing his new EP, set for release this year.

Alfie says:

It’s an honour to be involved in a competition that celebrates and embraces music and diversity… and to take this journey alongside such amazing Australian talents is truly incredible! There’s always something special about the first – scary but exciting!

Ella Hooper

Ella Hopper

Ella Hooper made her entrance onto the Australian music landscape as the technicolour teenage frontwoman of her high school band Killing Heidi. She traversed the highs and lows of pop rock, wrote some hits, became an unlikely teen icon, spent time overseas and generally lived out her youthful dreams.

Eventually she dismantled the band, craving time away from pop rock, and made a country album off the back of which she toured in support of Fleetwood Mac.

Now, three releases into her solo sojourn Ella’s new tunes are a mix of bright snappy rock, synth driven singalongs, classic rock feels, Pretenders by way of Blondie street walking struts – with her unmistakable, textured vocals delivering the goods

Ella Hooper says:

It’s very exciting to be involved in anything that is the first of its kind, and in recent years I have become more and more fascinated with Eurovision, so it’s perfect timing! I’m hoping to bring a bit of traditional rock ‘n’ roll energy to a bombastic performance of a meaningful pop song.

Tania Doko

Tania Doko

Best known for her success in Australian ARIA award winning pop duo, Bachelor Girl, Tania’s debut album ‘Waiting For the Day’ enjoyed double platinum status, spawning five hit singles, dominating the airwaves in Australia, Asia and Scandinavia and signing to the U.S legendary A&R Clive Davis (Arista Records).

2018 marked the 20th anniversary of their much loved smash ‘Buses and Trains’ hit, alongside the APRA acknowledgement as the most played Australian composition on Australian radio in the last 20 years. Since moving to Sweden with her Swedish husband and starting a family, Tania has spent her time as a songwriter, co-writing and featuring on hit records including The Veronicas, Tina Arena, Jessica Mauboy, Samantha Jade, Taylor Dayne, Swedish Eurovision 2016 winner Måns Zelmerlöw and Disney feature film ‘Step Up 3’.

In 2017, Bachelor Girl reunited and collaborated with some of Sweden’s best writers and are being booked for Australia’s biggest festivals with massive names including ‘A Day on the Green’(Dec 2018), John Farnham, Daryl Braithwaite and Icehouse. Tania capped off a huge 2018 with two sold out shows at the Sydney Opera House in ‘Hear Me Roar’, celebrating iconic female artists who changed the world through their music.

Tania Doko says:

This is one of those unplanned, didn’t-see-this-coming little chapter in my career I’m embracing with a sense of adventure and excitement. Then, as a songwriter performing a song I co-wrote, there’s the icing on the cake right there!

Australia in Eurovision

Australia debuted at the Eurovision Song Contest in 2015 and has competed in our beloved competition four times.

The Aussies invited to compete at the 2015 Eurovision Song Contest in Vienna, as a one off participation but the country embraced the competition with such enthusiasm that they have been invited to retun every year since.

Australia achieved its best result in the contest in 2016 when Dami Im nearly walked away with the coveted Eurovision trophy with her entry Sound of silence, placing 2nd in Stockholm.

Our neighbours down under have enjoyed much succcess in the contest having achieved three top 10 placings in their four year Eurovision history.

In 2018 SBS went internal for the fourth consecutive year and selected Jessica Mauboy to represent Australia at the Eurovision Song Contest in Lisbon with her entry We got love. Despite a magnificent performance Australia placed 20th in the Grand Final in Portugal.