Australia: Three more acts for "Eurovision: Australia Decides 2022" revealed

Australia: Three more acts for
Friday, 26 November 2021

  • SBS, Australia's national broadcaster, has revealed three more acts that will be competing in the country's nationl final for Eurovision 2022, 'Eurovision: Australia Decides'. 

    The next Australian ESC hopeful will be selected through the show Eurovision – Australia Decides which is set to take place in Gold Cost on February 26, 2022 and will once again be presented by the comedian Joel Creasey and music buff Myf Warhurst for the third consecutive time. 

    The Australian broadcast had received more than 700 songs for the national final. After shortlisting the songs, the broadcaster is now trying to select the appropriate act for each song. 

    Following the revelation of the first three competing acts of the national final, SBS unveiled three more act that ambition to represent the land down under at Eurovision 2022. Namely those are Sheldon Riley, G-Nat!on, Andrew Lambrou.

     

    Sheldon Riley

    Riley was born on March 14, 1999, to an Australian mother and a Filipino father. His real name is Sheldon Hernandez. He recalls a childhood that was “lots of fun” but also quite difficult. He is now 22 years old.

    Sheldon Riley, then 19, made it to the Grand Finale of The Voice Australia on the first try and again in The Voice, All-Stars 2019. His bold, original sound won the hearts of coaches Delta Goodrem,  Boy George, and Kelly Rowland,  Joe Jonas. He performed Boy George’s hit “Do You Really Want to Hurt Me” on The Voice. 

    Sheldon Riley was on the season 8 of The X Factor, as a member of Time and Place, who were eliminated on the first live show. Celebrities like Sam Smith, Adam Lambert, and different drag queens follows Sheldon on Instagram and got some really cool exposure from different people.

    Sheldon also sailed further in international fame by taking part at 'America's Got Talent Show ‘AGT’ Season 15.

     

    Sheldon stated:

    “It has always been the highlight, waking up at 5am every year to watch from Australia. Growing up on the Gold Coast, watching Conchita for the first time was proof to me that the world will choose different if given the chance to see it. I am different but I have found my place on mainstream television where I never fit the mould, on radio that has never played music like mine, festivals you’d never think I’d fit the bill for because I always dare to dream… in my fashion and my music always bringing that little bit of Eurovision magic with me every time. I’m so proud of the artist I am today, wearing my crystal mask in so many parts of the world. It would be an honour to represent Australia and bring my sparkle to Europe! After all these years of dreaming and creating the artist I am today. It’s all coming to life in epic fashion, LIVE on stage!”

     

    G-Nat!on

    G-Nat!on is a Six piece girl group - consisting of Isla Ward, 17, Taylah Silvestri, 18, Emma Caporaso, 18, Mateja Sardelis, 16, Alessia Musolino, 17 and Rylee Vormelker, 17- formed in Adelaide via the Australian Company of Performing Arts in 2017. They call their style R& B and pop-affected.

    The young ladies are loaded with incredible vocals and very much planned movements and have their hearts set on having an effect in the Australian music scene. The girl band outstands with their powerful vocals and harmonies delivering all their performances showcasing their talent. No surprise that this year they made it to the grade final of The Voice Australia  under the mentorship of Rita Ora. 

     One of the group's members, Emma, stated: 

    “We are beyond honoured to be the first ever girl-group to perform at Eurovision – Australia Decides! It is so exciting to be a part of the creativity, inspiration, and diversity that Eurovision brings every year, and we cannot wait to bring our song to life on the national stage. Full of strong harmonies and edgy choreography, our song is a dance-pop explosion set to provide the ultimate live show experience. We hope our performance inspires other young people to be strong, powerful, and confident in themselves – see you on the Gold Coast!”

     

    Andrew Lambrou

    Sydney-based musician Andrew Lambrou with a Greek - Cypriot famlily backgroud. Songwriter and singer,  the musician has spent the last few years with his head down, building an audience and a skillset in songwriting and performing through work he's teased over the last few years. 

    He has been singing since the age of 5 where he discovered his love for music at AMS music school where he learnt to play the piano. His  music is pop with dark elements to it, although dark sounding, most of his songs have a very uplifting positive message. He's influenced by so many different styles, and has always had a huge passion for movie music which is where the dark element comes  from.

    At the age of 17 he took part in the X-factor Australia show in 2015 reaching the top-20 acts of the competition. 

    After year's of covers and music making, earlier in the year he reached the point where it all came together; the musician signed to City Pop Records - joining Mia Rodriguez and Mason Watts - to launch his debut single Throne into the world.

     

    The younged talented act said: 

    “I’m so thrilled to be a part of Eurovision – Australia Decides 2022! I’ve grown up watching Eurovision with my family, admiring all that goes into it and seeing artists show their craft to the world, and to be a part of this show is like a dream come true. I’m so excited to show Australia my artistry, and to potentially represent my country in this amazing song contest is the most encouraging thought for me.”

     

    The national final is set for Saturday, February 26 and will once again be presented by the comedian Joel Creasey and music buff Myf Warhurst for the third consecutive time. More names for the national final along with their respective entries will come to light over the following weeks. 

     

    Australia In Eurovision 

    Australia has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest five times since their debut at the 2015 contest in Vienna. Although Australia’s first participation in the 2015 contest was set to be a single time participation, the country was invited to take part in the following years successively. Last year after an agreement with EBU, Australia secured its participation up to 2023.

    The country’s best result in the contest is Dami Im’s 2nd place in 2016. Australia has also finished in the top ten in three of its other appearances in the contest, with Guy Sebastian finishing fifth in 2015, and Isaiah Firebrace finishing ninth in 2017 . In 2019 , Kate Miller Heidke won the first national final to take place in the country and represented the land of Down Under at Tel Aviv with her song “Zero Gravity”. Kate achieved a 9th placing marking the country’s return back in the top 10.

    In 2020 Montaigne  won the country’s 2nd national final in history. Eurovision: Australia Decides 2020, held in Gold Coast , Queensland last February. Her entry “Don’t Break Me” achieved to top the jury voting and came second in the public vote. However due to the covid-19 outbreak the contest was cancelled and Montaigne never had the chance to compete in Rotterdam. 

    Nevertheless, SBS internally selected Montaigne to represent the country in Eurovision 2021 with her song "Technicolour". The Australian hopeful once again wasn't able to travel to Rotterdam because of the ongoing travel restrictions. She competed in the first semi final with her live on tape performance but failed to qualify to the Grand final. 

    News Source: SBS