In a huge morning for Eurovision fans in Australia, SBS announced four new artists, a nationwide TikTok wildcard contest and an international special guest for ‘Eurovision - Australia Decides’ 2022.
The four artists announced are Perth’s metal group Voyager, pop newcomer Charley, Seann Miley Moore from The Voice, and young singer-songwriter Jude York (with their songs will be released at a later date.)
Joining them on stage on the Gold Coast will be a wildcard 11th artist from a nationwide TikTok contest which you can find out more on here.
Additionally, Norwegian group KEiiNO, who won the televote at Eurovision 2019, will be special international guests at the contest.
One of the four artists announced is Voyager, they may be familiar to eagle-eyed fans as they just missed out on making the line-up of ‘Eurovision - Australia Decides’ in 2020 but were featured during the show.
The group blend metal and pop including the use of a keytar (a keyboard guitar) and their frontman Danny Estrin is a long-time Eurovision fanatic and day-time lawyer. He shared his excitement about taking part saying,
“Eurovision is the greatest show on earth, so getting a chance to represent Western Australia and to showcase our keytar driven brand of heavy music is one of the most exciting and surreal opportunities to ever come our way!! So, thank you Australia for giving us the opportunity to take you on a voyage with us in what has been a lifelong dream.”
Seann Miley Moore will be known to many through his appearance on The Voice Australia in 2021 however he has a long career spanning musical theatre, the European pride circuit and the X Factor in the United Kingdom. He shared his eagerness to show off his true self on stage, saying,
“I don't stand here like 'I want to be different', 'I want to be unique', or 'I want to wear all this to be seen and heard.' I stand here as a proud queer man, a proud brown man and most importantly, a proud Australian - it comes down to authenticity and happiness. Doing all these things make me happy. They make me feel alive. That's what matters. Eurovision is about celebrating your pride and I’m ready to give you all the fabulous joy baby!”
Charley is an emerging new talent on the Australian pop scene with her debut singles ‘Hard for Me’ and ‘Arizona’ both released in 2021. She shared her excitement about taking part saying,
“Eurovision has always seemed so out of reach, but now I feel one step closer by performing at ‘Eurovision – Australia Decides’ on the Gold Coast. I’m so excited as my family and I are huge fans and I can’t wait to do them proud. I wrote my song two and a half years ago about my biggest heartbreak, so being able to turn something so dark into something beautiful is a really special moment for me."
The fourth artist announced, Jude York, should be familiar to many fans as he was previously revealed as a songwriter for ‘Eurovision - Australia Decides. The 22-year-old has now been announced as the performing artist for the song and Jude shared his delight saying,
"When I found out that my song was selected from the portal, I was already incredibly honoured and excited. Now to know that I’m also performing it live on one of Australia’s biggest platforms is more than I could have possibly asked for! The song is all about believing that dreams do come true, and I feel like mine really are right now!"
The four acts join the six previously announced artists - Sheldon Riley, G-Nat!on, Andrew Lambrou, PAULINI, Jaguar Jonze, and Isaiah Firebrace who will be singing a duet with a soon-to-be-revealed Australian artist.
You can get tickets to see the artists perform for their spot on the Eurovision stage as well as fan-favourites KEiiNO on the Gold Coast February 25 and 26.