With the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 all wrapped up, we're now looking ahead to the 2023 Contest.
We are exploring artists who we would love to see compete at 'Eurovision - Australia Decides' and get their opportunity to represent us at the Contest.
Today we look at singer-songwriter Vera Blue, otherwise known as Celia Pavey, and why we think she would make an outstanding artist to compete at 'Eurovision - Australia Decides'!
An Amazing Voice
Celia Pavey blew the coaches away with her raw folk-style vocals when she auditioned for Season 2 of 'The Voice Australia' in 2013. The then 19-year old from Forbes, in central western New South Wales, had Delta Goodrem, Joel Madden, Seal and Ricky Martin shaking their heads in disbelief as she tackled Simon & Garfunkel's 'Scarborough Fair' with guitar in hand.
Choosing Delta Goodrem as her coach, Celia made it all the way to the series Grand Final where she ultimately finished in third place.
Word spread of Celia's unique vocal talent with her Blind Audition video having amassed over 14 million YouTube views since her performance nine years ago.
And it is this quality that would make her a perfect candidate to represent Australia at Eurovision. She has a voice with instant jury appeal that would surely attract a lot of votes with the right song.
And as Australia generally does better with juries than the televote, it makes sense for us to send a singer who has the unique vocal ability to attract the jury's attention.
Versatility
But Pavey definitely has the versatility to also appeal to televoters. After her time on 'The Voice Australia', she released her debut studio album 'This Music' which peaked at number 14 in Australia. She followed it up with debut EP 'Bodies' in 2014.
In August 2015, Pavey announced she would now be releasing music under the name Vera Blue. The transition saw a change from the raw stripped back style of her earlier releases to a more electronic sound.
And it seems the new direction only gained her even more fans as single 'Hold' from 2016 EP 'Fingertips' peaked at number 5 on the US Spotify viral top 50 chart and number 1 on the Australian Viral 50 chart.
Having mastered the folk and electro sound, Vera showed her versatility later in 2016, collaborating with rapper Illy on single 'Papercuts' which peaked at no.2 on the ARIA singles charts.
And it is this versatility that would also make Vera Blue a perfect fit for Eurovision. Her ability to combine the folk and electro genres so effortlessly could see her appealing to a wide demographic.
Her music is renowned for its 'current' sound yet shows off her amazing vocal versatility and storytelling ability - surely a recipe for Eurovision success!
Authenticity
Vera is a true musician, not only writing her own material but also playing the guitar, violin and piano.
2017 saw the release of 'Perennial' featuring singles 'Private' and 'Regular Touch', the latter placing 15th on Triple J's 2017 Hottest 100. The album peaked at no.6 on the Australian ARIA charts.
The Lady Powers EP followed in 2018 with multiple single releases since, the most notable being 2019's 'Rushing Back', a collaboration with musician Flume which peaked at #8 on the ARIA charts.
Most recent single 'The Curse' was released in May and was written by Vera at the piano in her apartment, taking inspiration from the lives of people she is close to and real life events.
And it is this ability to write songs about very relatable human experiences that would surely see Vera Blue have mass appeal. In recent years, we have seen a trend of authenticity being rewarded at Eurovision with televoters and juries seeming to prefer songs that have been written or co-written by the artist. Vera definitely ticks this box!
Experience
Vera is no stranger to live television which can only be a positive when it comes to representing your country on the Eurovision stage. She has performed multiple times at Australia's ARIA Awards and also appeared on the ABC's televised New Year's Eve Concert from Sydney Harbour and Sydney's Bushfire Relief Concert.
She has extensive touring experience, having supported artists such as Conrad Sewell, Matt Corby, Broods and Flume and has also toured around Australia in her own right, her next show being at Central Park, South Townsville on August 20.
Vera deserves to have her music heard across the world and would be a fantastic artist to watch at 'Eurovision - Australia Decides'! Let's hope we might see her name when the artists are announced later this year!
You can find out more about Vera Blue at -
Official Website - http://www.verablue.com
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/verabluemusic
Instagram - @verabluemusic
Twitter - @verabluemusic
Tik Tok - @verablueofficial
For continued updates on all the Eurovision news follow Aussievision on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. All links at: https://linktr.ee/aussievisionnet