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Without immigration, there’d be no Eurovision in Australia

  • Writer: Dale Roberts
    Dale Roberts
  • Aug 31
  • 3 min read
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As some anti-immigration marches take place today, it’s worth pausing to reflect on just how much migration has enriched our nation.


We may be biased, but few examples capture this better than the Eurovision Song Contest.


Without immigration, Australia wouldn’t just have fewer voices on stage; we likely wouldn’t have a Eurovision story at all.


SBS created to serve Australia's migrant communities


Almost half of Australians (48.2%) have a parent born overseas, while 27.6% were born abroad themselves.


And it's this migration that was the catalyst for Australia's love affair with Eurovision.


The Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) was founded in the late 1970s specifically to serve migrant communities, bringing them news and entertainment in their own languages.


When SBS began broadcasting Eurovision in 1983, it was in direct response to the demand of these communities, who wanted to stay connected to their culture.


Without immigration, there would be no-longstanding Eurovision broadcasts, no SBS Eurovision nights, and no pathway for Australia to join the Contest.


Our Eurovision artists: Stories of immigration

You only need to look at the artists who have competed at Eurovision for Australia to see how immigration has shaped the contest here.


  • Guy Sebastian (Born in Malaysia and family migrated to Australia)

  • Dami Im (Born in South Korea and family migrated to Australia)

  • Jessica Mauboy (Father born in Indonesia and migrated to Australia)

  • Montaigne (Family has heritage from Philippines, France, Spain, Argentina)

  • Sheldon Riley (Father is Filipino)

  • Voyager (Lead singer Danny Estrin born in Germany and family migrated to Australia)

  • Go-Jo (Father is French and Go-Jo has dual citizenship).


All of these artists carry connections to Europe or the Asia-Pacific region, and each represents the rich tapestry of cultures that immigration brings to Australia.


Many other Australians have competed for other nations due to their ties to that nation. These include Denmark, Cyprus, the UK and Armenia.


Our other Eurovision stars


Outside of artists, many of our commentators and personalities we associate with Eurovision have migrant backgrounds.


  • Commentator: Julia Zemiro (Born in France and family migrated to Australia)

  • Commentator: Sam Pang (Family is of Chinese heritage)

  • Vote reader/legend: Lee Lin Chin (Born in Indonesia of Chinese heritage, grew up in Singapore and migrated to Australia)


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Australia Decides: A representation of our nation


In the three years of Eurovision - Australia Decides, many artists competed who either migrated or had strong ties to European and Asia-Pacific nations. These included:


  • Taiwan: Jaguar Jonze

  • The Philippines: Seann Miley Moore, Erica Padilla

  • Malaysia: Jordan-Ravi

  • Fiji: Paulini

  • Greece: Leea Nanos, Andrew Lambrou, Diana Rouvas

  • Italy: Alfie Arcuri, Mark Vincent, Aydan Calafiore, Vanessa Amorosi

  • Albania: Tania Doko


This line-up shows how immigration isn’t an abstract idea; it’s lived out on stage in music.


Immigration is Australia's Eurovision story


Every aspect of Australia’s Eurovision journey, from the broadcaster to the artists to the audiences, is built on immigration.


So as debates rage, let’s be clear: without immigration, there’d be no SBS Eurovision broadcasts, no Dami Im in Stockholm, no Australia Decides on the Gold Coast, and no Australian presence in the world’s biggest song contest for 10 years straight.


Immigration doesn’t just enrich our culture, it’s the reason Australia is even in Eurovision at all.


For continued updates on all Eurovision Song Contest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, YouTube, Threads, Bluesky and Instagram. All the links can be found at: https://linktr.ee/aussievisionnet




 
 
 

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