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Eurovision comes out from behind the curtains and onto centre stage

The Australian final to decide who will go to Eurovision returns to the Gold Coast Convention Centre this weekend – the first time Australia Decides has been staged in front of an audience since Covid began two years ago.

Feb 25, 2022, updated Feb 25, 2022
TikTok wildcard winner Erica Padilla. (Image: Supplied)

TikTok wildcard winner Erica Padilla. (Image: Supplied)

The winner will be revealed live during the SBS broadcast, which will feature a diverse lineup of 11 Australian acts.

The finalists come from across the musical spectrum, from prog metal 80’s pop influence band Voyager, to well established names such as Paulini, Evie Irie and Isaiah Firebrace, all competing for their chance to represent Australia at the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 in Italy in May.

Adelaide based R and B girl band G Nation arrived on the Gold Coast yesterday (Wednesday) after a bumpy flight in for rehearsals, with band members Emma Caporaso and Isla Ward excited by the opportunity to remind audiences of their distinctive style, which many haven’t seen since their first debut on The Voice.

Emma said their performance will have a few surprises.

“We love `Bite Me’ as it is as a song, but we think our performance is definitely going to bring it to life and really just show people the G-Nat!on flare and the performance dynamic that we can bring,” she said.

Isla says performing at Australia Decides is a dream they’ve had since they were children that they never thought would be realised.

“It’s exciting with Eurovision because there really is no boundary and there’s no limit on what you can and can’t do,” Isla said.

“And I think that’s really exciting for artists because there’s a platform where you can go out, be yourself, sing a song that has meaning to you and lots of fans out there, and just bring yourself to a stage. I think there’s really no other stage that really hones into that sort of excitement. And we’re just excited to go out there and be on a show that we’ve watched since we were little. So we can’t wait.”

Emma says they are focussing on the finals performance rather than being distracted by the possibility of going to Italy.

“In all seriousness it would seriously be a dream, I think,” she said.

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“We’ve grown up watching the show and it’s such an inspiring platform for artists of all different genres and all different audiences to come together. So to make it to Italy would be a dream and we’re up against amazing talent. So it would be a long shot, but if we get enough votes, you never know.”

Emma hopes their song brings an injection of joy on stage, helping people put the difficulties of covid behind them.

“Yeah, that period of covid was definitely hard, I think for a lot of artists,” Emma said.

“We went from performing and writing and doing the whole shebang to nothing.

“2020 was really, really quiet for us. But as much as it was very hard and a very distressing time, we enjoyed growing and finding ourselves as a band in that time, it was actually really special because I feel like if you compare pre-2020 and us on The Voice, we’ve completely changed as a band. So there were pros and cons, but I think we’re grateful for the time to develop as an artist.”

Fellow finalist Sheldon Riley is returning to where he grew up on the Gold Coast and has brought his world wide following with him in his bid to perform to one of the world’s largest TV audiences in Turin.

It’s also the first time a Tik Tok performer has been allowed into the finals. Erica Padilla attracted millions of views across her TikTok Wildcard submissions and grew her following to more than 1.2 million fans across the world.

“Eurovision has made some of the greats and to be chosen as the TikTok Wildcard gives me so much hope,” Erica said.

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