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Legislative Council - Fifty-Third Parliament, Second Session (53-2)
2015-06-17 Daily Xml
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Eurovision Song Contest

The Hon. J.S. LEE (17:26): I move:

That this council—

1. Congratulates Guy Sebastian on representing Australia and placing fifth at the 60th Eurovision Song Contest in Vienna;

2. Acknowledges the importance of having Australia represented at Eurovision, one of the longest running and most popular television shows in Europe; and

3. Notes that Guy Sebastian is one of Australia’s most successful male artists and has been an active member and contributor to the South Australian community.

I rise to speak on this motion today because, as a proud Australian, I was excited to see Australia being recognised on the world stage at the 60th Eurovision Song Contest. The competition, held in Vienna, attracted close to 200 million people. Locally, SBS recorded that 4.2 million Australians watched the semi-finals and grand final of Eurovision this year.

I would like to use this motion to highlight a number of key themes: the impact of pop culture in our society; the impact of pop culture on our economy; the connectivity of Australia with the rest of the world; the showcase of multiculturalism; and the positive influence of a successful migrant ambassador in our community. As honourable members would know, popular culture (or pop culture) comprises ideas, perspectives, attitudes, images and other phenomena that are within the mainstream of a given culture.

The most common pop culture categories are entertainment (such as movies, music and TV), sports, fashion, and sometimes politics. Pop culture is heavily influenced by mass media and across social media. The collection of ideas permeates the everyday lives of a society. Over the last 60 years the Eurovision competition has been broadcast not only throughout Europe also in Canada, Egypt, Hong Kong, India, Jordan, Korea, New Zealand, the United States of America and, of course, Australia. It is no surprise that it is broadcast in Australia, because Australia is a proud country of migrants.

Eurovision is exceptionally popular, and is one of the longest-running European television shows in history. Over the last 60 years over 1,400 songs have been sung, and the contest has launched the careers of some exceptionally well-known artists, including ABBA, Celine Dion and Cliff Richard, as well as dance performances such as Riverdance.

This is the first time in history that Australia has been invited to compete in the contest as a wild card entry. It was a wonderful opportunity for Australia to be recognised on the world stage, with Eurovision audiences numbering close to 200 million. This participation demonstrates the connectivity of Australia to the world.

In early March 2015 Guy Sebastian was selected to represent Australia at Eurovision in Vienna, and was awarded fifth place in the 60th Eurovision Song Contest. SBS recorded the audience over the Eurovision final weekend, and the contest delivered record ratings for the network. More than 4.2 million Australians watched the semi-finals or grand final over that weekend, compared to 2.7 million who tuned in last year. The Australian government has also recognised and congratulated Guy Sebastian on his top five placement in the Eurovision Song Contest. The federal arts minister George Brandis said, 'Sebastian is a "wonderful ambassador" for Australian musical talent on the international stage, where he won the hearts of European audiences.'

Guy Sebastian, an Australian migrant from Malaysia, has taken the music world by storm. I remember when he won the inaugural Australian Idol series in 2003. Being an Australian Malaysian, I was very connected to the Malaysian community and I was bombarded by a number postings on Facebook regarding Guy Sebastian. There was such excitement throughout South Australia with people voting for him.

Guy Sebastian's performance during Eurovision not only advanced his profile and Australia's profile to an international audience, it showcased Australia's highly competitive, talent driven music industry. Australia has a wonderful music and arts industry; however, it is a sector that, unfortunately, gets little recognition. Many honourable members may have attended the Adelaide Cabaret Festival. You would have heard the renowned genius Barry Humphries when he launched the festival. He suggested that the best and wicked way to fund the arts industry is to simply register the theatre as a sport. He also said, 'Please, no more bridges over the Torrens,' as he refers to the $40 million footbridge—actually we spent more.

The arts industry in South Australia is regularly overlooked and therefore to have an Adelaide educated musician impressing audiences on a global stage is truly remarkable and ought to be recognised. Guy is not only a musical icon but he is an ambassador for multiculturalism. Guy Sebastian was born in Klang, Malaysia, on 26 October 1981. His father Ivan was also born in Malaysia but is of Sri Lankan Tamil descent with distant colonial Portuguese roots, while his mother Nellie is of English and Portuguese descent and was raised in India. Guy Sebastian is the second of four sons. His older brother, Ollie, was born in India and his young brothers, Chris and Jeremy, were born in Australian after the family migrated in 1988.

As a child, Guy Sebastian took violin lessons, and although he had no formal training in other musical instruments, he also plays guitar, drums and piano. Guy Sebastian attended Paradise Community Church, an Assemblies of God church and one of the largest churches in Australia. He actually became one of their main worship singers. After graduating from King's Baptist Grammar School, Guy began studies in medical radiation and radiotherapy at the University of South Australia, but he left to pursue a career in music. He taught vocals at Temple Christian College and other high schools while also working as a recording engineer and studying music technology at the University of Adelaide's Elder School of Music.

Along with these commitments, Guy Sebastian also sang with the Paradise Community Church Youth Conference Planetshakers, performing both lead and backup vocals for their 2002 and 2003 conferences and albums. From all of Sebastian's community work and musical studies, he entered the inaugural Australian Idol competition in 2003, which was the platform to his successful musical career. His first solo single Angels Brought Me Here debuted at number one and was the fastest selling Australian single in ARIA chart history. He won the ARIA award for the highest selling single, which propelled him to take his career from strength to strength.

Today Guy Sebastian is labelled as the only Australian male artist to have ever achieved six number one singles and two number one albums in chart history. He has one of the best success stories and is a genuine musician who has exceptional talent. Over the course of his career, he has received 22 ARIA award nominations, including Single of the Year, Best Male Artist and Best Pop Artist. He released 11 top 10 singles, three top 15 singles—six of those singles have achieved multi-platinum certification, including the eight times platinum Battle Scars. With 42 platinum and three gold certifications and combined album and single sales of over 3 million in Australia, Sebastian has achieved a lot within his musical career.

Through his innovation and vision, he has recorded albums in Los Angeles with many world-leading artists within the music field. He also participated as a judge on Channel 7's TheX Factor. He mentored a number of upcoming Australian artists and helped them enter the music industry. Guy Sebastian is an outstanding success story who promotes multiculturalism. He has also continuously made great artistic and economic contributions to Australia. He deserves to be recognised and congratulated for his success in just the way that sports people and Olympians are recognised in the sports sector.

With all the accolades he receives in the music industry, in Australia and worldwide, Guy stays humble and remains connected to the community. He and his wife launched the Sebastian Foundation in 2013. The foundation works in conjunction with a range of different benevolent organisations, both nationally and on a global scale, in order to create lasting change in the lives of those less fortunate. The foundation was instigated to encourage the potential in each and every individual, essentially seeking to provide a chance at a better life.

Learning the story behind Guy Sebastian and his success as a migrant is a true example that Australia is the land of opportunity. Sebastian has excelled on the world stage through Eurovision and I wish to congratulate him on his success and his contributions to the Australian music and arts industry, the economy, and in helping disadvantaged people in our community through his foundation. With those remarks, I commend this motion to the council.

Debate adjourned on motion of Hon. J.S.L. Dawkins.

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