Speaker 1: It's in the news today, but it was actually on
Speaker 1: TV Reload the podcast part Deepabine. Welcome to TV Reload.
Speaker 1: My name is Benjamin Norris, and this is your podcast
Speaker 1: to get all the inside goss on the popular TV
Speaker 1: shows you may be watching from around the world. Undeniably,
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Speaker 1: I'll make sure you feel as included in the production
Speaker 1: of this show as I possibly can. On today's episode,
Speaker 1: I have a full debrief with the eliminated contestants from
Speaker 1: Australian Idol twenty twenty three. We had our top twelve
Speaker 1: performers cut down to ten this week, and I for
Speaker 1: one was quite shocked with some very talented singers getting
Speaker 1: sent home. Maya and jac brought a lot to the
Speaker 1: Channel seven competition and I think, if anything, we now
Speaker 1: know how tough the twenty twenty three rebooted Australian Idol
Speaker 1: is going to get. My first guest, Maya is the
Speaker 1: oldest contestant this year at twenty eight years of age.
Speaker 1: I love that she always saw herself going on the
Speaker 1: Idol stage and never back down from her dreams. We
Speaker 1: will talk judges comments, being the Mamma Bear amongst a
Speaker 1: very young Top twelve, how she took the elimination and
Speaker 1: what is next. Then twenty five year old jac Fox
Speaker 1: will join me to unpack his time on the show.
Speaker 1: It's no secret that he was my favorite, so you
Speaker 1: may notice a lot of information coming from me. Jayce
Speaker 1: has a truckload of talent and an infectious passion for
Speaker 1: the entertainment industry. And today we will discuss taking rejection,
Speaker 1: not giving up, and we'll also talk about Australian Idol
Speaker 1: and why it isn't just about the voice. Plus we
Speaker 1: will get some exclusives on the new series, including some
Speaker 1: behind the scenes secrets which I'm sure you will love. However,
Speaker 1: let's bring Maya into the podcast first and stick around
Speaker 1: for Jayce as he'll be coming up straight after. How
Speaker 1: are you feeling off the back of that last night's elimination?
Speaker 2: Ah?
Speaker 3: God, you know, I woke up actually last night I
Speaker 3: was a little bit maybe a bit embarrassed, a bit sad.
Speaker 2: The shock was strong.
Speaker 3: Woke up this morning to an amazing surprise, which was
Speaker 3: hundreds of people being like, you were robbed, this is
Speaker 3: really do we love you?
Speaker 2: What the hell would have voted more? All this stuff
Speaker 2: that I just did not expect.
Speaker 1: So what a time to be alive, What a time
Speaker 1: to get yeah, and.
Speaker 3: What a time to go off the show too, Like
Speaker 3: I don't think I would have if I had gone
Speaker 3: on longer, would have had this response.
Speaker 2: So that's been amazing.
Speaker 1: Well, this is a part of your story. So that's
Speaker 1: the one thing I always say. You've got to listen
Speaker 1: to the ground and then move with the flow. And
Speaker 1: being one of the first two out of the top
Speaker 1: twelve may look a certain way at the time, but
Speaker 1: then you make that work in a way.
Speaker 2: You know.
Speaker 1: I was going to ask you though, Live TV was
Speaker 1: back last night and it must have been quite exciting
Speaker 1: to be a part of it. How was the experience
Speaker 1: last night?
Speaker 2: It was intense.
Speaker 3: I mean, there was a lot of energies going around,
Speaker 3: a lot of people on nervous streaks. But yeah, it
Speaker 3: was great to see Megan perform. It was great to
Speaker 3: get a group performance before we left as well.
Speaker 2: Loved that.
Speaker 3: But yeah, I think that's the part that I'm most
Speaker 3: sad to leave is the live shows.
Speaker 1: Once the lights came down, you know, what was the
Speaker 1: aftermath like for you? I mean, where did you go
Speaker 1: after the show? And where was your head at?
Speaker 2: I think I was.
Speaker 3: I felt a little bit like I was in a dream,
Speaker 3: you know, because I guess you don't really know how
Speaker 3: to expect to leave. I knew in my gut the
Speaker 3: whole day that I was going to be in the
Speaker 3: bottom four. And I feel bad saying that because we
Speaker 3: should all try to be positive, but I knew it.
Speaker 3: I could just sense it, so I was kind of
Speaker 3: I was just kind of expecting it. I was walking
Speaker 3: around as soon as the lights went down and just
Speaker 3: saying my goodbyes mentally to the studio that i'd been
Speaker 3: in for the last two months, basically living next door
Speaker 3: in the hotel. And I actually, actually the more it
Speaker 3: settles in, I'm not as sad as I thought i'd
Speaker 3: be last night. Like last night, I was thinking, Oh,
Speaker 3: I'm going to be so embarrassed. I'm going to wake
Speaker 3: up in the morning. I'm going to feel like a failure.
Speaker 3: I'm going to, you know, think that all these people
Speaker 3: see me like a failure. But just waking up to
Speaker 3: so much positive energy and so many people, it's a
Speaker 3: game changer. And I think that the other contestants are phenomenal.
Speaker 3: Jac and I are definitely different performers and different people
Speaker 3: in a way, We're a bit more experienced, So I'm
Speaker 3: not upset to leave as like a representation of my
Speaker 3: career anymore.
Speaker 2: I'm not feeling that like I was last night.
Speaker 1: You nailed these performances, Like you know, I'm looking back.
Speaker 1: I was rewatching them this morning. I went back and
Speaker 1: I watched everything that you contributed vocally to this series,
Speaker 1: and you are such a talented woman.
Speaker 3: I really appreciate that because for me, performing is my
Speaker 3: favorite and I don't even think this show I really
Speaker 3: got to give my strongest performance yet. So I just
Speaker 3: want to try to make as much content as I
Speaker 3: can to show people now with my own platform, what
Speaker 3: I can do. But I hope people come to my
Speaker 3: gigs because like live, I really yeah, I really really
Speaker 3: love just connecting with people in a live format.
Speaker 1: Do you think that maybe the voters this year might
Speaker 1: be a little bit too enamored with well, this person's fifteen,
Speaker 1: you know. Do you think maybe there's a little bit
Speaker 1: of something extra I guess to support because wow, they're
Speaker 1: younger contestants.
Speaker 2: Yes, I definitely do.
Speaker 3: And that's why I've been saying all morning with jac
Speaker 3: there's no possible way to compare me to someone like
Speaker 3: Angelina or Amali or Phoebe. We are so different, we
Speaker 3: come from completely different levels of expertise.
Speaker 2: I just can't.
Speaker 3: I feel like they deserve and need to be there
Speaker 3: in a way, even maybe more than me from now on.
Speaker 1: I think that is a good way for you to
Speaker 1: look at this, because you know, also, so we haven't
Speaker 1: had Australia really controlling the vote on a reality show
Speaker 1: for quite a while, so we don't really know who
Speaker 1: picks up the phone anymore. And maybe this is telling
Speaker 1: as to the type of people who are voting. Maybe
Speaker 1: younger people are voting, and maybe younger people are voting
Speaker 1: for people that they can see more in themselves.
Speaker 2: Yeah, and that's it.
Speaker 3: I was looking around in the crowd, and I've been
Speaker 3: looking online and it is I think just because of
Speaker 3: the age limit as well, and how jac he's twenty
Speaker 3: five and he was the second oldest to me, and
Speaker 3: then everyone else is below twenty four. So I definitely
Speaker 3: think the people watching are young. And I think when
Speaker 3: you're a young kid. I remember watching Idol, I did
Speaker 3: not connect at all with the people who were above
Speaker 3: twenty five because I was like thirteen and just saw
Speaker 3: them as adults. And I think now that they have phones,
Speaker 3: they're sitting there and they're texting every single second, and
Speaker 3: I just my fans are more people who don't have
Speaker 3: that need inside of them. They just look at me
Speaker 3: and they think, oh, she's a great singer.
Speaker 4: We like her.
Speaker 3: We're not going to sit there day texting over and
Speaker 3: over again. We might just give her a follow on
Speaker 3: the internet and follow her career. It's just a different thing.
Speaker 1: With you know, so many of those young contestants. Was
Speaker 1: it hard not to mother them a little bit? I mean,
Speaker 1: what was going on?
Speaker 3: I was mummy Maya. It wasn't even if from the
Speaker 3: minute I got there, I was designated mama. And that's
Speaker 3: maybe where you know, if I was a competitive person
Speaker 3: at all, which I'm not, I would have maybe you know,
Speaker 3: no way, but just maybe taking more time to sleep
Speaker 3: and not have been there as much for some of
Speaker 3: the people that I had.
Speaker 2: But at the end of the day, I wouldn't have
Speaker 2: changed that even if I tried.
Speaker 3: You know, I'm a person who just loves people and
Speaker 3: loves especially musicians, and I would give everything over and
Speaker 3: over again to go like I would go out again
Speaker 3: at this time, just to have helped and connected with
Speaker 3: the other contestants in the way that I did. And
Speaker 3: I think that will that they'll remember that, and I'll
Speaker 3: remember that coming out of this experience, and all the
Speaker 3: producers were saying, you know, like how easy and I
Speaker 3: was to work with and how sad they were to
Speaker 3: see me leave, And I just don't think they'll forget that,
Speaker 3: or I'll forget that. So I'm happy that I just
Speaker 3: at least finished it in such a positive way.
Speaker 1: Well, I think this is a good question to ask you,
Speaker 1: but as far as the judging goes, who do you
Speaker 1: think actually gives the best advice for the competition?
Speaker 3: Look, I personally think that people put a lot of
Speaker 3: hate on Kyle, but I think he's got a really
Speaker 3: semi honest perception of people and music, and especially in
Speaker 3: his face. You know, I think it's really hard on
Speaker 3: this show because you want to encourage everyone, and everyone
Speaker 3: deserves the chance to be told they're great. But there
Speaker 3: is times when I think some people are told they're great,
Speaker 3: but they're actually just in my opinion, it wasn't their
Speaker 3: best performance. And I think the show's had a fair
Speaker 3: bit of that lately. And I think that's where I've
Speaker 3: appreciated the judges who have kind of come out and said, nah,
Speaker 3: wasn't doing it for me, because I think even if
Speaker 3: you're young, you always need to know when you're shit.
Speaker 3: And I think that was the reason I came on
Speaker 3: the show, was to grow for myself in a better way,
Speaker 3: and I appreciated every bit of constructive criticism that I
Speaker 3: got from each judge.
Speaker 1: Well, I think it's to Kyle's defense, and I mean
Speaker 1: I was watching it with friends who were like, Oh,
Speaker 1: he's the devil or why did he say that? Oh? No,
Speaker 1: you know, and I was like, you know what, in
Speaker 1: the real world, people are going to say these things
Speaker 1: to these people online, no matter how old they are.
Speaker 1: How you know, how experienced they are, so I think,
Speaker 1: you know, preparing the harsh realities is an important part
Speaker 1: of the competition, But do you think he's doing that
Speaker 1: to prepare you or do you think he's looking for
Speaker 1: a TV moment.
Speaker 2: I think there's a bit of both.
Speaker 3: I think there's definitely a need to be like a
Speaker 3: harsh judge. I think there was times, not necessarily with
Speaker 3: my performance, but others where he said things that I
Speaker 3: don't feel we're right for the performance.
Speaker 2: They felt a bit like he was just feeling a quota.
Speaker 3: But I do think I think their needs to be
Speaker 3: some level of honesty within the judges, and I think
Speaker 3: Harry's trying to do that too a little bit. I
Speaker 3: think sometimes he's harsh, like especially with the younger people
Speaker 3: like Bobby for example. I don't know if you saw,
Speaker 3: but he I think gave so much growth and so
Speaker 3: much energy, and all they did was tell him off
Speaker 3: for not having his brother there, which wasn't his fault,
Speaker 3: and stuff like that, Like especially with me with the song.
Speaker 3: A lot of people know we don't necessarily and I'm
Speaker 3: not supposed to say this, but we don't always get
Speaker 3: control with what we do. And I would have loved
Speaker 3: if I had had a bit more feedback on my
Speaker 3: vocal ability or my performance and less to do with
Speaker 3: that being a shit song.
Speaker 1: Which is a f I think to you to say, honestly,
Speaker 1: that is a fair comment.
Speaker 3: Feed Yeah, because I was just trying to do I
Speaker 3: was trying to make everyone's life easier and not be
Speaker 3: arguing for something better for me. And I think that's
Speaker 3: where as artists on these shows, you know, you can
Speaker 3: be seen as such a diva or you can be
Speaker 3: seen as an argumentative performer, but at the end of
Speaker 3: the day day, if you don't fight for who you
Speaker 3: are as an artist, you can end up being in
Speaker 3: my position where you're kicked off for not hitting people
Speaker 3: with the right emotion or you're told that you look
Speaker 3: like bad because you're wearing an outfit.
Speaker 2: That you didn't get to choose to wear.
Speaker 3: So I just think tips for anyone who ever wants
Speaker 3: to go into these shows or into the industry is,
Speaker 3: you know, stand your ground in a positive way.
Speaker 1: But then there's also time constraints, you know, as to
Speaker 1: what you feel you can say, and if you've got
Speaker 1: a time constraint on what you can get across, it's
Speaker 1: a dangerous place to be. And because if you do
Speaker 1: sound like you give a right of reply, which you
Speaker 1: have a right of reply of what these people are saying.
Speaker 1: Sometimes people will say she's not grateful, or why did
Speaker 1: she clap back, you know, all of those sorts of things.
Speaker 1: There's a lot of factors there. But I do think
Speaker 1: out of all the contestants I saw, you had a
Speaker 1: right of reply, which I don't think because seeing you
Speaker 1: as a person would have landed badly. I think you
Speaker 1: would have been able to ask a question and maybe
Speaker 1: push them to a critique on your voice or something
Speaker 1: that's going to help you long might have been okay.
Speaker 2: Yeah, absolutely, And that's where I've.
Speaker 3: Really really learnt from this, and I think I definitely
Speaker 3: think that that. I. Yeah, it's just so hard to
Speaker 3: know the line, especially as a as a female, I think,
Speaker 3: and it sounds a bit bad to say, but it
Speaker 3: is hard because I think people like Sasha and I
Speaker 3: were speaking about it yesterday and he really had to
Speaker 3: fight for some arrangement stuff, and same with Anya, and
Speaker 3: I don't think I did as much. And I think
Speaker 3: they were lucky because they're arrangements. They helped them feel
Speaker 3: more centered in the song and you.
Speaker 1: Don't want to say. I mean, I know this happens
Speaker 1: quite a bit, especially in the industry. You're like, if
Speaker 1: I'm a woman and I speak out like this, then
Speaker 1: I'm a bitch. Like I'm a gay man if I
Speaker 1: say a thing, Oh, he's always a bitchy gay you
Speaker 1: know what I mean. And then you're so not that,
Speaker 1: You're so not that at all.
Speaker 2: Yeah, And that's the thing I think.
Speaker 3: You know, it's funny you say you were a gay
Speaker 3: man because you would feel that, and I feel that
Speaker 3: sometimes it's really hard because we get sometimes boxed a
Speaker 3: little bit, and if we come out and say things
Speaker 3: that might be yeah, yeah, a truthful, people kind of
Speaker 3: sometimes think it's a bit maybe touch aggressive. And that's
Speaker 3: where you know, the younger people, it's it's easier for
Speaker 3: them because they they're just kind of very you know,
Speaker 3: you just give them a role and they'll just do it.
Speaker 3: Whereas with people in my position with performing, I know
Speaker 3: jac as well. He had a lot of opinions on
Speaker 3: how he wanted to do his performance. And it can
Speaker 3: be seen as a good thing, it can be seen
Speaker 3: as a bad thing. And if I were to do
Speaker 3: it again, the only thing that I would have changed
Speaker 3: is just standing my ground with the music, because that,
Speaker 3: to me is very important in my in the way
Speaker 3: I'm perceived as an artist. But I can now, you know,
Speaker 3: go and do any cover I want online. So at
Speaker 3: least I, you know, gave because I do want to.
Speaker 1: Go you'll have at that point. And you know, just
Speaker 1: remember there's been people that have been on who didn't
Speaker 1: even make it to the top twenty four, who've had
Speaker 1: number ones on the dance on the Dance charts, So
Speaker 1: you know, this is just a really exciting chapter for you.
Speaker 1: And as Amy Shark said last night, it might just
Speaker 1: be a shitty day, but I honestly believe it. I
Speaker 1: can hear it in the way that you're talking today.
Speaker 1: I could see it in the music that I really
Speaker 1: listened to this morning. And you have a real place
Speaker 1: in the music industry. And I just think you pick
Speaker 1: this up and you roll with it.
Speaker 3: Yeah, thank you, because it's tad. You know, you're get
Speaker 3: in your own head. But I really think if I
Speaker 3: just keep sharing and trying to connect with people and
Speaker 3: releasing fresh and new content, that I think all I
Speaker 3: wanted out of the show was to reach more people
Speaker 3: and to get growth, and I feel I have like
Speaker 3: you've done it definitely grown so much, and I'm so
Speaker 3: proud of everyone in it, and I can't I'm excited
Speaker 3: for what happens with all of us too, Like we're
Speaker 3: all boosting each other in ways I can't even begin
Speaker 3: to explain. So I know I'm going to be reading
Speaker 3: for everyone and they're going to be rooting for me too,
Speaker 3: So it's an amazing feeling.
Speaker 1: Do you feel like you know? Because I love you
Speaker 1: were talking about your instincts before, do you feel like
Speaker 1: when we ask you about your instincts on who's going
Speaker 1: to win this, do you feel like you know?
Speaker 2: I do, and I don't.
Speaker 3: I've definitely been surprised a lot, but I also know
Speaker 3: in my gut just what works for these types of environments,
Speaker 3: And yeah, I just can tell from how things have
Speaker 3: gone already. My gut's kind of in right. But I
Speaker 3: also am so open to being shocked. And I think
Speaker 3: that's where it is up to just who's doing well
Speaker 3: with the public and who's surviving the stress and just
Speaker 3: kicking on. But either way, anyone from now on has
Speaker 3: the chance to take their own career in their own hands,
Speaker 3: with or without the show, can you give us the name? Look,
Speaker 3: I mean I always always thought that Royson was going
Speaker 3: to do well, just because he's such a little gem
Speaker 3: and he's got, you know, to me, such a great message.
Speaker 3: But I do not know. I have no idea. I
Speaker 3: love them all. I just have a feeling that he'll
Speaker 3: maybe be in the top three.
Speaker 1: And something I ask everyone who joins the podcast is
Speaker 1: what's something from behind the scenes. You know, we finished
Speaker 1: the podcast like this every time. What's something that was
Speaker 1: something that happened to you while making this show, something
Speaker 1: that the audiences won't say.
Speaker 3: I Harry spoke to everyone who came off the show,
Speaker 3: but the way he spoke to us was so surprising
Speaker 3: and real, and I appreciated that, Like it's not easy
Speaker 3: to make time for people when you're at a level
Speaker 3: like that in a celebrity way. And I was, yeah,
Speaker 3: I was really loving that side of it.
Speaker 1: I mean, if I met him in real life, I'd
Speaker 1: just be like, I know, your friends with Sandra Bullet,
Speaker 1: can we call her on the phone. Let's just sit
Speaker 1: around and talk to Sandy and see what she has
Speaker 1: to say.
Speaker 2: Yeah, but that's it.
Speaker 3: Like that's where I was a bit surprised that he
Speaker 3: was the one out of all of them. I mean,
Speaker 3: Kyl has been amazing to me from the start. He's
Speaker 3: actually given me proper like hugs and real genuine off
Speaker 3: camera chats. But I didn't expect Harry to voluntarily choose
Speaker 3: to talk to every contestant who came off the show.
Speaker 3: So a little yeah back thing on him would just
Speaker 3: be that that was amazing that he took the time.
Speaker 1: I love chatting with you in your audience. It'll be
Speaker 1: so exciting to see where you go. You know, the
Speaker 1: dance chat so I think is a really good place
Speaker 1: for you to look at.
Speaker 2: Yes, thank you, and yeah, I hope we get to
Speaker 2: chatt again soon.
Speaker 1: A great chat with Maya and a good warm up
Speaker 1: for things to come with my next guest, let's bring
Speaker 1: jac into the podcast. I'm sure you'll get some really
Speaker 1: fun exclusives and I hope you really enjoy this chat. Hi, Jacey, how.
Speaker 4: I I'm good man. I feel very grateful, I feel
Speaker 4: very peaceful and happy.
Speaker 1: I'm just going to start this off by saying I
Speaker 1: feel terrible because I've had fans from Australian Idol hitting
Speaker 1: up overnight saying that I jinxed you because I came
Speaker 1: out and championed for you hard yesterday and then you
Speaker 1: went home. And I mean, I don't think I've got
Speaker 1: that much power in the universe, but I just want
Speaker 1: to apologize just in case I do.
Speaker 4: Yeah, Nah, I don't reckon you. Jinks me. I think
Speaker 4: you're doing me a massive favor that I'm going to
Speaker 4: run with and I love you for it. I think
Speaker 4: it's really really sweet of you.
Speaker 1: I mean, what a ride this Australian Idol journey has
Speaker 1: been for you.
Speaker 4: Yeah, it's been It's been wild, you know. Like I
Speaker 4: it was really important to me that I stayed true
Speaker 4: to myself and my artistry and everything like that and
Speaker 4: who I want to be and how I want to
Speaker 4: you know, move around in the world. And at the
Speaker 4: beginning of the experience, I wasn't doing that, but I'm
Speaker 4: I'm I'm happy to say that I eventually pulled my
Speaker 4: head in and even though I went out last night,
Speaker 4: I'm really happy that I stayed true to myself.
Speaker 1: You know, what was your relationship with the first incarnation
Speaker 1: of this series and how old were you.
Speaker 4: I'm not too sure how old I was, but I
Speaker 4: remember it really vividly. I remember a big brother as well,
Speaker 4: by the way, very vividly, very vividly, and yeah with idle,
Speaker 4: like I really really remember all of it. I remember
Speaker 4: watching Guys music video when it came out, too, like,
Speaker 4: so it was a big thing for my family. Like
Speaker 4: my family are not not like professional musicians or anything,
Speaker 4: but we're very musical and we'd all really get behind
Speaker 4: Australian idol. So it was it was actually really weird
Speaker 4: that it just came about for me in life, just
Speaker 4: in time, you know. But I'll never forget Ricky Lee
Speaker 4: getting it eliminated.
Speaker 1: Ever, it's the footnote for you to understand that, you know,
Speaker 1: it doesn't necessarily mean you need to win one of
Speaker 1: these shows, I mean Rigulae and many others. And I
Speaker 1: will get into this a little bit in a minute,
Speaker 1: but you don't necessarily need to win to become a
Speaker 1: success in this country on this show.
Speaker 4: Oh yeah. I also, like, you know, I'm twenty six,
Speaker 4: which is you know, still young, but like I've got
Speaker 4: a lot to learn and I've got things to do,
Speaker 4: and I'm under no illusions about how life works. You know,
Speaker 4: there are setbacks that happen, there are things that you
Speaker 4: envision going a certain way and then they don't, and
Speaker 4: then you grow from it. That's always been like my
Speaker 4: comic debt in life is that cool things happen and
Speaker 4: then there's like a curve ball at the end of it,
Speaker 4: but I end up growing from it. And you know,
Speaker 4: like Maya is such an amazing talent, and her and
Speaker 4: I have worked so hard to like shape ourselves as artists,
Speaker 4: like including what we wear, what we look like, what
Speaker 4: we seeing, what we right because we're both writers as well.
Speaker 4: You know, I was never under an illusion that I
Speaker 4: would win the show or anything like that, but I
Speaker 4: certainly am determined to use the platform to the utmost
Speaker 4: end of.
Speaker 1: My Well, that's why the message last night, I was
Speaker 1: like I sent you the message on Instagram. I was like,
Speaker 1: go to bed and enjoy talking to the media today,
Speaker 1: Like get up tomorrow and just enjoy this and like people,
Speaker 1: this is the podcast. So people can't see you look
Speaker 1: like you went to bed last night had a lot
Speaker 1: of sleep, because you're looking phenomenal. So I think you
Speaker 1: know already putting you in good stead. I think if
Speaker 1: you've been out commiserating yourself and then got up and
Speaker 1: spoke to the media, it might have been a waste
Speaker 1: of time, you know, totally, you're fresh and you're ready
Speaker 1: to talk to people. And I might be wrong by
Speaker 1: saying this, but I kind of think with Idle, you know,
Speaker 1: they've got a long history with contestants, you know, Courtney
Speaker 1: act Rob Mills, Ricky Lee, you know, getting justice much
Speaker 1: work because they have a TV personality alongside their incredible voices.
Speaker 1: And for me, that's where I think idol can work
Speaker 1: really well. And for someone like you who has the
Speaker 1: personality along with a voice, there's going to be more
Speaker 1: opportunities for you.
Speaker 4: I remember, like at the time that Idle was one
Speaker 4: of the one of kind of the only ways that
Speaker 4: you could get into the industry, whereas now, like things
Speaker 4: are just so different. You honestly, any one of us,
Speaker 4: Mayra and I could upload a TikTok video tonight and
Speaker 4: blow up. Anything can kind of happen these days, and
Speaker 4: it's sort of just about like using whatever you can
Speaker 4: and like going with the flow of things and just
Speaker 4: allowing things to be the way that they are.
Speaker 1: I want to jump in there because I think it's
Speaker 1: a really good point that you make. I was really
Speaker 1: concerned with, you know, idle coming back. I'm a diehard fan,
Speaker 1: never missed an episode f y, but I was concerned
Speaker 1: with it coming back because of the platforms that we
Speaker 1: have these days. I mean, why would you go on
Speaker 1: a show when you've got these high volume audiences where
Speaker 1: you can control your content, you can control your narrative.
Speaker 4: So it's because for me, breaking the glass ceiling or
Speaker 4: whatever you want to call it, like just just that
Speaker 4: little bit of extra push that I needed I got
Speaker 4: from the show, and I wasn't able to acquire it
Speaker 4: no matter how hard I tried. For years, you know,
Speaker 4: it was very difficult for me to book gigs. The
Speaker 4: industry can be very clique and difficult to get into,
Speaker 4: especially in the queer scene. Even though we're very inclusive,
Speaker 4: it is still difficult to find your way. And now
Speaker 4: I'm sort of like cool, like this is all I wanted.
Speaker 4: I wanted to get my artistry out there and meet
Speaker 4: some cool people and have a lot of fun. And
Speaker 4: to me, what happens after the show has always been
Speaker 4: more important than what happens on it.
Speaker 1: And why this singing show, because why not one of
Speaker 1: the other competition based reality shows like The Voice You
Speaker 1: Know or X Factor or something else that may have
Speaker 1: come along before. Was it something specific about this show?
Speaker 1: Was it your family's relationship with it?
Speaker 4: No, it was actually the legacy of nistry that was
Speaker 4: the most attractive thing to me. I got to decide
Speaker 4: what color I dyed my hair, I got to decide
Speaker 4: what I was wearing and consult and talk with the
Speaker 4: stylist and talk with creative like. I was able to
Speaker 4: map out my routines and perform them exactly how I
Speaker 4: wanted to. I got to pick the songs that I
Speaker 4: really wanted to do. And the other shows. I'm not
Speaker 4: sure if it's true or not, but you know, you
Speaker 4: hear that maybe that's not the case. But I know
Speaker 4: with Idle that they care a lot about the artistry
Speaker 4: and the person themselves having autonomy within a situation where
Speaker 4: there's not a whole bunch of autonomy allowed because it
Speaker 4: is reality TV at the end of the day, and
Speaker 4: we do have a TV show to make. For me,
Speaker 4: it was like, Okay, I need to do this because
Speaker 4: I want to have some sort of control. I can't.
Speaker 4: I would never relinquish entire creative control.
Speaker 1: I think that's really smart, and I think that the
Speaker 1: show does feel that way, you know, for me personally,
Speaker 1: the reason why I gravitated towards you as much as
Speaker 1: I did was I could see that control. I could
Speaker 1: see your input. I could see how much work you're
Speaker 1: putting into everything that was happening, because it came across
Speaker 1: so effortless on stage, and that doesn't happen without doing
Speaker 1: a lot of preparation and having the skill set behind it.
Speaker 4: That's really sweet of you to say, thank you. This
Speaker 4: is all I care about, you know, I said that
Speaker 4: last night. It's the only thing that It's all I
Speaker 4: think about, Like I when I work out, like I'm
Speaker 4: doing vocal warm ups on the treadmill, like because Beyonce
Speaker 4: does that. Like I'm constantly thinking about like what different
Speaker 4: looks me and my dances can wear when we do gigs.
Speaker 4: Like this is the only thing that matters to me,
Speaker 4: And like, I'm happy that I was able to. I
Speaker 4: didn't expect them to show it on the show, that
Speaker 4: I was writing things down and preparing them. That was
Speaker 4: not for show. That was meant to be that's who
Speaker 4: you were me that was well, yeah, it was meant
Speaker 4: to be me showing the camera operators where I'll be
Speaker 4: just so I was just so they weren't freaking out,
Speaker 4: you know. So I'm actually really grateful that the show
Speaker 4: showcased me in that way and showed everyone because I've
Speaker 4: gotten a lot of really positive feedback from just from
Speaker 4: just from the way that I work, which is it's
Speaker 4: been amazing, Like I was not expecting that at all.
Speaker 1: I think anyone watching this show will see that. I
Speaker 1: think anyone in the industry will see that. They will
Speaker 1: know that you've got that work ethic that's behind you,
Speaker 1: you know. Interestingly enough, I mean, you opened the show
Speaker 1: with an amazing You opened the top twelve and it
Speaker 1: was just phenomenal. Like I was there live and I
Speaker 1: saw it. I watched the audience reaction to it. But afterwards,
Speaker 1: I was watching you in between as everything went on,
Speaker 1: and I worried whether or not you were getting into
Speaker 1: your head a little bit as the show continued to evolve.
Speaker 1: Was it just that the energy level for you you
Speaker 1: were like, I've done it now, I can relax. Or
Speaker 1: what was going through your mind through the next hour
Speaker 1: of other people singing?
Speaker 4: Two things? The first one is that I'm like pretty
Speaker 4: much constantly anxious here nah, yeah, they which was clearly
Speaker 4: evident in my audition. This is just what my life
Speaker 4: is like. So quite often I'm a Gemini. I can
Speaker 4: turn it on and then, and it's usually I'm only
Speaker 4: able to turn it on when I'm on stage, and
Speaker 4: then the second that I'm out of character, I guess
Speaker 4: you could say, the facade kind of drops and I'm
Speaker 4: back into my head a little bit, which is, by
Speaker 4: the way, something I'm working on. The other reason is,
Speaker 4: you know, I was starting to become increasingly aware that
Speaker 4: what I was doing was different to everyone else, and
Speaker 4: I wasn't sure if that was a good thing anymore.
Speaker 4: I think at one point it may have been a
Speaker 4: good thing, whereas the other night, like, I was really
Speaker 4: happy with how I did, and I loved hearing for you.
Speaker 1: I was happy for you. I was proud of you,
Speaker 1: you know, and though I think, you know, when you
Speaker 1: finished performing, I could see you were proud of yourself,
Speaker 1: which I love seeing in people that work in the industry.
Speaker 1: I love when you can see that vibe coming off them.
Speaker 1: But I just thought, yeah, I wondered what was going on,
Speaker 1: and I thought maybe because you're so self sufficient and
Speaker 1: some of the others being a little bit younger, meant
Speaker 1: that they were getting a little bit of extra Well,
Speaker 1: I don't even want to go down that path, not
Speaker 1: that not that they were getting a little bit of
Speaker 1: extra I know what you're saying.
Speaker 4: I know what you're saying. It happens how it happens,
Speaker 4: and you know, like like I was saying last night
Speaker 4: as well, Mayra and I are the eldest in the group,
Speaker 4: and I think that, you know, there was less for
Speaker 4: us to like we we've worked with stylists before, we
Speaker 4: know how to do staging, all of that sort of stuff,
Speaker 4: and like the best part about the show is watching
Speaker 4: somebody grow as artists throughout it, and it's just not
Speaker 4: as exciting to watch when the growth isn't taking place
Speaker 4: as much. Although I have grown exponentially like throughout this experience,
Speaker 4: I just think that there was others who landed more
Speaker 4: squarely in an Australian Idol setting than I did. I
Speaker 4: don't know if I was exactly the right fit for
Speaker 4: the show, or at least I wouldn't be the right
Speaker 4: fit moving forward, but I.
Speaker 1: Mean that's what I were doing, they were creating. I
Speaker 1: think they did a very good job, the judges of
Speaker 1: creating a diversity in you know, You've definitely fitted into this.
Speaker 1: You offered a piece of the puzzle that needed to
Speaker 1: be there. I guess where I might have been coming
Speaker 1: from was after you performed, because you're so self sufficient,
Speaker 1: I think maybe they just left you there where. If
Speaker 1: it was me, I would have been fluffing your feathers
Speaker 1: for the next hour and just you know, making sure
Speaker 1: you felt that how well you had done. And that
Speaker 1: was the reason why I was yelling out your name
Speaker 1: by the way throughout the rest of the episode, you know,
Speaker 1: was because I felt like you needed to be reminded
Speaker 1: of how good that performance was and how many people
Speaker 1: you represented.
Speaker 4: Thank you so much, you know, like that's, oh, that's
Speaker 4: like amazing to hear you say. That's really really sweet
Speaker 4: of you. You know, when I when I found out
Speaker 4: I was going first, I think I kind of realized
Speaker 4: what was going to happen, But I don't think that
Speaker 4: at all.
Speaker 1: I was like, they asked you to open the show
Speaker 1: because it was phenomenal. Who else could have opened the
Speaker 1: show with those other performances wouldn't have worked as well
Speaker 1: as they had without you warming up them that hard,
Speaker 1: like it was a bang.
Speaker 4: I think what's been wild is like a lot of
Speaker 4: today and last night, I've been getting a lot of
Speaker 4: messages people saying in regards to Maya and I that
Speaker 4: they didn't vote for us because they thought we would
Speaker 4: just get through, you know like that. That's been such
Speaker 4: a funny sentiments, and it's still really sweet to hear,
Speaker 4: to be honest, because I'm like, oh, that's that's really
Speaker 4: sweet that people thought it was like a sure thing.
Speaker 4: But you know, that's just how That's how the kookie crumbles. Yeah,
Speaker 4: it's just how. It's just how it happens. I'm really
Speaker 4: happy with how I did it, and Waking Up in
Speaker 4: Vegas is my favorite song in the world, so I
Speaker 4: was really happy to go out on that as well.
Speaker 1: The song choices were brilliant, Like I mean, you could
Speaker 1: definitely not be you know, be going back and you
Speaker 1: know Sunday in quarterbacking your song choices because they were
Speaker 1: all amazing. Like I guess, you know, because we're on
Speaker 1: such a limited time to talk. The other thing I
Speaker 1: wanted to ask you about was the judges. I mean,
Speaker 1: this year, they've got their work cut out for them,
Speaker 1: and obviously people have their favorites. You know, what has
Speaker 1: your journey been like with Kyle, Meghan, Amy and Harry.
Speaker 1: You know a lot of people talking about the controversial,
Speaker 1: controversial comments that Kyle might make, which I think is
Speaker 1: preparing people for an industry. So I see that that
Speaker 1: sort of has a place. But how did it go
Speaker 1: for you?
Speaker 4: I mean, I totally agree with you. I think that
Speaker 4: you know, Kyle's a Gemini. I'm a Gemini, so I
Speaker 4: kind of understand him even though we're very different. And
Speaker 4: I actually feel he understands me even though we're very
Speaker 4: different too. And I think that having a very Australian
Speaker 4: point of view is important on the panel because I
Speaker 4: think he does represent a lot of Australia's views. However
Speaker 4: we want to take that. I think having Meghan on
Speaker 4: the show is unbelievable given her like notoriety, Like holy moly, yeah,
Speaker 4: Amy Shark, It's really really brilliant to have her there
Speaker 4: because she is somebody that's had said backs and she
Speaker 4: was talking about it last night. You know, that's really
Speaker 4: amazing to see somebody actually find success after a period
Speaker 4: of time where people so you cannot find success because
Speaker 4: I don't think there's such a thing. And then Harry
Speaker 4: would definitely be my favorite obviously I grew up as
Speaker 4: a dancer, and he reminds me of all of my
Speaker 4: ballet teachers. He's very direct and honest and critical, and
Speaker 4: I like that. I'm not the kind of person that
Speaker 4: needs other people to tell me. I'm fierce, like I
Speaker 4: want people to tell me, people who know what they're
Speaker 4: talking about, to tell me how to improve and give
Speaker 4: me honest, authentic feedback. That's what That's what I want,
Speaker 4: and that's what I got from him, and I'm very
Speaker 4: grateful for it.
Speaker 1: Well, I think that you are bright, I think that
Speaker 1: you are charismatic. I think you're super talented. You can dance,
Speaker 1: you can sing. This has just been a sensational chapter
Speaker 1: I believe for you that won't define you, but will
Speaker 1: propel you to the next level, which I think is important.
Speaker 1: Which I think is important. Anyway, I could literally if
Speaker 1: you ever filled down calm because I'm here to pumputize.
Speaker 1: Everyone who joins the podcast gets asked this question, what
Speaker 1: is something from behind the scenes, something that we may
Speaker 1: not have seen, something that happened for you and your
Speaker 1: journey on the show.
Speaker 4: That Okay, so I got to choose the color of
Speaker 4: hair that I wanted to go. However, the reference photo
Speaker 4: that we used from when we went to the salon
Speaker 4: had been like edited, so it was more orange. The
Speaker 4: stylist did a perfect job, by the way, but it
Speaker 4: went like it was me on me on neon orange,
Speaker 4: like like crazy neon orange. And we had like a
Speaker 4: very important shoot the next day, so they had to
Speaker 4: rush me back into the city to get my hair
Speaker 4: redone and we thought they were going to have to
Speaker 4: bleach it again and do all these different things. So
Speaker 4: that was that was a crazy thing that's happened, is
Speaker 4: that I almost I wasn't sure what they were going
Speaker 4: to do with my hair. Were we were tossing up
Speaker 4: whether they were going to have to cut my hair
Speaker 4: off completely because it was so much the wrong color.
Speaker 4: But I luckily got my own way and was just
Speaker 4: like just put like a you know, a tona through it,
Speaker 4: and they they said they'd put a turner through it,
Speaker 4: and then here we are.
Speaker 1: So I turned to the person next to me and
Speaker 1: made a reference to a movie that you know, it
Speaker 1: might be a bit old for you, but I was like,
Speaker 1: kind of looks like Jim Carrey from Batman Forever is
Speaker 1: the Riddler right now?
Speaker 4: And you're dead on. If you'd seen when I won
Speaker 4: to Beda, you would I was wearing a green top
Speaker 4: like beyond green, and hor and like black pants and
Speaker 4: the hair and I look.
Speaker 1: Like the I have to let you go enjoy chatting
Speaker 1: with the media today. I will be in your audience,
Speaker 1: my friend. Good luck with wherever this goes for you.
Speaker 1: I think this is really, you know, just the start
Speaker 1: of it.
Speaker 4: Thanks man, it's it's so awesome to talk to you.
Speaker 4: Thank you so much for having me