Isaiah Firebrace (born 21 November 1999) is an Australian singer who won the eighth season of ''

The X Factor Australia ''The X Factor'' is an Australian television reality music competition, based on the original UK series, to find new singing talent. The first season of the show premiered on Network Ten on 6 February 2005. Ten dropped ''The X Factor'' after ...

'' in 2016. He then represented Australia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2017 with the song "

Don't Come Easy "Don't Come Easy" is a song performed by Australian recording artist Isaiah Firebrace. The song was released as a digital download on 8 March 2017 through Sony Music Australia. The song represented Australia in the Eurovision Song Contest 20 ...

", where he finished 9th.

Early life

One of twelve children, Firebrace was born in

Portland, Victoria Portland is a city in Victoria, Australia, and is the oldest European settlement in the state. It is also the main urban centre in the Shire of Glenelg and is located on Portland Bay. As of the 2021 census the population was 10,016, increasing ...

, and raised in Moama,

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

. He is an

Aboriginal Australian Aboriginal Australians are the various Indigenous peoples of the Australian mainland and many of its islands, such as Tasmania, Fraser Island, Hinchinbrook Island, the Tiwi Islands, and Groote Eylandt, but excluding the Torres Strait I ...

; his father is

Yorta Yorta The Yorta Yorta, also known as Jotijota, are an Aboriginal Australian people who have traditionally inhabited the area surrounding the junction of the Goulburn and Murray Rivers in present-day north-eastern Victoria and southern New South Wales ...

and his mother

Gunditjmara The Gunditjmara or Gunditjamara, also known as Dhauwurd Wurrung, are an Aboriginal Australian people of southwestern Victoria. They are the traditional owners of the areas now encompassing Warrnambool, Port Fairy, Woolsthorpe and Portland. Th ...

. Firebrace first came to public attention when he entered the Fast Track Singing Competition in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a metro ...

. This led to a scholarship at the David Jaanz School of Singing.

Career

2016: ''The X Factor'' and debut album

Isaiah auditioned for the eighth season of ''The X Factor Australia'', singing a cover of

Adele Adele Laurie Blue Adkins (, ; born 5 May 1988), professionally known by the mononym Adele, is an English singer and songwriter. After graduating in arts from the BRIT School in 2006, Adele signed a rec ...

's " Hello". Making it through to Bootcamp, he performed a cover of

Alicia Keys Alicia Augello Cook (born January 25, 1981), known professionally as Alicia Keys, is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. A classically trained pianist, Keys started composing songs when she was 12 and was signed at 15 years old by Col ...

' "

If I Ain't Got You "If I Ain't Got You" is a song recorded by American singer-songwriter Alicia Keys for her second studio album ''The Diary of Alicia Keys'' (2003). Inspired by the 2001 death of singer Aaliyah, the September 11 attacks, and other events in the ...

". From the live shows, he advanced to the Grand Final. On 21 November 2016, at the Grand Final, Isaiah performed

Avicii Tim Bergling (; 8 September 1989 – 20 April 2018), known professionally as Avicii (, ), was a Swedish DJ, remixer and music producer. At the age of 16, Bergling began posting his remixes on electronic music forums, which led to his first re ...

's " Wake Me Up" with Jessica Mauboy, and his winner's single "

It's Gotta Be You "It's Gotta Be You" is the debut and winner's single by Isaiah, the farewell season winner of '' The X Factor Australia''. "It's Gotta Be You" was written by Anthony Egizii and David Musumeci and was released digitally immediately after it was ...

", winning the contest. His winner's single peaked at number 26 on the

Australian Singles Chart The ARIA Charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA became the offici ...

. The song also charted in Denmark, Netherlands, New Zealand, and Sweden. On 9 December 2016, Isaiah released his debut studio album ''

Isaiah Isaiah ( or ; he, , ''Yəšaʿyāhū'', "God is Salvation"), also known as Isaias, was the 8th-century BC Israelite prophet after whom the Book of Isaiah is named. Within the text of the Book of Isaiah, Isaiah himself is referred to as "the ...

''. The album peaked at number 12 on the Australian Albums Chart.

2017–present: Eurovision Song Contest and subsequent projects

Following his X-Factor win, Firebrace reported that he was interested in representing Australia in the

Eurovision Song Contest The Eurovision Song Contest (), sometimes abbreviated to ESC and often known simply as Eurovision, is an international songwriting competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), featuring participants representing pr ...

, and put his name forward for possible participation in the 2017 contest. On 7 March 2017, broadcaster SBS announced that they had internally selected Firebrace to represent Australia at the Eurovision Song Contest 2017 in

Kyiv Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the seventh-most populous city in Europe. Ky ...

, Ukraine. His entry, "

", was written by DNA Songs, who also composed Dami Im's entry " Sound of Silence". On 9 May 2017, he qualified from the first semi-final and competed in the final on 13 May, finishing in 9th place. Throughout 2019, Firebrace completed a 55-date 'Spirit and Beyond' tour through central and regional Australia, where he made it a priority to speak with as many Aboriginal school children as possible to pass on powerful messages about working hard to achieve goals and the importance of finding a passion. In 2019, Firebrace sang the Australian National Anthem at the TAB Million Dollar Chase greyhound race at Wentworth Park. In July 2020, Firebrace released "Know Me Better". He said "This song actually means a lot to me because I finally feel like I'm starting to know myself better and I am heading in the direction I want to with my music. I've been in the studio a lot over the last three years and have experimented with lots of styles but 'Know Me Better' is a song that I'm really proud to release. I love the song, I love the production and I just can't wait to be able to show people this song". Firebrace also announced that he was writing a children's book, "The Purple Platypus", which pushes a positive message for kids who feel different. In August 2020, Firebrace was revealed to be competing as the "Wizard" on the second season of

The Masked Singer Australia ''The Masked Singer Australia'' is an Australian reality television singing competition show hosted that premiered on Network 10 on 23 September 2019. Hosted by Osher Günsberg, the show is based on the international music game show franchise ...

. He was the sixth contestant eliminated, placing 7th overall. In 2022, Firebrace participated in

Eurovision - Australia Decides The Eurovision Song Contest (), sometimes abbreviated to ESC and often known simply as Eurovision, is an international songwriting competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), featuring participants representing pri ...

for a chance to represent his country in the 2022 contest. He duetted with singer Evie Irie with the song "When I'm With You", ultimately finishing in 10th place. In September 2022, Firebrace released "Come Together" with

Lee Kernaghan Lee Kernaghan OAM (born 15 April 1964) is an Australian country music singer, songwriter and guitarist. Kernaghan has won four ARIA Awards and three APRA Awards, and has sold over two million albums, and as of 2021, has won 38 Golden Guitars at ...

and

Mitch Tambo Mitch Tambo is an Australian singer, songwriter and political activist, who self-released his debut EP in 2016. In 2019, he reached the final of the ninth series of ''Australia's Got Talent'' and garnered national attention. In November 2019, ...

. The song coincides with Firebrace's new children's book, also called "Come Together", and scheduled for release on 16 November 2022. In November 2022, Firebrace released the self-composed Christmas song "First Christmas".

Discography

Studio albums

Singles

As lead artist

As featured artist

Notes

Non-single album appearances

Awards and nominations

Country Music Awards of Australia

The

Country Music Awards of Australia The Country Music Awards of Australia also known as the Golden Guitar Awards (originally named Australasian Country Music Awards) is an annual awards night held in January during the Tamworth Country Music Festival, in Tamworth, New South Wales ...

is an annual awards night held in January during the

Tamworth Country Music Festival The Tamworth Country Music Festival is an annual Australian music festival held for 10 days from Friday to Sunday in mid to late January each year, sometimes including Australia Day, in Tamworth, New South Wales. The festival is the second bigg ...

. Celebrating recording excellence in the

Australian country music Australian country music is a part of the music of Australia. There is a broad range of styles, from bluegrass, to yodeling to folk to the more popular. The genre has been influenced by Celtic and English folk music, the Australian bush bal ...

industry. They commenced in 1973. ! , - , rowspan="2", 2023 , , rowspan="2", "Come Together" (with Lee Kernaghan and Mitch Tambo) , , Vocal Collaboration of the Year , , , , rowspan="2", , - , Heritage Song of the Year , , , -

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Firebrace, Isaiah 1999 births 21st-century Australian singers 21st-century Australian male singers Eurovision Song Contest entrants for Australia Eurovision Song Contest entrants of 2017 Living people Indigenous Australian musicians Sony Music Australia artists The X Factor (Australian TV series) contestants The X Factor winners