Delta’s dawn: Australia’s queen of pop is Eurovision-bound

A year ago, while touring the UK, a British newspaper threw an unexpected question at Australian singer Delta Goodrem. Asked whether she would consider competing in the Eurovision Song Contest, she replied: “Of course I would do Eurovision, I love it!”

A year later, Goodrem confirms that off-the-cuff remark sparked a series of discussions that have culminated in a deal which will propel the multi-ARIA award-winning singer-songwriter on that very journey. SBS has confirmed that Goodrem is locked in to represent Australia at the 70th annual Eurovision Song Contest in May.

“That’s 70 years of music being a part of people’s lives and hearts, every single year,” Goodrem says. “The two greatest influences in my life, my dear mentor Olivia Newton-John, and Celine Dion [whose hit Eyes on Me was co-written by Goodrem], have both been a part of this stage. So it’s a really special stage, and one I’m honoured to be on.”

In our decade-long association with Eurovision, Australia has sent a broad selection of artists, both commercial and emerging, but we have rarely sent an artist with Goodrem’s chart history. The 41-year has been working professionally for three decades. She has nine No.1 singles to her name, 8 million albums sold globally and 12 ARIA awards. In addition to her own touring career, she has toured with Ricky Martin, Shania Twain, Andrea Bocelli and the Backstreet Boys.

That high profile has made it particularly difficult for SBS to keep a lid on the announcement of her involvement with Eurovision. Speculation has simmered for some time on fan sites, but that noise was amplified at last weekend’s opening Sydney edition of London’s Mighty Hoopla music festival, where she shared the stage with Eurovision alumna Jessica Mauboy.

The 41-year-old Sydney-born singer will perform Eclipse at Eurovision, which is being held at the Wiener Stadthalle in Vienna, Austria, in May. Goodrem co-wrote the song with Ferras Alqaisi, Jonas Myrin and Michael Fatkin. It blends dance and disco with a heartfelt emotional line. In it, she sings: “One touch. One kiss. All my life for a night like this.”

The song’s energy and intimacy does raise the question of whether Goodrem sings into the abstract or focuses on a specific person, such as her husband, musician Matthew Copley. Or, to put it more boldly, whose touch, whose kiss, and which night?

“I love that,” she says laughing. “Some songs I write, I get very autobiographical. I also have a very metaphorical, ethereal side that enjoys being abstract, and enjoys the deeper layer behind, so the listener can create their own story when they’re listening to the song.

“I don’t want to say where that came from because I really enjoy the listener being empowered to feel how they feel at that moment,” Goodrem says. “It can be about connection, it can be about love, it can be about alignment. Eclipses are those rare moments where everything comes together.”

One of the most difficult challenges Goodrem faces is breaking Australia’s cycle of stumbling in the Eurovision semi-final round. In 2024 and 2025 Australia’s entrants failed to qualify for the grand final. “I’m deeply proud of all the [past Australian] performances,” Goodrem says, diplomatically. “Every year is different.”

The other thorny issue is global politics, traditionally kept off-stage at Eurovision but seeming to cast an ever-longer shadow every year. This year five countries have withdrawn – Iceland, Ireland, the Netherlands, Slovenia and Spain – in protest at the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the participation of Israel.

“From day one, when I got into music, I got into this for love, connection, unity,” Goodrem says. “My shows, when I am in an arena, or a theatre, wherever we are, we are there for unity and for the universal language of hope and healing. That’s really the focus.”

In data terms, Goodrem is a statistically strong candidate for a win for Australia, despite Eurovison’s reputation for dancing grannies and heavy metal orcs. Bands – think ABBA (1974) and Maneskin (2021) – have only a 20 per cent chance of winning, based on data aggregated across the competition’s 70-year history. Big-staging, high-energy performances, like Netta (2018) and Loreen (2012 and 2023), win about 30 per cent of the time. So the biggest chance at a win – 50 per cent of all wins – is with soloists using minimal staging, such as Lys Assia (1956) and Salvador Sobral (2017).

Narrowing the data to the last two decades only, groups and bands have diminished to 15 per cent of all wins, soloists with minimal staging retain 40 per cent of all wins, and it is big-energy showmanship that has edged everyone out, with an almost 20 per cent jump to 45 per cent.

So, what’s the takeaway? Eurovision acts generally fall into two categories: “jury bait”, intended to win over the professional juries in each country, or broad-appeal acts intended to pitch to the “tele-voting” audience. Goodrem could be uniquely positioned as an each-way bet.

The closest comparison in Australia’s competition history is Dami Im, who performed while seated on a light installation, with no choreography or large-scale staging, and only her incredible voice. That performance earned Australia it’s best ranking to date: second place, out of 42 countries.

Though the details of her pre-competition plans are still being ironed out, Goodrem likens the journey to the Olympics. “You’re an athlete at the end of the day,” she says. It’s a significant observation to make because many Eurovision artists eschew the harder side of their competitive instinct to stay close to the event’s messaging around international connection and unity.

So, is she in it to win it? “Of course,” Goodrem declares. “I’m there representing Australia. Let’s go. I always want to do Australia proud. I have a very patriotic heart. I’ll do my absolute best, of course. I’m very excited to see all the other artists and just do my very best.”

The Eurovision Song Contest will be televised live and in prime time, May 13-17, on SBS and SBS On Demand.