Winner

Luke Austen Brisbane-based singer-songwriter and guitarist Luke Austen has a wealth of experience in the country music industry. Since winning the perpetual musicianship award at Charters Towers Country Music Talent Quest in 1997, Luke has added to his trophy cabinet and broadened his horizons, touring with some of Australia’s best known country stars. In 2000 and 2004 he completed four tours of Australia with legendary bush balladeer Brian Young and in 2004, he became a fulltime member of Troy Cassar-Daley’s touring band. In 2009 Luke released a five-track EP, No Stranger to the Rain.    listen here

Grand Finalists

Chelsea Basham Nineteen-year-old Chelsea Basham, from Wongan Hills, in WA, has been singing since the age of seven. She studied classical, musical theatre, contemporary and country, which have combined to make her the versatile vocalist she is today. She supported Lee Kernaghan in 2006 and visited Tamworth for the first time in 2007. Soaking in the festival atmosphere for two weeks cemented Chelsea’s resolve to make a career out of country music. Chelsea is a graduate of the John Curtin College of the Arts, has toured with Adam Brand and supported industry legends Brian Cadd, Russell Morris and Glen Shorrock.   listen here

Cory Hargreaves Queensland-based Cory Hargreaves is a gifted singer-songwriter with a catalogue of more than 40 recorded songs. In 2006 Cory switched from fronting a rock’n’roll band to the country arena and the following year released his selftitled debut album. His skills were acknowledged when he won the Australian Songwriters’ Association 2007 Song of the Year for Bluestone Room, a track from his debut album. The accompanying video clip is on CMC. Cory has toured extensively across Australia and completed two independent tours of America.   listen here

Rick Caballo Wollongong singer-songwriter and guitarist Rick Caballo spent half of 2008 in the USA, recording in Los Angeles and Nashville. One of those recording sessions was a duet with legendary American star, Becky Hobbs, When Rock Was On A Roll. He returned to Australia, armed with a 10-track album to be proud of titled Love Retaliation. Rick has supported Brian Cadd, The Screaming Jets and James Reyne in recent years and from 2005 to 2007 he headlined the Wollongong Australia Day concert on the harbour, performing before an audience of 15,000 people. listen here

Mandy Jarry Thirty-year-old Mandi Jarry has music flowing through her veins, as both her parents are gifted entertainers. Mandi sings and plays piano, guitar, harmonica and melodica and has enjoyed writing her own songs since she was a schoolgirl. Working consistently between three and five nights each week, Mandi draws her influences from artists including Sheryl Crow, Kelly Clarkson, Norah Jones and The Waifs. She is keen to emulate the success of two former Star Maker winners – Keith Urban and James Blundell and has released her debut CD, Untied. Her goals are to travel widely with her music and become a fresh, new face in contemporary country music.   listen here

Tori Darke The year 2009 was a signifi cant one in the career of Mt Annan-based singer songwriter Tori Darke. Her debut single, Crawl, made an impact on the country music charts, achieving #11 on the Country Tracks Top 30 and #1 on the 98.9FM All Australian Country Music Chart. The accompanying video clip reached #20 on the CMC Top 30. Tori has worked hard at her career in recent years and has learned from some of the very best in the business at both Tamworth Camerata and the CMAA Australian College of Country Music. She has supported The McClymonts, Jetty Road and Amber Lawrence and as part of her prize package for winning the Maton Talent Search, appeared at the Merritt Mountain Country Music Festival in Canada. listen here

Finalists

Armstrong Brown Born and raised in the NSW Blue Mountains, Armstrong Brown has been writing songs since he was a child and first picked up the guitar at age 12. He grew up listening to acoustic guitar music, heavy rock and metal, but country is the arena in which he found his forte. His musical inspirations are country greats Garth Brooks, Keith Urban, Waylon Jennings, John Denver and Johnny Cash. Armstrong, 32, works in and around the Sydney area and has released an EP, Air I Breathe and Break of Innocence.   listen here

Chad Shuttleworth From his base at Eumundi, on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast, 21-year old Chad Shuttleworth is making plans for his future as an entertainer. Singing on stage since he was a little tacker, Chad has now developed his own blend of rock, blues and country, which has been well received at venues around his home turf and further afield. He’s met with considerable success in talent quests, such as Mud Bulls and Music, which he won in 2007, and is a graduate of the CMAA Australian College of Country Music in the class of 2008. Chad has released his debut single, Tightrope, and accompanying videoclip, which can be seen on CMC.   listen here

Craig Morrison With a background on stage, film and television, Craig Morrison is the complete all-round entertainer. As a child, Craig sang harmony vocals alongside his father, veteran rocker Lucky Starr and was soon intoxicated by the stage lights. He knew back then what his career path would be. He performed as part of Lynda Keane’s Gala Productions everywhere from shopping centre stages to a Royal Command Performance at Sydney Opera House. Craig formed his own band, Craig Morrison Little Cowboy, in 2007 and released his debut album, Heaven Knows in January 2009.   listen here

Fiona Fields Based in the western Sydney suburb of Glenmore Park, Fiona Fields spends her days teaching English and drama at a Sydney high school. For the past five years 30-year-old Fiona has been involved in the country music arena, fronting a country rock outfit, 5 Hour Drive. The band released an EP in 2007. The past year has been a productive one for Fiona, who spent the time recording her solo debut album, Good To Go, with Roger Corbett at The Valley Studio. The first single Dirt, and accompanying video clip, will be released in December 2009 and Fiona has plans to launch the album at the 2010 Tamworth Country Music Festival.   listen here

Jesse Emmanuel The name Emmanuel is synonymous with guitar in Australia. Jesse’s father is guitar legend Phil Emmanuel and her uncle is the internationally acclaimed Tommy Emmanuel. Despite her pedigree, Jesse hasn’t relied on her famous bloodline to forge her career – she’s letting her music speak for itself. Not surprisingly, 20-year-old Jesse has always wanted to be a musician and in the past year has supported artists such as The McClymonts, Joe Robinson, The Whitlams, Wendy Matthews and Mental As Anything. Living at Boambee on the Mid North Coast, Jesse has released an EP and is currently recording her debut album.   listen here

John Flanagan With his simple and expressive style of alt country/bluegrass, John Flanagan is making a name for himself on the Melbourne music scene. He broadened his horizons in 2008, taking his guitar and banjo and touring Australia. Since then he has joined forces with seasoned musicians Jane Patterson, Andy Zito and Mark Zito, to perform songs from his debut solo album, Meet Me In Between, released in 2009. They’re known as John Flanagan and the Begin Agains. For the past five years he has performed at venues and festivals in regional Victoria, NSW and Queensland.   listen here

Leila Fisher Born in Mt Isa, Leila Fisher was raised on a remote, million acre-property in the Gulf of Carpentaria, three hours north of Cloncurry. Music was always a part of family life and she grew up listening to Slim Dusty, Charley Pride, Hank Williams, Rolf Harris, Ted Egan, Kenny Rogers, Dolly Parton and Olivia Newton-John. Leila, 39, is a mother with small children, a part-time lawyer and a fulltime farmer, running a sheep and cattle property with her family just outside of chilly Orange in the NSW central west. She has released her debut album, Life’s Good Medicine, with Herm Kovac as producer.   listen here

 

Megan Cooper Brisbane-based singer-songwriter Megan Cooper enjoys performing at country music clubs, folk clubs and charity events in and around her area. A 2008 graduate of the CMAA Australian College of Country Music, Megan, 31, released her debut EP, North, in 2009. Megan fi nds inspiration in roots and bluegrass music. She also performs in acoustic twisted-country-pop duo, Two for the Show, around South East Queensland. Megan was a top 10 finalist in the 2007 and 2009 Courier-Mail Q-Song Songwriting Awards.   listen here

Mickey Pye Twenty-one-year-old country rock artist Mickey Pye was born and raised in Oberon in the NSW central west. He cut his teeth on the music of Slim Dusty and Elvis Presley and could rock’n’roll dance, play piano and sing before he went to school. Mickey spent his teenage years playing in bands and upon leaving school worked in radio. He was offered a scholarship to study popular music and performance at the JMC Academy in Sydney. He has all but completed a Bachelor of Entertainment, majoring in guitar. His achievements include winning Aristocrat Entertainer of the Year 2009, Maton Talent Search 2009 and graduating from the CMAA Australian College of Country Music 2009. listen here

Neil Douglas Born in Mildura, 29-year-old Neil Douglas has travelled Australia with his parents, both of whom are musicians. Although he loved music, Neil was too shy to sing in public until the age of 19, when he sang an Elvis Presley song at the Castlereagh Hotel in Dubbo. From that moment on, he was hooked on public performances and sang at every given opportunity. He’s had some success with talent quests, and he’s won Ipswich Idol and Lowood Idol. While busking on the streets of Tamworth Neil was encouraged by Adam Harvey to record an album. He is now based in Goodna, Queensland.   listen here

Rebecca Moore Melbourne-based singer-songwriter Rebecca Moore, 33, enjoys helping others – so much so that she’s taken on a project to support 7000 orphans in Burma. Rebecca is musical director and coordinator of an ongoing concert series, raising funds for the Burmese orphanage. In 2001 she recorded an EP after winning an APRA professional development award in the rock category and in 2004 released her debut album, The Uluru Concept. Rebecca has supported some of Australia’s premier blues and roots artists including The Yearlings, Xavier Rudd, John Butler Trio and Archie Roach.   listen here

Tiffney Stroh Albury-born Tiffney Stroh is now a resident of Mt Barker in South Australia, and forging a strong career in country music. A three-time graduate of Tamworth Camerata and a graduate of the CMAA Australian College of Country Music, Tiffney, 19, has travelled thousands of kilometres to pursue her dream of a professional career as a singer and songwriter. She’s met with great success in talent quests in her home state, Queensland, NSW, Victoria and the Northern Territory, and was a fi nalist in the Telstra Road to Tamworth. In 2009, Tiffney juggled her fi nal year of schooling, with a part-time job and a swag of performances right around the country. listen here

Vanessa Lea Twenty eight-year-old Vanessa Lea from Coramba near Coffs Harbour, is a country singer born and bred in Gunnedah, just 64 km’s west of the Country Music Capital Tamworth, in NSW. Vanessa has worked for years in several bands throughout the state building a fan base. She has recently recorded a debut album with her band Road Train offering a country, folk and rock sound. With former managing director of Warner & Rondor Music John Bromell mentoring her she is ready to take the next big step. listen here

 

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