It’s finally here: season two of the iconic star-making series Australian Idol kicked off with a show-stealing audition Monday night on Channel 7 and 7plus.
Thirty-year-old NSW father of two Dylan Wright delivered a stirring performance of an Aussie classic, claiming one of the night’s four Golden Tickets and setting an impressive benchmark for the competition.
Dylan wowed judges Kyle Sandilands, Marcia Hines and Amy Shark with his acoustic version of Crowded House’s Better Be Home Soon, lovingly dedicated to his late mother.
“That was so beautiful. I don’t usually cry in the presence of other men, but what a sweetheart you are. I loved it,” Kyle said of Dylan’s performance.
Amy agreed, saying: “I think you are a freaking superstar! That was such a great performance. You’ve got everything: a kind heart, a great performer, and you’ve got a look.”
The three remaining coveted Golden Tickets of the night went to twenty-year-old Ivana Illic from Victoria, who took on Alicia Keys’ I Got You; nineteen-year-old Queensland pub singer Ripley Welsh, who left the judges swooning with his performance of Abba’s Mamma Mia; and Marcia’s wildcard entrant, twenty-year-old Billy Menhennet from Victoria, who performed Zach Bryan’s Something in the Orange to seal his place in the competition.
Australian Idol leaves no stone unturned in the nationwide search for the country’s next megastar. For the first time in Idol history, there are only 30 Golden Tickets through to the next round, meaning the stakes have never been higher.
Tuesday night: a younger singer from Broome fulfils a promise made a decade ago to sing for Marcia, and Amy travels to Perth to assess whether a TikTok sensation can translate their online success into an equally impressive live performance.
Australian Idol continues 7.30pm Tuesday and Wednesday on Channel 7 and 7plus
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