Hello Eurovision, this is Australia calling — and we’re coming for you!
Australia’s Dami Im is through to the Eurovision grand final after singing to a global audience of more than 200 million.
Im performed Sound of Silence in the 18-nation semi-final this morning, earning one of the 10 remaining grand final spots.
Germany, France, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom and hosts Sweden were already confirmed finalists.
Im is now second favourite to win the competition final, according to Australian online bookmaker Sportsbet, which has slashed her odds to win from $19 to $5. Russia is the favourite.
Im is the second Australian entry in the European song competition, after Guy Sebastian finished in the top five as a wildcard entry last year for his song Tonight Again.
Straight after tonight’s announcement, Im tweeted, “Thank you, Eurovision! Was an honour to perform tonight!”
Im’s fans, who call themselves the Dami Army, were quick to celebrate.
At Im’s old school in Logan, south of Brisbane, fans gathered to watch the semi-final result live, waving banners and screaming their support.
“She’s absolutely brilliant, absolutely brilliant,” one fan said.
“And the way she’s presenting it is fantastic, it’s different to the others. And she’s letting her voice do the talking.”
Im, who shot to fame after winning X-Factor in 2013, told Eurovision hosts she moved to Australia from South Korea when she was nine years old and learned English by listening to the Spice Girls.
On Sunday morning, Im will join fellow semi-final winners from Latvia, Georgia, Bulgaria, Ukraine, Serbia, Poland, Israel, Lithuania and Belgium.
Join Eurovision tragics Andrew McGarry and Lucy Sweeney for ABC’s live blog on Sunday morning as we find out who will take the title this year.
This post originally appeared on ABC News.
© 2016 Australian Broadcasting Corporation. All rights reserved. Read the ABC Disclaimer here.
Top Comments
I read that by Korean standards Dami was regarded as plain, and when they wanted her to break into the Korean market, they wanted her to have cosmetic surgery, e.g. to widen her eyes! So glad she stayed natural. She's gorgeous - and good!
I only watch Eurovision for the imminent resurgence of Bucks Fizz when music had real character and soul ... and stuff.