On 7 October 2015 it was announced that Australia would debut in Sofia. It was also announced that they would announce their artist and song on 9 October 2015. On that day, Bella Paige was selected to represent Australia.[2]
Artist and song information
"My message to my fans speaks through the lyrics to ‘My Girls’. ‘My Girls’ is a beautiful song with a powerful message to all girls. No matter what ups and downs they go through, it is important to stay strong, support each other, believe in yourself, dream big and know you can achieve your goals and dreams. When I sing this song, I think about the special girls in my life - my mum and sister, who love and support me unconditionally. I hope this song encourages everyone to love, support and believe in themselves and realise how beautiful and special they are inside and out."
Bella Paige (born Isabella Paige Yoseski) was born on 30 October 2001 in Melbourne. She previously took part in The Voice Kids (the Australian version of the kids' edition of The Voice), and managed to qualify for the final.
Bella has a real love for all things musical and started her training at 6 years old. She has already had impressive experience in a live singing contest and performing in front of a large audience. Bella was the very first child to audition on ‘The Voice Kids Australia’ and went the whole distance to the Grand Final, finishing as the runner-up in 2014. She signed with Universal Music Australia in April 2014 and her Junior Eurovision Song Contest entry, ‘My Girls’ is her debut single.
Dance is also in her repertoire, from ballet and jazz to hip-hop. And when needed Bella can draw on her Taekwondo training too, winning gold medals in this martial arts sport at a national level.
Her family are her biggest inspirations having an older sister who is also a singer, a brother who plays football in the Youth League for Melbourne City Football Club, and an amazing stylist and number 1 supporter in her mum.
Bella’s ambition is to be an international musical recording and live performance artist, and says her biggest musical role models are Beyoncé, Rihanna, Jessie J, Christina Aguilera and Jennifer Hudson.
At the running order draw which took place on 15 November 2015, Australia were drawn to perform sixth on 21 November 2015, following Netherlands and preceding Ireland.[3]
Final
Decked out in a black top and flowing gold skirt, with a pair of backing dancers to match, Junior Eurovision's first Australian participant belted out her song. Her backdrop, in a palette of red, black, and gold, incorporates images of cascading sparks, swirling stars, fireworks, and bursts of flame.
At the end of the voting, Australia ended 8th with 64 points.[4]
Bella Paige at stage of JESC 2015
Voting
The voting during the final consisted of 50 percent public televoting and 50 percent from a jury deliberation. The jury consisted of five music industry professionals who were citizens of the country they represent, with their names published before the contest to ensure transparency. This jury was asked to judge each contestant based on: vocal capacity; the stage performance; the song's composition and originality; and the overall impression by the act. In addition, no member of a national jury could be related in any way to any of the competing acts in such a way that they cannot vote impartially and independently. The individual rankings of each jury member were released one month after the final.
Following the release of the full split voting by the EBU after the conclusion of the competition, it was revealed that Australia had placed thirteenth with the public televote and seventh with the jury vote. In the public vote, Australia scored 32 points, while with the jury vote, Australia scored 67 points.[5]
Below is a breakdown of points awarded to Australia and awarded by Australia in the final and the breakdown of the jury voting and televoting conducted during the final.
Due to the time difference between Australia and mainland Europe, the Australian results were completely determined by the national jury, while televoting systems were not applied in this edition. The following members comprised the Australian jury:[7]
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