Anthony Callea (born December 13, 1982 in Melbourne, Australia) is a singer with an Italian background.Callea began entering talent contests as a child, and trained with the Johnny Young Talent School. He auditioned and was selected for the final 30 in the television series Australian Idol in 2004. Based on viewer votes, he did not make it through the first round of competition but was invited back as a "Judge's Choice Wildcard." His performance on that occasion earned him a place in the final 12. Over the weeks of the competition his popularity with the Australian public grew. During his run on the show, he gave several performances that earned him high praise from the judges, including Simon & Garfunkel's "Bridge Over Troubled Water", Foreigner's "I Wanna Know What Love Is" and Andrea Bocelli and CAcline Dion's duet "The Prayer." Judge Ian 'Dicko' Dickson (who later left the show to star on another network) said Callea's performance of the latter was the finest he had seen during his two years with the show. The competition concluded in November 2004 with Callea runner up to Casey Donovan.Callea was immediately signed to Sony/BMG Records with an album scheduled for release in early 2005. His debut single, his "The Prayer" was released in December 2004 and debuted on the Australian singles chart at number one, remaining at the top spot for five weeks straight. Within seven weeks, it had become the highest-selling Australian single of all time, selling over four times Platinum. He then followed up with the double A-side single "Rain/Bridge Over Troubled Water" the week before Easter, which also debuted at number 1 and held the spot for two weeks. His self-titled album, ''Anthony Callea'', also debuted at number 1, on the week of 4 April 2005. It held the #1 spot on the Australian ARIA charts for 3 weeks before dropping to #3. Anthony's third single "Hurts So Bad" debuted at #10 on the ARIA Charts, an unusually high position for a third single from an album, especially since it contained no new vocals as B-side, but rather a trio of remixes. The most recent single - the fourth off the "Anthony Callea" album - "Per Sempre (For Always)" made its debut at #5 on the ARIA charts. It was released in two formats - as a standard CD single and a DVD single.Anthony Callea's first DVD "Live at the Palais" was released on 7 November 2005. It debuted at #3 in the ARIA DVD Chart and was certified GOLD status.In late November Anthony flies out to Europe to work on his second album with writers such as Gary Barlow.
Songs performed by Anthony Callea on Australian Idol (2004)
- ''Audition'' - "Wishes" - Human Nature
- ''Top 30'' - "Angels" - Robbie Williams
- ''Wildcard'' - "The Reason" - Hoobastank
- ''Top 12'' - "Heaven Knows" - Rick Price, (Australian Made)
- ''Top 11'' - "Ignition" - R. Kelly, (Pop Night)
- ''Top 10'' - "Gimme Some Lovin" - Spencer Davis Group, (60's Night)
- ''Top 9'' - "Carwash" - Rose Royce, (Disco Night)
- ''Top 8'' - "The Prayer" Andrea Bocelli & CAcline Dion, (Idol's Choice)
- ''Top 7'' - "I Saw Her Standing There" - The Beatles, (Beatles Night)
- ''Top 6'' - "I Want To Know What Love Is" - Foreigner (80's Night)
- ''Top 5'' - Perfect Fan (Up Close and Personal Special) and "Back At One" - Brian McKnight, (R'n'B Night)
- ''Top 4'' - "Fever" and "Route 66", (Big Band Night)
- ''Top 3'' - "Hold The Line" - Toto and "Bridge Over Troubled Water" - Simon & Garfunkel (70's Night)
- ''Top 2'' - "Listen With Your Heart" - Diane Warren song, to be the winner's debut single, "Walking Away" - Craig David and "Glory Of Love" - Peter Cetera
- The Prayer #1 Australia ''(Platinum x4)''
- Rain/Bridge Over Troubled Water #1 Australia ''(Platinum x2)''
- Hurts So Bad #10 Australia
- Per Sempre #5 Australia (#1 Australasian charts)
Other
- Listen With Your Heart ''(released as Bonus CD to a limited number of debut albums)''
Videography
Music Videos
* Listen With Your Heart ''(unverified, currently unreleased)''
- The Prayer
- Rain
- Bridge Over Troubled Water
- Hurts So Bad
- Per Sempre (For Always)
DVD
* Anthony Callea: Per Sempre (For Always) ''(DVD single)''
- Anthony Callea: Live In Concert ''(recorded at The Palais, Melbourne)Chart''
Awards
ARIA No. 1 Chart Awards (17 November 2005)
- Anthony Callea - The Prayer (Single) - 5 weeks at #1
- Anthony Callea - Rain / Bridge Over Troubled Water (Single) - 2 weeks at #1
- Anthony Callea - Anthony Callea (Album) - 3 weeks at #1ARIA Awards 2005 (Highest Selling Single)
- Anthony Callea - The PrayerChannel V Awards (Artist Of The Year 2005)
- Anthony Callea
External links
- Website
- Forums
- UniversityCallea, Anthony
Callea, Anthony
Callea, Anthony
Callea, Anthony