After almost 30 years in the public eye, first as a child actor then as one of Australia’s highest-selling musicians of all time, you could forgive Delta Goodrem for wanting to put her feet up after wrapping nine years on the all-consuming hit television show, The Voice.
Instead, the performer—who stars on maire claire‘s January issue—spent both of her Sydney pandemic lockdowns live streaming free gigs with her live-in partner and fellow musician Matthew Copley, writing new music and her first book, planning a national arena tour, and signing with global beauty megabrand Revlon as its first Australian brand ambassador.
“[The Voice] took up a lot of the year for me, but I loved the show,” she recalls in the interview, which focuses on how brave decisions in her past are informing her future plans.
“I gave the [The Voice] my absolute everything. I gave the artists everything I had. I was there from the very start and I was proud to be an anchor on the show.”
But when she hit the 150-episode mark, she knew it was time to move on.
“In my heart I was like ‘thank you for this, now let’s finish the season, then it’s time for me to find a new chapter creatively’.”
Part of that new chapter is the Revlon partnership, which sees her join a phenomenal cast of dynamic, strong and fearless women who’ve embodied the brand’s philosophy to ‘Live Boldly’ throughout that ages.
“I’ve been proud of being my authentic self the whole way through my career. Living boldly is how I want to approach my life and, for now, first and foremost that means getting back on stage and doing live music,” says Goodrem, who in our interview, recalls making the decision to spend her life savings on recording her first demo CD.
Goodrem had worked as a child actor on commercials and TV dramas since the age of seven.
Fast forward 25 years, and her list of achievements, awards and accolades is multiple pages long. Her 2003 debut album Innocent Eyes, topped the ARIA chart for 29 non-consecutive weeks and is still the second-highest selling Australian album of all time.
She’s second-behind Kylie Minogue for the most number-one albums by a local female artist on the ARIA chart—Goodrem has five to Minogue’s seven.
In a nutshell, she’s a living Aussie icon, our golden girl, yet still refreshingly honest about the fact she manages every facet—from the glamorous to the mundane—of her creative process.
“I produce my own songs, I record, I write, I create my own shows. I always [have], but I’m glad to be in a world where I can… say yeah, I am the one behind it all.”
Still, that’s not to say it’s all work and no play for Goodrem. Travel restrictions during the pandemic mean this is the longest she’s stayed in one country, let alone her own Sydney CBD apartment, for decades, meaning she’s been able to spend more time than ever with the people she loves.
“Obviously, I have an incredible partner, a wonderful support system in my family, and my girlfriends in my life are phenomenal. I’ve had the best girlfriends since I was at school and from growing up, then the kindreds I’ve found through the course of time. I couldn’t be more in a place where I’m so proud of the women in my life: they lift me up and I lift them up.”
Find the full cover story, pick up the January issue of marie claire Australia, on stands December 16.
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