In the week of Eurovision that has no Eurovision, we sat down with Australia’s 2016 entrant, Dami Im, and asked about past influences, future plans, and how she really feels about that second place in Stockholm.
We began with Dami’s past and what influenced her musically. Moving from Korea to Australia at a young age meant she discovered so many new artists…
I got really obsessed with Mariah Carey. She was the first diva [I heard] with the big voice and all the vocal runs. She was just really cool and so different that I used to try and imitate her vocal gymnastics.
Dami Im, Australia 2016
We asked about her time on Australian X Factor…
It was a crazy crazy ride! I had done music all my life but I had never been exposed to any television, let alone being on a television show. I wasn’t used to watching much on television, to be honest. I learned so much about performing and what people actually like listening from me. That’s when I got to do the big numbers with the big voice, whereas before X Factor I didn’t want to push myself that far – I kind of kept it hidden.
Dami Im, Australia 2016
Dami spoke about how she feels about her second place back in 2016 and how close Australia came to winning. Having been leading by a good margin after the Jury vote, it was the public televote that changed things:
At the time I was disappointed because we were staying at the top for so long and then at the last moment we dropped to second place. It was such a shock, a bit of a whirlwind, but after that and up till now I feel so happy. It’s such a great achievement for me and the best score for Australia…we got such a great reaction so, to me, I really don’t have any regrets. It was the best we could have done with every resource we had. So, honestly, I still look back with such fond memories.
Dami Im, Australia 2016
We spoke about many more things including the song she intended to put forward for next year’s Eurovision and what she thought about Montaigne’s entry for this year. Watch the rest of the interview in the video above or on YouTube.
What do you think about a possible return to Eurovision for Dami and her army? Are you excited to find out what song she was hoping to put forward for next year? Let us know in the comments below and on our Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube profiles.
