When Lily-Grace Grant stepped onto the Australian Idol stage, she did so with a vote of confidence from someone who knows exactly what it takes to win the singing competition: 2024 champion Dylan Wright, who she’d previously met while performing at Tamworth Country Music Festival.
“He was super stoked I auditioned,” the 17-year-old from Northern Rivers, NSW, tells TV WEEK.
“He’s such a lovely guy and really excited for me.”
Lily-Grace is no stranger to the spotlight herself, having spent years performing at major music festivals. A dedicated country singer, she made the bold decision to leave school at just 15 to chase her dream full-time.
“It got to the stage in Year 10 where I realised music’s what I want to do,” she recalls. “I thought, ‘What am I going to gain out of school musically for my career? I think I should just go now and get a head start and just give it my all.’ It’s a really tough industry to break into, so the earlier you can, the better.”
Coming from a musical family – her maternal grandparents were opera singers – Lily-Grace had full support from mum Suzie when she took the leap.
“It’s been three years and I have not looked back since,” she says. “Mum’s always been so unbelievably supportive of everything I do. She was the one that said, ‘If that’s what you want to do, let’s do it. Let’s sign you up for TAFE and you can finish Year 10 there and then let’s get this show on the road.’”
Since then, Lily-Grace has released singles and worked with major industry players – a promising sign she could be one to watch this season.
“I’ve had Matt Fell producing my tracks – it’s super cool to work with him because he’s got connections all over the world,” Lily-Grace says. “My single ‘Damn Hard Working Man’, I’ve got a guitar player from Nashville, Jeff King, playing on it and he’s just awesome.”
Related stories
Native ad body.
Native ad body.
Native ad body.
