Australian Female Singers

Regarded as a timeless icon, Kylie Minogue is one of the most popular singer-songwriters of her generation. Referred to as the Princess of Pop and Goddess of Pop, she is the best-selling female Australian musician of all time. Also known as the Mother of Reinvention, Kylie is revered for her contribution to fashion and music.

Australian singer-songwriter, voice-actress and director Sia Furler rose to fame with albums like We Are Born. Moving on, she bolstered her career with albums like 1000 Forms of Fear that debuted atop the U.S. Billboard 200 chart and singles like Cheap Thrills, her first Billboard Hot 100 number-one. Furler has also co-written hit songs like Diamonds, Titanium and Wild Ones.

Australian singer-songwriter, model, and actress Natalie Imbruglia aspired for a career in the show business since her youth. Beginning her career with minor roles in commercials, she worked hard to make a name for herself in the entertainment industry. She has acted in many hit films and is also active as a singer with many records to her credit.

Olivia Newton-John's breathy voice and stunning beauty made her one of the biggest pop stars of the 1970s. She charmed generations of movie viewers in the blockbuster film Grease. Following a string of country and soft-rock hits, Newton-John starred opposite John Travolta in the 1978  blockbuster Grease, considered as one the most popular movie musicals of all time.

Delta Goodrem is an Australian actress, singer, and songwriter. Many of her albums have topped the ARIA Albums Chart, with her debut album Innocent Eyes staying at the top for 29 consecutive weeks. Also known for her charity work, Goodrem established the Delta Goodrem Foundation in an attempt to raise money for blood cancer research.

Toni Watson is an Australian singer-songwriter whose single, Dance Monkey, broke Bing Crosby's all-time Australian record by spending 24 weeks at number one position on the ARIA Singles Chart. The single also earned Toni Watson several prestigious awards, such as APRA Music Award and ARIA Music Award.

Toni Collette is an Australian actress, singer, producer, and songwriter. A critically acclaimed actress, Collette is known for her work in feature films as well as in independent films. Collette has won several prestigious awards, such as a Primetime Emmy Award, Golden Globe Award, and Critics' Choice Awards. Collette also supports many charitable organizations like Feeding America and Amnesty International.

Australian actor Maia Mitchell is known as Brittany from the series Mortified and as Natasha from Trapped. She is also popular as Callie Adams Foster from The Fosters and its sequel, Good Trouble, and as McKenzie from the Teen Beach film franchise. She has also collaborated on the song Magic.

Jessica Mauboy is an Australian singer, actress, and songwriter. She started hogging the limelight after finishing second in the fourth season of Australian Idol, which was aired in 2006. One of the most successful female artists in Australia, Mauboy has received several awards, such as ARIA Music Awards.

Judith Durham is an Australian musician, singer, and songwriter. In 1963, she became the lead singer of the popular folk-influenced pop quartet The Seekers, which became the first Australian pop band to achieve major sales and chart success in the United States and the United Kingdom. Her services to music earned her the title Victorian of the Year in 2015.

The younger sister of Australian popstar Kylie Minogue, Dannii Minogue had begun her career on Australian TV as a child actor. Known for her award-winning role of Emma Jackson in the soap Home and Away, she later also launched a music career, appeared in movies and plays, and introduced a clothing line.

Named one among the 12 Greatest Female Electric Guitarists by Elle magazine, Australian musician, singer and songwriter Orianthi Penny Panagaris began playing the guitar at the age of three and moved to acoustic by six. At fifteen, she began her professional career, concurrently focusing on songwriting and released her debut independent album at the age of 20. 

Australia’s beloved Yellow Wiggle, Emma Watkins grew up trained as a classical dancer and later became the first female member of the Australian dance group the Wiggles. She also completed a film studies course on a scholarship. Emma is an Endometriosis Australia ambassador, having suffered the ailment herself.  

Born to a Serbian musician/model father and a British model mother, Holly Valance first gained fame as Felicity Scully in the Australian soap opera Neighbours. She later created a sensation in the world of pop, with hits such as Kiss Kiss. She now co-owns The Candy Foundation with her husband, Nick Candy.

Nellie Melba was an Australian singer. One of the most popular singers of the early 20th century, Melba was the first Australian classical musician to achieve international recognition. Also known for her charity work during the First World War, Nellie Melba was made Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1918.

Courtney Barnett is an Australian musician, singer, and songwriter. Renowned for her witty lyrics and deadpan singing style, Barnett achieved international recognition after releasing her highly successful EP, The Double EP: A Sea of Split Peas. Over the years, she has won several important awards, such as APRA Music Awards, ARIA Music Awards, and AIR Awards. 

Australian singer-songwriter Jessica Origliasso is one-half of the Australian pop-duo The Veronicas that she formed with her identical twin sister, Lisa Origliasso. They rose to fame with platinum-certified studio-albums like The Secret Life of... and Hook Me Up, and singles like You Ruin Me. They have also acted in the television series Cybergirl and co-designed a fashion line for Target.    

Tina Arena is an Australian musician, singer-songwriter, record producer, and musical theatre actress. Having sold more than 10 million records worldwide, Arena is one of the highest-selling Australian artists. Tina Arena has won several national and international awards, including two World Music Awards and seven ARIA Awards so far. In 2015, she was inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame.

Australian actress and rapper, Abbie Cornish is best known for her role in the film Bright Star. She developed a fascination for acting early in her life and began her career when she was a teenager. At the beginning of her acting career, she also ventured into music. She is an ambassador for the Australian animal rights group, Voiceless.

Australian soprano Joan Sutherland was exposed to music at an early age, being the daughter of a singer. Trained in voice and the piano by her mother, she made her debut as Dido in Dido and Aeneas. The first Australian to earn a Grammy, she was also awarded the DBE.

Indiana Evans is an Australian actress, songwriter, and singer. She is best known for playing Matilda Hunter in a TV soap opera titled Home and Away, for which she won the Dolly Teen Choice Award under the Queen of Teen category. Evans is also known for contributing immensely to the 2011 soundtrack for series three of H2O: Just Add Water.

Tash Sultana soared to fame with her phenomenally successful single Jungle, which was first posted on YouTube and went viral on social media, gaining a million views in 5 days. The non-binary Australian singer uses the pronoun “they.” She also made it to the 2019 Forbes 30 under 30 list.

Award-winning Australian singer Kate Miller‐Heidke specializes in both contemporary pop and classical music. Apart from releasing multi-platinum hits such as Last Day on Earth, she has also composed the opera Rabbits and performed at various international music festivals. Her album O Vertigo! became the fastest crowdfunded project on Pledge.

Brody Armstrong is an Australian singer-songwriter and musician. She had a tumultuous childhood marred by abuse and violence. She sought solace in music and began her career as a teenager. As a young woman, she was part of many bands with which she released numerous hit albums and singles. She also has a successful career as a soloist. 

Born in London, Sophie Monk moved to Australia with her family at age 2. Initially a Marilyn Monroe impersonator at a Warner Bros. entertainment center, Sophie won Popstars Australia to be part of the pop band Bardot. She later won The Celebrity Apprentice and gained phenomenal success as a reality star.

Tammin Sursok is an actress and singer whose portrayal of Dani Sutherland earned her the Logie Award for Most Popular New Female Talent in 2001. Sursok is also known for her singing skills; her debut studio album Whatever Will Be peaked at number 13 on the ARIA Charts. Apart from acting and singing, Sursok has also been campaigning against bullying.

Tal Wilkenfeld is an Australian singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. She developed an early interest in music and graduated from Los Angeles Music Academy College of Music. She is the bandleader of her own bands and has also performed in collaboration with artists including Jeff Beck, Herbie Hancock, Prince, and Mick Jagger. She is a regular practitioner of meditation. 

Australian singer-songwriter Missy Higgins is known for her chartbusting singles such as Scar and Where I Stood. She has also performed at international events such as TEDx. Her hit album The Sound of White made it to the top 5 of the End of Decade Top 100 Albums Chart in 2010.

Betty Who is a singer-songwriter best known for her cover of Donna Lewis’ song I Love You Always Forever. Born in Australia, she moved to USA as a young girl to attend Interlochen Center for the Arts. She began her career as an independent artist and later signed with RCA Records. She is openly bisexual. 

Lisa Origliasso is an Australian singer-songwriter best known for forming the popular pop duo The Veronicas along with her twin sister, Jessica. Origliasso is also known for her humanitarian efforts; in 2006, she joined the Wildlife Warriors Worldwide, an organization that aims at protecting animals and their natural environments.

Australian singer and model Erica Packer is best known as the second wife of billionaire business magnate James Packer. Known for her ARIA-charting hit I Spy, Erica later separated from James and got engaged to Cuban artist Enrique Martínez Celaya. She has also dated British singer Seal for a while.

Though known as a country singer, Australian singer-songwriter Kasey Chambers also mixes folk, blues, and rock n’ roll in her music. Born to the country singer duo Bill and Diane Chambers, she joined her family band at age 10. She later released chartbusting solo hits such as Not Pretty Enough.

Australian actor/singer Bec Hewitt began her career at age 5, working in commercials, and later soared to fame as Hayley Smith Lawson from Home and Away. A talented dancer, too, she also won Dancing with the Stars. She has also released chart-busting singles such as All Seats Taken.