Young Divas Biography
Singing a fantastic collection of familiar hits to make you groove, Young Divas are Paulini Curuenavuli, Kate DeAraugo, Emily Williams and now, Darwin's darling, Jessica Mauboy.
Replacing original member Ricki-Lee, who decided to leave the group earlier this year to get married and concentrate on her solo career, the gifted young Jess is delighted by her induction into the group. "I was a big fan of Young Divas prior to going through Idol and meeting them for the first time," says a beaming Jess. "Knowing that I am with them now, it's like, wow, so unexpected. It's such a stepping-stone, for me to be able to be working with them. I am learning so much already, being with them in the studio, doing photo shoots. It's so crazy."
And the rest of the Divas duly love every moment of what Jess brings to their quartet. "It has come as no surprise to anyone that Jess has managed to seamlessly slot straight into the craziness. Jess is the bomb to have with you," says Kate. "When everyone's getting a bit serious or lacking energy, Jess will just start to giggle and then that's it, everyone will just laugh again and goes back to being happy".
The lead single from New Attitude was the classic 'Turn Me Loose', originally performed by Canadian rockers Loverboy. "I didn't know this one," Paulini says, "and, to be honest, I didn't like it when I first heard it," she says laughing. "But when we re-did it, it was amazing. I really do think that it's one of the best songs on the album."
Collaborating their distinctive voices to produce this anthem has been another amazing experience for Young Divas, and their dynamic harmonising will ensure audiences will be blown away by the their energetic version of this hit song from 1980.
New Attitude also features Young Divas singing more of the biggest pop songs of all time. The track-list includes monster international blockbusters such as 'Chain Reaction' [originally recorded by Diana Ross], 'Jump' and 'I'm So Excited' [The Pointer Sisters], 'Tell It To My Heart' [Taylor Dayne], 'I Can't Wait' [Stevie Nicks], and the title track 'New Attitude' - "New attitude, new everything. And originally by Patti LaBelle - she's cool!" exclaims Paulini.
Other favourite tracks on the album include 'I Can't Wait' - "I had to sit down and say to myself: 'I am Stevie nicks, I am Stevie Nicks, I am Stevie Nicks," explains Kate; and on 'Love Will Lead You Back' Emily explains "For me, that song was very, very difficult, because we are all such powerhouses, and that song is such a laid back, smooth track." Kate continues: "We had to calm ourselves down for it, but it's good to have challenges in there. It's frustrating at the time, but it's good".
Of course, Young Divas have already proven themselves to be one of the hottest phenomena in Australian pop today. Last year's massively successful debut album, Young Divas, featured the debut smash hit single This Time I Know It's For Real, which managed to create its own slice of pop history by spending over seven months in the ARIA Top 100 charts, including fourteen weeks in the Top 10!
The album achieved double-platinum status [over 140,000 copies sold] and produced two more highly-popular singles with 'Happenin' All Over Again' and 'Searchin''. At the same time, in venues across the country, Young Divas' live shows generated almost hysteric crowd reaction.
"The whole trip was so quick and crazy," says Kate. "It started with the single and just kept going. The funny thing was we didn't have to think about it. We had the single, then all of a sudden we were on tour, and in the middle of the tour we recorded an album. Then all of a sudden it was Christmas and we had a double-platinum album. And it was sort of like, 'Wow.'"
"It was very unexpected," adds Emily. "We didn't know it was going to blow up and go so well. We were like, 'Oh my god, is this for real!?'"
So, after an exciting year spent establishing themselves as one of the hottest acts in the country, the Divas are determined to show their appreciation for the enormous support they've received from the public. New Attitude is full of more of the group's big, bright sound and the hit songs that we love from the girls. The Divas decision to enlist the services of the legendary Vanetta Fields in the studio to help perfect their harmonies has resulted in thrilling renditions that will truly engage their fans.
"I think it's a great thing that we're doing," says Paulini. "For me, it's really cool. I love doing my own stuff, my own gigs, and then coming back and doing gigs with the girls, because you experience so many different things. We are still all doing our own stuff but having this on the side, I love it, I think it's great."
