Australia participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2019 with the song "Zero Gravity" written by Kate Miller-Heidke, Keir Nuttall and Julian Hamilton. The song was performed by Kate Miller-Heidke. The Australian broadcaster Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) organised the national final Eurovision - Australia Decides in order to select the Australian entry for the 2019 contest in Tel Aviv, Israel. Ten artists and songs competed in the national final and the winner was selected by a public and jury vote.
Australia debuted in the Eurovision Song Contest in 2015 by invitation from the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) as a "one-off" special guest to celebrate the 60th anniversary of Eurovision. On 17 November 2015, the EBU announced that SBS had been invited to participate in the 2016 contest and that Australia would once again take part. In 2015, Australia was guaranteed a spot in the final of the contest and was allowed to vote during both semi-finals and the final; however, from the 2016 contest and onwards, Australia would have to qualify to the final from one of two semi-finals and could only vote in the semi-final in which the nation was allocated to compete.
Australia was drawn to compete in the first semi-final of the Eurovision Song Contest which took place on 14 May 2019. Performing during the show in position 12, "Zero Gravity" was announced among the top 10 entries of the first semi-final and therefore qualified to compete in the final on 18 May. It was later revealed that Australia placed first out of the 17 participating countries in the semi-final with 261 points. In the final, Australia performed in position 25 and placed ninth out of the 26 participating countries, scoring 284 points.
Background
Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) has broadcast the Eurovision Song Contest since 1983, and the contest has gained a cult following over that time, primarily due to the country's strong political and cultural ties with Europe. Paying tribute to this, the 2014 contest semi-finals included an interval act featuring Australian singer Jessica Mauboy. Australian singers have also participated at Eurovision as representatives of other countries, including Olivia Newton-John (1974, ), two-time winner Johnny Logan (1980 and 1987, ), Gina G (1996, United Kingdom), and Jane Comerford as lead singer of Texas Lightning (2006, ).
Tying in with the goal of Eurovision—to showcase "the importance of bringing countries together to celebrate diversity, music and culture", the 2015 theme of "Building Bridges", and arguing that they could not hold "the world's biggest party" to celebrate the 60th edition of Eurovision without inviting Australia, the EBU announced on 10 February 2015 that the country would compete at that year's edition as a special guest participant. Along with the "Big Five" (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom), and the host country of Austria, Australia was given automatic entry into the final to "not reduce the chances" of the semi-final participants. On 17 November 2015, the EBU announced that SBS had been invited to participate in the 2016 contest and that Australia would once again take part, however they would have to qualify for the final from one of two semi-finals and could only vote in the semi-final in which the nation was competing. On 2 October 2018, SBS confirmed Australia's participation in the 2019 Eurovision Song Contest after securing an invitation for the fifth year in a row. In 2018, Australia was represented by Jessica Mauboy and the song "We Got Love". The country ended in twentieth place in the grand final with 99 points. On 14 October 2018, SBS announced that they would hold a national final for the first time to select the Australian entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2019.
Before Eurovision
Eurovision – Australia Decides
Eurovision – Australia Decides was the national final in order to select the Australian entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2019. The competition took place at the Convention and Exhibition Centre in Gold Coast on 9 February 2019, hosted by Myf Warhurst and Joel Creasey. Ten artists and songs competed with the winner being determined by a combination of public and jury voting. The show was broadcast on SBS as well as streamed online at SBS On Demand. The national final was watched by 298,000 viewers in Australia.