by Em Matisons
Anthony Callea is an Aussie icon, a household name, yet many will simply confine him to the label of “that little Italian gay guy who didn’t win Australian Idol.” Not only is this horrendously underselling him, it also ignores the well-known fact that it’s better to be the runner-up than to be the winner of Aus. Idol (there are a few exceptions to this rule but the point is “not winning” sure did a lot of good for AC). The amount of times the phrase “he was born to sing” has been said about Callea would be countless, the most important person to have said it though was the man himself.
In his memoir Behind The Voice – Dietro La Voce, Callea describes how he knew, from the first time he remembers singing around his family, that he had to sing; he had a big voice and the dreams to match it. Callea invites the reader behind the scenes of a life that has been lived in the spotlight for almost two decades. From his life growing up as a small-town, working-class, boy through to the tumultuous teens and twenties, in which he broke onto our TV screens, and into our hearts. While it would be easy to buy into the façade of the charismatic heartthrob presented to us via Aus. Idol, and the glitz and glam that followed, Callea’s candid honesty not only gives readers an insight into the determined individual he really is but also into the light and dark of the showbiz and music industries. The at-times-emotionally-heavy story is impeccably balanced with humourous anecdotes as he transports readers through time and grants us the honour of walking alongside him amidst his own self-discovery journey and beyond.
Callea’s writing makes the reading experience feel personal, his storytelling is so accessible despite the relative inaccessibility of his fame. One could argue, and some have done so, that he overuses punctuation symbols like exclamation marks and ellipses but I felt these marks were essential in creating the friendship between reader and writer, they made it feel like Callea was in the room with you sharing his stories just as he would over a few martinis. Particularly as a gay man, parts of his story will resonate with many and by creating that intimate writer-reader relation, he allows for people to share his story when they may not be able to live in their own.
Despite his memoir being an easy read, his life was not without its adversities and readers are given insights into the privilege of stardom and how, often, things aren’t as they seem. While Callea comes across as quite the confident character, (that façade I mentioned earlier may not be completely unfounded), it doesn’t slide into arrogance and, if you have ever thought it does, all you need to do is read his book and see just how humble and human he is. For example, Callea is most lauded for his vocal forays but he dabbled in acting, both on screen and on stage, and he unabashedly shares these, and many other, uniquely surprising experiences with readers rather self-deprecatingly. For Callea to be known for his effervescent persona and commandeering presence while simultaneously displaying such humility and candour is an impressive balance not many in his position can tussle with.
A year prior to the release of his memoir, Callea released his latest album Forty Love which can serves as a companion to his book, and vice versa. If you listen to the album, you’ll get a sense of his life and if you read the book you’ll get that as well as insights into what went in to creating the album, without the aid of a music label. Callea himself describes it best when he says: “it’s entirely ME expressed through music which I am proud of. It celebrates and appreciates the love and happiness I am fortunate to have, whilst also taking stock of the unpredictability and highs and lows of life. It is my DNA carved and molded into music and lyrics and I truly hope it resonates with people for its stories.” He may have said this about his album but it serves as a fitting review for his memoir too; after all, is a musician’s work not a collection of musical memoirs?
Callea has achieved so much in his career, he: sang for the Queen, (Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, not Beyoncé), owns the fastest and highest selling single in Australian music with his iconic rendition of “The Prayer,” headlines tours and has toured with the likes of Celine Dion and Whitney Houston, to name a few, and that’s all before getting into the numerous awards and nominations he has garnered throughout his illustrious career. Although I cannot speak on his behalf, from my perspective as a reader, the greatest of all of his achievements is his authenticity and the way he has found, embraced, shared, and held on to that. It feels somewhat ironic that an artist like Callea, who uses his voice for a living, wasn’t fully heard until he took pen to paper and stripped back the music. As he teaches us in his memoir, artists don’t always have the power over their own stories and he had to fight for his, a battle we are all better off for him having won. Callea is rightfully known for his phenomenal voice, (if you ever get the opportunity to experience it live, take it), however, as readers learn through his memoir, he is so much more than just his voice; it is what lays behind it that creates his true beauty.
Em Matisons is a queer Australian freelance reviewer, and amateur poet, who loves to experience the arts, whether they’re in written form, on screen, or on stage. She was crowned the winner of the National Campus Writing Competition in 2019 for her poem “The School of Lost and Found.” Em holds a Bachelors of Psychology from Edith Cowan University and spent time as a collegiate athlete in the United States. If she’s not in her flow-state out in a sporting arena, she can be found grounding herself in the great outdoors.
Thank you Em, you have described Anthony’s writing so beautifully. Having seen AC live so many times, I really didn’t notice the punctuation, as that’s how his stories sound during his shows! He is a phenomenal talent and as a long time fan, I thoroughly enjoyed reading his memoir, through the tears, the sadness, the ‘laugh out louds’ and the love for and of his family and husband.
Gosh. Thanks for that beautiful review of an honest, entertaining and soulful memoir. I loved reading it, but particularly enjoyed the audio version, listening to the author’s own voice.