Who are Electric Fields, the duo representing Australia at this year's ...

6 Mar 2024

SBS

Who are Electric Fields the duo representing Australia at this years

The electronic music duo will represent Australia at the 68th Eurovision Song Contest in Malmö with their song One Mikali.

Key Points

SBS has announced South Australian electronic duo Electric Fields as Australia's 2024 Eurovision Song Contest pick.
It's the first time a duo will represent Australia at the contest, which will be held in Malmö, Sweden, this year.
This year's competition will be held from 8-11 May and will be broadcast on SBS and SBS On Demand.

Eurovision broadcaster SBS has announced South Australian electronic music duo Electric Fields as Australia’s contestant for this year’s competition.

Vocalist Zaachariaha Fielding and keyboard player and producer Michael Ross have been performing as Electric Fields since 2015.

The pair's eclectic music blends soulful pop and up-beat electronica, and the pair have become known for their lively and visually vibrant live performance.

Where are Electric Fields from?

Fielding grew up in the remote community of Mimili in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara lands. Mimili is about a 13-hour drive northeast of Adelaide.

Ross grew up in Logan, Queensland, before moving to South Australia. The duo are based in Adelaide.

The incorporation of the Yankunytjatjara language into Electric Fields’ songwriting has become a defining feature of their music.

A man wearing an ivory-coloured dress and a cream headwear with a long drape. He is standing next to a man wearing a checked vest and white pants. They are in a spotlight against a black wall.

Electric Fields formed in 2015. Source: Supplied

The song they will take to the competition in Malmö in May is called One Mikali, which loosely translates to One Blood.

Speaking in Yankunytjatjara, Fielding told NITV the name captures the song’s unifying message.

"The song is about all of us being together as one," he said.

“Aboriginal culture has a way of dealing with situations and it'll be nice for this country and the globe to learn that way of doing it. You don't have to jump on anybody to get what you want. You can actually dialogue it out.”

The song is about all of us being together as one
Zaachariaha Fielding

How has Australia done in Eurovision?

Since first performing in Eurovision in 2015, Australia has been in the top 10 five times.

The country's strongest result was in 2016, when Dami Im scored second place with her song Sound of Silence.

Graphic showing how Australia has fared at Eurovision, with 2016 the highest scoring year.

Australia’s next highest-scoring contestant was Guy Sebastian, who placed fifth in 2015, followed by Isaiah Firebrace, Kate Miller-Heidke and Voyager who respectively finished ninth in 2017, 2019 and 2023.

The biggest winners at the song contest to date are Ireland and Sweden, with seven victories each. Luxembourg, France, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom follow with five.

Why does Australia compete in Eurovision?

Since it started in 1956, the Eurovision Song Contest has almost entirely involved countries from the European Broadcasting Union.

Fans have often wondered why Australia, a country at least 14,000 kilometres from Europe, has been able to compete.

The answer lies in Australia’s decades-long relationship with the contest.

Audiences have been watching Eurovision on Australian TV for more than 30 years, since it was first broadcast on SBS in 1983.

In 2014, to mark the show’s 60th anniversary, Darwin-born singer Jessica Mauboy was invited to make a guest appearance at the contest in Copenhagen.

Eurovision was by this stage hugely popular in Australia, with SBS recording an Australian audience of 2.7 million people in 2014.

The following year, Australia was invited to participate as a wildcard entry, and singer Guy Sebastian took fifth place with his song Tonight Again.

While the country’s participation was initially declared a "one-off", it has been given a place in the competition every year since.

For this year’s contestants, the thrill of being chosen comes with a sense of huge responsibility.

"Honestly, I am buzzing. I really am. I mean far out. It's gonna be the biggest thing we've ever done," Ross said.

How can I watch Eurovision 2024?

The 68th Eurovision Song Contest will be held from 8-11 May and will be broadcast on SBS and

Details will be available at