Australia’s Dami Im: “It’s awesome to hear that I’m a favourite”

She’s simultaneously finishing an album, planning a national tour and preparing for Eurovision 2016. But amid all of that Australia’s Dami Im is staying cool and oozing the charm that helped steer her to victory on X Factor. The Korean-born beauty recently caught up with wiwiblogger Josh to talk about everything Eurovision. From her song “Sound of Silence” to her almighty #damiarmy, she radiates enthusiasm and joy. We dare you not to fall in love!

DAMI IM – “SOUND OF SILENCE” (AUSTRALIA)

It’s great to finally be chatting with you, Dami! Could you tell us a little bit more about your Eurovision entry “Sound of Silence”?

“Sound of Silence” is a song written by my friends DNA, who wrote my first single “Alive”. It’s a ballad, obviously, and it’s about feeling the distance between you and your loved one and trying to feel the love through face time. It’s also about everyone being so connected in today’s society, but in reality feeling so isolated. It’s got a double meaning to it.

It’s interesting that you mentioned the face time lyric. There was obviously a little bit of controversy around that particular line in your song. Did you feel any added pressure during that period?

When the articles starting popping up online about the lyric, I was a bit surprised. I never thought it would be a problem. I did get a little nervous but I thought that if it was that much of a problem we can just change that word. Then the EBU came up and said there was no problem so that was a relief! I never thought of the face time lyric being an issue because I use a Samsung phone.

Earlier you mentioned the song being about your relationship with your partner. All through your X-Factor Australia journey, the country fell in love with you and your husband, Noah. Will he be joining you in Stockholm?

Definitely! He wasn’t going to miss this. He’s managed to get some time off work. He told his boss and his boss said yes. You kind of want to be sharing this moment with your loved one. To have Noah with me will be amazing and we can talk about the whole experience together.

You have a lot on your plate at the moment with Eurovision, your new album “Classic Carpenters” and your national tour. Do you find prioritising all of these big events difficult?

Physically it’s getting a bit difficult because there’s so much on and I’ve got to be doing all of these promos for Eurovision and the album. I have to get the album done before I leave for Stockholm because I won’t be in Australia when the album is released. There is a lot on at the moment and physically it is challenging. It’s a great thing when an artist has a lot of stuff going on. It means that my career is going well and everyone is liking my music, so I’m quite happy.

On the topic of people liking your music — your Dami Army are potentially the most loyal fan base we’ve ever come across. How does it feel having their support as well?

I’m really lucky and it’s good to hear from wiwibloggs that you recognise they are the most loyal fans that any artist could have. I’m so lucky to have these guys constantly pushing for me, and they’re not just like normal fans. They really love my music and they want to see me performing, but they want me to be happy and want the best for me. They’re like a really good family to me, in a way.

Your film clip for “Sound of Silence” is amazing. How did that process go for you?

It’s probably the most artistic film clip that I’ve done. We’re not trying to tell a story in the video, but there are metaphors. We’re trying to subtlety convey the message of the song. I’ve never seen so much smoke in my life. We filmed from early in the morning until midnight trying to get the scene where there’s smoke everywhere. I breathed in a lot of smoke that day. It was a fun process and by the time we got to the end of the night, we had security asking us to turn the music down. I’m happy with the final product. I think they did a great job, and the dancer was amazing.

Will the dancer be joining you on stage in Stockholm?

He’s not joining me in Stockholm. The performance will be completely different to the video. The production is still getting prepared, but all of our ideas are getting finalised now and are coming together. There’s a lot of things to think about with the content on the screens and movements and costumes. It’s a lot of ideas coming together at the moment. We’re trying to create something unique, not something that seems like we’re copying something else. It’s a big stage in a big arena with lots of audience members in the room. I want a one-on-one connection with the audience. I want a sense of intimacy on the stage.

The bookmakers have you as a favourite to win the contest this year. Does that add any pressure for you?

I think it’s awesome and amazing to see me being up the top of the list. For people to be betting their money on me is very flattering. There’s 43 countries this year and to be so high feels great. Now I have to follow it up with an epic performance. If I start thinking about it, it does add some pressure. To be representing your own country is a big deal and you want to do the best.

You’re obviously aware of how many countries have entered this years contest. Have you had a chance to listen to any of the other entries, and if so, do you have any favourites?

We’ve had a chance to have a look at most of the entries now. My favourite at the moment is Spain with “Say Yay!”. I love the song and the film clip is amazing. I would vote for Spain. I also like Hovi Star from Israel because I love a good emotional ballad. And of course, Russia. Everybody seems to love Russia. I think the video is really epic and it’s got everything in it. I wonder if Russia will try to replicate the music video on stage?

And finally, do you have a message for your fans at wiwibloggs.com?

Thank you to everybody who has shown their support, especially my Dami Army. I hope to make Australia proud and show everyone what I have to offer. And thanks to wiwibloggs as well. My fans are always messaging me every time you post about me, so thanks for everything!

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