Overlooked by Australian Idol, Cairns musician Justin Wellington has forged his own way to success in the Pacific

There’s a saying that you can tell a true musician by the way they tap along to songs with their fingers or their feet, often without even realising they’re doing it. It came as no surprise then when vocalist Justin Wellington started doing exactly that when we met to discuss the success of his latest CD.

A household name in the Pacific Islands, Justin, 30, also is well established in the underground scene in Australia, but is yet to take his music into the mainstream. Not that he needs to.

With several number one hits in Papua New Guinea under his belt, two albums and a jam-packed international touring schedule to contend with, the PNG-born Cairns musician has more than enough work to keep him busy. That’s not bad for a guy who was told he “didn’t cut it” in his final audition with the panel from Australian Idol.

Though happy to have made it to the top 50 before a group performance failed to impress judges Marcia Hines, Mark Holden and Ian “Dicko” Dickson, Justin says singers shouldn’t base their potential too much on their success with the reality show. In fact, the first time he auditioned along with 10,000 other hopefuls he didn’t even get a look in.

“Even if the song suits you, if it’s a slow, cool, cruisy song it doesn’t work. They want you to blow them away. That’s what I learnt from the first time,” he says. “I listened to what everyone else was doing, learnt they want dynamics and impact so I flew to Darwin and tried again with a better song and made it through.” Justin says although making it to the final stages in Sydney was exciting, it brought to light just how much talent didn’t make it through.

“It’s a good experience. It’s good being in a high‑pressure situation but I saw so many incredible singers in the year that I was there. All these wicked singers that didn’t make it through,” he says.

“It’s important for artists to not be discouraged. Just because Australian Idol is not right for them, it doesn’t mean they can’t make it. For me it wasn’t that much of a disappointment because at the same time I got eliminated I had this big hit in PNG.

“The week I got back from Sydney I flew to PNG for a sold-out performance at Port Moresby and everybody was singing my song. Just because you fail one way doesn’t mean you shouldn’t keep trying. There are still ways to do what you want to do.”

It seems Justin’s optimism paid off. Since his Idol knockback in 2004, the silky-voiced vocalist, who describes his style as modern island music – a mixture of reggae and dance – has released two hit albums of about 20 self-penned songs.

Much Love hit shelves in 2005 and scored Justin not only his first number one hit in PNG but also widespread acclaim. His latest album, aptly titled JW, has already generated two number one hits.

Surprisingly, Justin says getting to where he is today was relatively painless as far as full-time music careers go. It was while living in Canada and attending a multicultural school with several of his cousins, after first relocating to Texas from PNG with his family, that the young singer at the age of 13 decided to give singing a go.

“I used to just sing along with songs. One day my mate said: ‘Hey you’re pretty good’. He said there was a talent show coming up and that we should do a song together so we did and it got a really big reaction,” Justin says. “That was the moment for me when I thought, I kinda like this, maybe I’ll keep doing it.” Justin went on to win numerous talent competitions while at school but didn’t take any further steps towards seriously pursuing his career until after graduation. “It was just kind of a slow thing, I went from band to band then recorded a few demos,” he explains. While playing with a band on a three-month contract in Indonesia, Justin got his first taste of just how big things could get when his group supported international superstars Boy Zone in 1997.

“They were pretty much gods you know and they were doing a little show at our hotel so we did their opening bracket and then did a few songs with them too,” he says. “That was a really big deal.” At about the same time Justin says he started writing his first original lyrics.

“Just after I came back from Indonesia I got to record a few of my songs but then for a couple of years nothing really happened and I went back to PNG to live for a while,” he says. “I gave this demo CD to this DJ at a club (in PNG). That was the start of something for me in the original music scene.

“It became a big hit in Medang then someone from there took it to the national radio station and it went to number one. Because it became a big hit on the radio I joked with some mates and said: ‘Let’s do some video clips’. We released that clip on TV and it went to number one as well.”

Justin now has a repertoire of about 20 original songs and four film clips, which he says have gained a massive following among Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islander and PNG fans here in Australia, in addition to his staple audience throughout the Pacific Islands. And when he’s not penning his own tunes or touring the islands, he’s busy with local band Sunset Raga.

Justin started the group, which features Mar-yo Bien-Aime as well as occasional appearances by PNG percussionist Ben Hakalitz, as the resident act for Cairns restaurant Casa De Meze. The band’s success was cemented when the guys were invited to cover for leading international performer Sean Kingston at his Brothers League Club concert in March.

“The last three years have been the best because two or three of my songs are pretty much household names in the Pacific Islands now,” Justin says. “I’ve had so many things come from that – tours to Vanuatu, PNG, New Caledonia, Tahiti.

“But the coolest part about it all is when you play for a big audience that know all the words to your songs. That’s the trippiest part.”

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