Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales to the north, South Australia to the west, and Tasmania to the south, on Boundary Islet.

Victoria is Australia's most densely populated state, and has a highly centralised population, with almost 75% of Victorians living in Melbourne, the state capital and largest city.

Etymology

Victoria, like Queensland, was named after Queen Victoria, the monarch at the time.

History

After the founding of the colony of New South Wales in 1788, Australia was divided into an eastern half named New South Wales and a western half named New Holland, under the administration of the colonial government in Sydney. The first European settlement in the area later known as Victoria was established in October 1803 under Lieutenant-Governor David Collins at Sullivan Bay, Victoria on Port Phillip. It consisted of 308 convicts, 51 marines, 17 free settlers, 12 civil officers, a missionary and his wife. They had been sent from England in HMS ''Calcutta'' under the command of Captain Daniel Woodriff, principally out of fear that the French, who had been exploring the area, might establish their own settlement and thereby challenge British rights to the continent.

Victoria's next settlement was at Portland, on the west coast of what is now Victoria. Melbourne was founded in 1835 by John Batman. From settlement the region around Melbourne was known as the Port Phillip District, a separately administered part of New South Wales. In 1851, the British Government separated the area from New South Wales, proclaiming a new Colony of Victoria.

In 1851 gold was discovered near Ballarat, and subsequently at Bendigo. Later discoveries occurred at many sites across Victoria. This triggered one of the largest gold rushes the world has ever seen. The colony grew rapidly in both population and economic power. In ten years the population of Victoria increased sevenfold from 76,000 to 540,000. All sorts of gold records were produced including the "richest shallow alluvial goldfield in the world" and the largest gold nugget. Victoria produced in the decade 1851–1860 20 million ounces of gold, one third of the world's output.

Immigrants arrived from all over the world to search for gold, especially from Ireland and China. Many Chinese miners worked in Victoria, and their legacy is particularly strong in Bendigo and its environs. Although there was some racism directed at them, there was not the level of anti-Chinese violence that was seen at the Lambing Flat riots in New South Wales. However, there was a riot at Buckland Valley near Bright in 1857. Conditions on the gold fields were cramped and unsanitary; an outbreak of typhoid at Buckland Valley in 1854 killed over 1,000 miners.

In 1854 at Ballarat there was an armed rebellion against the government of Victoria by miners protesting against mining taxes (the "Eureka Stockade"). This was crushed by British troops, but the discontents prompted colonial authorities to reform the administration (particularly reducing the hated mining licence fees) and extend the franchise. Within a short time, the Imperial Parliament granted Victoria responsible government with the passage of the Colony of Victoria Act 1855. Some of the leaders of the Eureka rebellion went on to became members of the Victorian Parliament.

The first foreign military action by the colony of Victoria was to send troops and a warship to New Zealand as part of the Māori Wars. Troops from New South Wales had previously participated in the Crimean War.

In 1901 Victoria became a state in the Commonwealth of Australia. As a result of the gold rush, Melbourne had by then become the financial centre of Australia and New Zealand. Between 1901 and 1927, Melbourne was the capital of Australia while Canberra was under construction. It was also the largest city in Australia at the time. Whilst Melbourne remains an important and influential financial centre, home to many national and international companies, it was slowly overtaken by Sydney in business importance around the 1970s and 1980s.

On Saturday 7 February 2009 ("Black Saturday"), the state was affected by the 2009 Victorian bushfires, resulting in 173 deaths.

Government

Parliament

Victoria has a parliamentary form of government based on the Westminster System. Legislative power resides in the Parliament consisting of the Governor (the representative of the Queen), the executive (the Government), and two legislative chambers. The Parliament of Victoria consists of the lower house Legislative Assembly, the upper house Legislative Council and the Queen of Australia.

Eighty-eight members of the Legislative Assembly are elected to four-year terms from single-member electorates.

In November 2006, the Victorian Legislative Council elections were held under a new multi-proportional representation system. The State of Victoria was divided into eight electorates with each electorate represented by five representatives elected by Single Transferable Vote proportional representation. The total number of upper house members was reduced from 44 to 40 and their term of office is now the same as the lower house members – four years. Elections for the Victorian Parliament are now fixed and occur in November every four years. Prior to the 2006 election, the Legislative Council consisted of 44 members elected to eight-year terms from 22 two-member electorates.

Premier and cabinet

The Premier of Victoria is the leader of the political party or coalition with the most seats in the Legislative Assembly. The Premier is the public face of government and, with cabinet, sets the legislative and political agenda. Cabinet consists of representatives elected to either house of parliament. It is responsible for managing areas of government that are not exclusively the Commonwealth's, by the Australian Constitution, such as education, health and law enforcement. The current Premier of Victoria is Ted Baillieu.

Governor

Executive authority is vested in the Governor of Victoria who represents and is appointed by Queen Elizabeth II. The post is usually filled by a retired prominent Victorian. The governor acts on the advice of the premier and cabinet. The current Governor of Victoria is Alex Chernov.

Constitution

Victoria has a written constitution. Enacted in 1975, but based on the 1855 colonial constitution, it establishes the parliament as the state's law-making body for matters coming under state responsibility. The Victorian Constitution can be amended by the parliament of Victoria. Under new provisions to be enacted, changes to the Victorian Constitution will be subjected to a plebiscite of votes, voting in a referendum.

Politics

Premier Ted Baillieu leads a Liberal/National Coalition that won the November 2010 Victorian state election.

The centre-left Australian Labor Party (ALP), the centre-right Liberal Party of Australia and the rural-based National Party of Australia are Victoria's major political parties. Traditionally, Labor is strongest in Melbourne's inner, working class and western and northern suburbs, Morwell, Ballarat, Bendigo and Geelong. The Liberals' main support lies in Melbourne's more affluent eastern and outer suburbs, and some rural and regional centres. The Nationals are strongest in Victoria's North Western and Eastern rural regional areas.

Federal government

Victorian voters elect 49 representatives to the Parliament of Australia, including 37 members of the House of Representatives and 12 members of the Senate. Since 2010, the ALP has held 22 Victorian house seats, the Liberals 12, the Nationals two and the Greens one. As of 1 July 2008, the Liberals have held six senate seats, the ALP five and the Family First Party one.

Local government

Victoria is incorporated into 79 municipalities for the purposes of local government, including 39 shires, 32 cities, seven rural cities and one borough. Shire and city councils are responsible for functions delegated by the Victorian parliament, such as city planning, road infrastructure and waste management. Council revenue comes mostly from property taxes and government grants.

{|- | style="font-size:90%;" margin- left="5em"| Source: Victorian Parliamentary Library, Department of Victorian Communities, Australian Electoral Commission |}

Demographics

The 2006 Australian census reported that Victoria had 4,932,422 people resident at the time of the census, an increase of 6.2% on the 1996 figure. The Australian Bureau of Statistics estimates that in June 2010 the state's population reached 5,547,500, an increase of 1.8% from the previous year and may well reach 7.2 million by 2050.

Victoria's founding Anglo-Celtic population has been supplemented by successive waves of migrants from southern and eastern Europe, Southeast Asia and, most recently, the Horn of Africa and the Middle East. Victoria's population is ageing in proportion with the average of the remainder of the Australian population.

About 72% of Victorians are Australian-born. This figure falls to around 66% in Melbourne but rises to higher than 95% in some rural areas in the north west of the state. Around two-thirds of Victorians claim Australian, Scottish, English or Irish ancestry. Less than 1% of Victorians identify themselves as Aboriginal. The largest groups of people born outside Australia came from the British Isles, China, Italy, Vietnam, Greece and New Zealand.

More than 70% of Victorians live in Melbourne, located in the state's south. The greater Melbourne metropolitan area is home to an estimated 3.9 million people. Leading urban centres include Geelong, Ballarat, Bendigo, Shepparton, Mildura, Warrnambool, Wodonga and the Latrobe Valley.

Victoria is Australia's most urbanised state: nearly 90% of residents living in cities and towns. State Government efforts to decentralise population have included an official campaign run since 2003 to encourage Victorians to settle in regional areas, however Melbourne continues to rapidly outpace these areas in terms of population growth.

Age structure and fertility

The government predicts that nearly a quarter of Victorians will be aged over 60 by 2021. The 2006 census reveals that Australian average age has crept upward from 35 to 37 since 2001, which reflects the population growth peak of 1969–72. In 2007, Victoria recorded a TFR of 1.87, the highest after 1978.

Crime

The state of Victoria is divided into four geographical regions; North-West Metropolitan Region, Southern Metropolitan Region, Eastern Region, Western Region. In 2010-2011 there were 152 homicides within the state of Victoria.

Religion

About 60.5% of Victorians describe themselves as Christian. Roman Catholics form the single largest religious group in the state with 27.5% of Victorian population, followed by Anglicans and members of the Uniting Church. Catholics and Protestants (including Anglicans) in Victoria each form around 30% of the population. Buddhism, the state's largest non-Christian religion, is also the fastest growing with 132,634. Victoria is also home of 109,370 Muslims and 41,105 Jews. Around 20% of Victorians claim no religion, and even amongst those who declare a religious affiliation, church attendance is low.

In 2008, the levels of couples choosing to marry in a church had dropped to 36%; the other 64% chose to register their marriage with a civil celebrant.

Education

Primary and secondary

Victoria's state school system dates back to 1872, when the colonial government legislated to make schooling both free and compulsory. The state's public secondary school system began in 1905. Before then, only private secondary schooling was available. Today, a Victorian school education consists of seven years of primary schooling (including one preparatory year) and six years of secondary schooling.

The final years of secondary school are optional for children aged over 17. Victorian children generally begin school at age five or six. On completing secondary school, students earn the Victorian Certificate of Education. Students who successfully complete their secondary education also receive a tertiary entrance ranking, or ATAR score, to determine university admittance.

Victorian schools are either publicly or privately funded. Public schools, also known as state or government schools, are funded and run directly by the Victoria Department of Education . Students do not pay tuition fees, but some extra costs are levied. Private fee-paying schools include parish schools run by the Roman Catholic Church and independent schools similar to English public schools. Independent schools are usually affiliated with Protestant churches. Victoria also has several private Jewish and Islamic primary and secondary schools. Private schools also receive some public funding. All schools must comply with government-set curriculum standards. In addition, Victoria has four government selective schools, Melbourne High School for boys, MacRobertson Girls' High School for girls, the coeducational schools John Monash Science School, Nossal High School and Suzanne Cory High School, and The Victorian College of the Arts Secondary School. Students at these schools are exclusively admitted on the basis of a selective entry test.

As of August 2005, Victoria had 1,613 public schools, 484 Catholic schools and 208 independent schools. Just under 537,000 students were enrolled in public schools, and 289,000 in private schools. Nearly two-thirds of private students attend Catholic schools. More than 455,000 students were enrolled in primary schools and more than 371,000 in secondary schools. Retention rates for the final two years of secondary school were 77% for public school students and 90% for private school students. Victoria has about 60,200 full-time teachers.

Tertiary education

Victoria has nine universities. The first to offer degrees, the University of Melbourne, enrolled its first student in 1855. The largest, Monash University, has an enrolment of nearly 56,000 students—more than any other Australian university. Both the University of Melbourne and Monash University are purportedly ranked highly among the world's best universities requiring a fairly high entry score, passing of mature age entrance exams or direct payment for student admission into their courses.

The number of students enrolled in Victorian universities was 241,755 at 2004, an increase of 2% on the previous year. International students made up 30% of enrolments and account for the highest percentage of pre-paid university tuition fees. The largest number of enrolments were recorded in the fields of business, administration and economics, with nearly a third of all students, followed by arts, humanities, and social science, with 20% of enrolments.

Victoria has 18 government-run institutions of “technical and further education” (TAFE). The first vocational institution in the state was the Melbourne Mechanics' Institute (established in 1839), which is now the Melbourne Athenaeum. More than 1,000 adult education organisations are registered to provide recognised TAFE programs. In 2004, there were about 480,700 students enrolled in vocational education programs in the state.

{|- | style="font-size:90%;" margin- left="5em"| Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Department of Education and Training (Victoria), Department of Education, Science and Training (Commonwealth), National Centre for Vocational Education Research |}

Libraries

The State Library of Victoria is the State's research and reference library. It is responsible for collecting and preserving Victoria's documentary heritage and making it available through a range of services and programs. Material in the collection includes books, newspapers, magazines, journals, manuscripts, maps, pictures, objects, sound and video recordings and databases.

In addition, local governments maintain local lending libraries, typically with multiple branches in their respective municipal areas.

Economy

Victorian production andworkers by economic activities
!Economicsector	!GSPproduced	!Number ofworkers	!Percentageof workers
	30.5%	319,109	15.3%
	16.6%	562,783	27.4%
	15.4%	318,218	15.3%
	12.1%	423,328	20.3%
	10.6%	133,752	6.4%
	6.2%	136,454	6.6%
	4%	62,253	3%
	3.3%	72,639	3.5%
	1.3%	4,472	0.2%
	–	49,208	2%

The state of Victoria is the second largest economy in Australia after New South Wales, accounting for a quarter of the nation's gross domestic product. The total gross state product (GSP) at current prices for Victoria was at just over A$222 billion, with a GSP per capita of A$44,443. The economy grew by 3.4% in 2004, less than the Australian average of 5.2%.

Finance, insurance and property services form Victoria's largest income producing sector, while the community, social and personal services sector is the state's biggest employer. Despite the shift towards service industries, the troubled manufacturing sector remains Victoria's single largest employer and income producer. As a result of job losses in declining sectors such as manufacturing, Victoria has the highest unemployment rate in Australia as of September 2009.

Agriculture

During 2003–04, the gross value of Victorian agricultural production increased by 17% to $8.7 billion. This represented 24% of national agricultural production total gross value. As of 2004, an estimated 32,463 farms occupied around 136,000 square kilometres (52,500 sq mi) of Victorian land. This comprises more than 60% of the state's total land surface. Victorian farms range from small horticultural outfits to large-scale livestock and grain productions. A quarter of farmland is used to grow consumable crops.

More than 26,000 square kilometres (10,000 sq mi) of Victorian farmland are sown for grain, mostly in the state's west. More than 50% of this area is sown for wheat, 33% for barley and 7% for oats. A further 6,000 square kilometres (2,300 sq mi) is sown for hay. In 2003–04, Victorian farmers produced more than 3 million tonnes of wheat and 2 million tonnes of barley. Victorian farms produce nearly 90% of Australian pears and third of apples. It is also a leader in stone fruit production. The main vegetable crops include asparagus, broccoli, carrots, potatoes and tomatoes. Last year, 121,200 tonnes of pears and 270,000 tonnes of tomatoes were produced.

More than 14 million sheep and 5 million lambs graze over 10% of Victorian farms, mostly in the state's north and west. In 2004, nearly 10 million lambs and sheep were slaughtered for local consumption and export. Victoria also exports live sheep to the Middle East for meat and to the rest of the world for breeding. More than 108,000 tonnes of wool clip was also produced—one-fifth of the Australian total.

Victoria is the centre of dairy farming in Australia. It is home to 60% of Australia's 3 million dairy cattle and produces nearly two-thirds of the nation's milk, almost 6.4 million litres. The state also has 2.4 million beef cattle, with more than 2.2 million cattle and calves slaughtered each year. In 2003–04, Victorian commercial fishing crews and aquaculture industry produced 11,634 tonnes of seafood valued at nearly A$109 million. Blacklipped abalone is the mainstay of the catch, bringing in A$46 million, followed by southern rock lobster worth A$13.7 million. Most abalone and rock lobster is exported to Asia.

Manufacturing

Machinery and equipment manufacturing is the state's most valuable manufacturing activity, followed by food and beverage manufacturing and petroleum, coal and chemical manufacturing. More than 15% Victorian workers are employed in manufacturing industries. Victoria has 318,000 manufacturing workers. The state is marginally behind New South Wales in the value of manufacturing output.

Major industrial plants belong to the car manufacturers Ford, Toyota and Holden; Alcoa's Portland and Point Henry aluminium smelters; oil refineries at Geelong and Altona; and a major petrochemical facility at Laverton.

Victoria also plays an important role in providing goods for the defence industry. Melbourne is the centre of manufacturing in Victoria, followed by Geelong. Energy production has aided industrial growth in the Latrobe Valley.

Mining

Mining in Victoria contributes around A$3 billion to the gross state product (~1%) but employs less than 1% of workers. The Victorian mining industry is concentrated on energy producing minerals, with brown coal, petroleum and gas accounting for nearly 90% of local production. The oil and gas industries are centred off the coast of Gippsland in the state's east, while brown coal mining and power generation is based in the Latrobe Valley.

In the 2005/2006 fiscal year, the average gas production was over per day (M cuft/d) and represented 18% of the total national gas sales, with demand growing at 2% per year.

In 1985, oil production from the offshore Gippsland Basin peaked to an annual average of 450,000 barrels per day. In 2005–2006, the average daily oil production declined to 83,000 bbls/d, but despite the decline Victoria still produces almost 19.5% of crude oil in Australia.

Brown coal is Victoria's leading mineral, with 66 million tonnes mined each year for electricity generation in the Latrobe Valley, Gippsland. The region is home to the world's largest known reserves of brown coal.

Despite being the historic centre of Australia's gold rush, Victoria today contributes a mere 1% of national gold production. Victoria also produces limited amounts of gypsum and kaolin.

Service industry

The service industries sector is the fastest growing component of the Victorian economy. It includes the wide range of activities generally classified as community, social and personal services; finances, insurance and property services, government services, transportation and communication, and wholesale and retail trade. Most service industries are located in Melbourne and the state's larger regional centres.

As of 2004–05, service industries employed nearly three-quarters of Victorian workers and generated three-quarters of the state's GSP. Finance, insurance and property services, as a group, provide a larger share of GSP than any other economic activity in Victoria. More than a quarter of Victorian workers are employed by the community, social and personal services sector.

Geology and geography

Victoria's northern border is the southern bank of the Murray River. It also rests at the southern end of the Great Dividing Range, which stretches along the east coast and terminates west of Ballarat. It is bordered by South Australia to the west and shares Australian's shortest land border with Tasmania. The official border between Victoria and Tasmania is at 39°12' S, which passes through Boundary Islet in the Bass Strait for 85 metres. Victoria contains many topographically, geologically and climatically diverse areas, ranging from the wet, temperate climate of Gippsland in the southeast to the snow-covered Victorian alpine areas which rise to almost 2,000 metres (6,500 ft), with Mount Bogong the highest peak at 1,986 m; (6,516 ft). There are extensive semi-arid plains to the west and northwest.

There is an extensive series of river systems in Victoria. Most notable is the Murray River system. Other rivers include: Ovens River, Goulburn River, Patterson River, King River, Campaspe River, Loddon River, Wimmera River, Elgin River, Barwon River, Thomson River, Snowy River, Latrobe River, Yarra River, Maribyrnong River, Mitta River, Hopkins River, Merri River and Kiewa River.

The state symbols include the Pink Heath (state flower), Leadbeater's Possum (state animal) and the Helmeted Honeyeater (state bird).

The state's capital, Melbourne, contains approximately 70% of the state's population and dominates its economy, media, and culture. For other cities and towns, see List of localities (Victoria) and Local Government Areas of Victoria.

Transport

Victoria has the highest population density in any state in Australia, with population centres spread out over most of the state; only the far northwest and the Victorian Alps lack permanent settlement.

The Victorian road network services the population centres, with highways generally radiating from Melbourne and other major cities and rural centres with secondary roads interconnecting the highways to each other. Many of the highways are built to freeway standard ("M" freeways), while most are generally sealed and of reasonable quality.

Rail transport in Victoria is provided by several private and public railway operators who operate over government-owned lines. Major operators include: Metro Trains Melbourne which runs an extensive, electrified, passenger system throughout Melbourne and suburbs; V/Line which is now owned by the Victorian Government, operates a concentrated service to major regional centres, as well as long distance services on other lines; Pacific National, CFCLA, El Zorro which operate freight services; Great Southern Railway which operates The Overland Melbourne—Adelaide; and CountryLink which operates XPTs Melbourne—Sydney.

There are also several smaller freight operators and numerous tourist railways operating over lines which were once parts of a state-owned system. Victorian lines mainly use the broad gauge. However, the interstate trunk routes, as well as a number of branch lines in the west of the state have been converted to standard gauge. Two tourist railways operate over narrow gauge lines, which are the remnants of five formerly government-owned lines which were built in mountainous areas.

Melbourne has the world's largest tram network, currently operated by Yarra Trams. As well as being a popular form of public transport, over the last few decades trams have become one of Melbourne's major tourist attractions. There are also tourist trams operating over portions of the former Ballarat and Bendigo systems. There are also tramway museums at Bylands and Haddon.

Melbourne Airport is the major domestic and international gateway for the state. Avalon Airport is the state's second busiest airport, which is complements Essendon and Moorabbin Airports to see the remainder of Melbourne's air traffic. Hamilton Airport, Mildura Airport, Mount Hotham and Portland Airport are the remaining airports with scheduled domestic flights. There are no fewer than 27 other airports in the state with no scheduled flights.

The Port of Melbourne is the largest port for containerised and general cargo in Australia, and is located in Melbourne on the mouth of the Yarra River, which is at the head of Port Phillip. Additional seaports are at Westernport, Geelong, and Portland.

Utilities

Energy

Victoria's major utilities include a collection of brown-coal-fired power stations, particularly in the LaTrobe Valley. One of these is Hazelwood Power Station, which is number 1 in the worldwide List of least carbon efficient power stations.

Water

Victoria's water infrastructure includes a series of dams and reservoirs, predominantly in Central Victoria, that hold and collect water for much of the state. The water collected is of a very high quality and requires little chlorination treatment, giving the water a taste more like water collected in a rainwater tank. In regional areas however, such as in the west of the state, chlorination levels are much higher.

The Victorian Water Grid consists of a number of new connections and pipelines being built across the State. This allows water to be moved around Victoria to where it is needed most and reduces the impact of localised droughts in an era thought to be influenced by climate change. Major projects already completed as part of the Grid include the Wimmera Mallee Pipeline and the Goldfields Superpipe.

Climate

Victoria has a varied climate despite its small size. It ranges from semi-arid and hot in the north-west, to temperate and cool along the coast. Victoria's main land feature, the Great Dividing Range, produces a cooler, mountain climate in the centre of the state.

Victoria's southernmost position on the Australian mainland means it is cooler and wetter than other mainland states and territories. The coastal plain south of the Great Dividing Range has Victoria's mildest climate. Air from the Southern Ocean helps reduce the heat of summer and the cold of winter. Melbourne and other large cities are located in this temperate region.

The Mallee and upper Wimmera are Victoria's warmest regions with hot winds blowing from nearby deserts. Average temperatures top 30 °C (86 °F) during summer and 15 °C (59 °F) in winter. Victoria's highest maximum temperature of 48.8 °C (119.9 °F) was recorded in Hopetoun on 7 February 2009, during the 2009 southeastern Australia heat wave.

The Victorian Alps in the northeast are the coldest part of Victoria. The Alps are part of the Great Dividing Range mountain system extending east-west through the centre of Victoria. Average temperatures are less than 9 °C (48 °F) in winter and below 0 °C (32 °F) in the highest parts of the ranges. The state's lowest minimum temperature of −11.7 °C (10.9 °F) was recorded at Omeo on 13 June 1965, and again at Falls Creek on 3 July 1970.

Rainfall

Victoria is the wettest Australian state after Tasmania. Rainfall in Victoria increases from north to south, with higher averages in areas of high altitude. Median annual rainfall exceeds 1,800 millimetres (71 in) in some parts of the northeast but is less than 250 millimetres (10 in) in the Mallee.

Rain is heaviest in the Otway Ranges and Gippsland in southern Victoria and in the mountainous northeast. Snow generally falls only in the mountains and hills in the centre of the state. Rain falls most frequently in winter, but summer precipitation is heavier. Rainfall is most reliable in Gippsland and the Western District, making them both leading farming areas. Victoria's highest recorded daily rainfall was 375 millimetres (14.7 in) at Tanybryn in the Otway Ranges on 22 March 1983.

{|- | style="font-size:90%;" margin- left="5em"| Source: Bureau of Meteorology, Department of Primary Industries, Australian Natural Resources Atlas |}

Tourism

Some major tourist destinations in Victoria are:

The metropolis of Melbourne, particular its inner city suburbs (known also for shopping tourism) and the attractions of the city centre such as Crown Casino, Melbourne Zoo, Melbourne Museum, the Melbourne Aquarium, ScienceWorks, Healesville Sanctuary, Werribee Open Range Zoo, tourism precincts such as Melbourne Docklands, Southbank and St Kilda as well as cultural and sporting tourist icons such as The Arts Centre, National Gallery of Victoria, the Melbourne Cricket Ground, also known as the MCG, and the Eureka Tower, tallest building in the Southern Hemisphere, with its Skydeck 88.

Victoria has more than 2000 kilometres of coastline with hundreds of beaches.

The Goldfields region featuring the historic cities of Ballarat, Beechworth, Bendigo, Castlemaine, Maldon and Daylesford.

Natural attractions, such as The Twelve Apostles, Wilsons Promontory, The Grampians, the Fairy Penguins (particularly at Phillip Island and St Kilda), the Buchan Caves and the Gippsland Lakes.

The Dandenong Ranges (in particular the Puffing Billy Railway).

Towns along the Murray River and Riverina including Echuca and Mildura including waterskiing.

Geelong and the Australian International Airshow

The Bellarine Peninsula which features historic resort towns such as Queenscliff.

The Surf Coast which features famous beaches such as Bells Beach, Torquay and Lorne

Mornington Peninsula, particularly for its wineries and secluded beaches, Arthur's Seat and the coastal attractions of Portsea and Sorrento.

Yarra Valley (in particular Healesville Sanctuary and wineries).

Great Ocean Road, which features The Twelve Apostles, historic towns of Port Fairy and Portland, cliffs and whale watching and resort towns such as Lorne.

The Victorian Alpine Region, part of the Australian Alps, particularly for skiing

The Central Victorian Highlands, 'Highcountry' are very well known for winter sports and bushwalking

Wine regions across the entire state.

Other popular tourism activities are gliding, hang-gliding, hot air ballooning and scuba diving.

Major events also play a big part in tourism in Victoria, particularly cultural tourism and sports tourism. Most of these events are centred around Melbourne, but others occur in regional cities, such as the V8 Supercars and Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix at Phillip Island, the Grand Annual Steeplechase at Warrnambool and the Australian International Airshow at Geelong and numerous local festivals such as the popular Port Fairy Folk Festival, Queenscliff Music Festival, Bells Beach SurfClassic and the Bright Autumn Festival.

Sport

Victoria is the home of Australian rules football, with ten of the seventeen clubs of the Australian Football League based in Victoria, and the traditional Grand Final held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground usually on the last Saturday in September.

Victoria's cricket team, the Victorian Bushrangers play in the national Sheffield Shield cricket competition. Victoria is represented in the National Rugby League by the Melbourne Storm and in Super Rugby by the Melbourne Rebels. It is also represented in Football (soccer) by Melbourne Victory and Melbourne Heart in the A-League.

Melbourne has held the 1956 Summer Olympics, 2006 Commonwealth Games, FINA World Swimming Championship, and is home to the Australian Open tennis tournament in January each year, the first of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, and the Australian Formula One Grand Prix.

Victoria is also home to Bells Beach, which is the home of the world's longest-running surfing competition, the Bells Beach SurfClassic, which is part of The ASP World Tour.

Netball is a big part of sport in Victoria. The Melbourne Vixens represent Victoria in the ANZ Championship. Some of the worlds best netballers such as Sharelle McMahon, Renae Hallinan, Madison Browne, Julie Corletto and Bianca Chatfield come from Victoria.

Possibly Victoria's most famous island, Phillip Island, is home of the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit which hosts the Australian motorcycle Grand Prix which features MotoGP (the world's premier motorcycling class), as well as the Australian round of the World Superbike Championship and the domestic V8 Supercar racing, which also visits Sandown Raceway and the rural Winton Motor Raceway circuit.

Australia's most prestigious footrace, the Stawell Gift, is an annual event.

Victoria is also home to the Aussie Millions poker tournament, the richest in the Southern hemisphere.

The Melbourne Spring Racing Carnival is one of the biggest horse racing events in the world and is one of the world's largest sporting events. The main race is for the $6 million Melbourne Cup, and crowds for the carnival exceed 700,000.

See also

2003 Melbourne thunderstorm

Atlas of Victorian Birds

Geography:

Goombala Road

Victorian Alps

Vicmap Topographic Map Series

Lists:

List of highways in Victoria

List of localities (Victoria)

Protected areas of Victoria (Australia)

References

External links

State Government of Victoria website

Official Government tourism website

Tourism Victoria's Online Image Library

Category:Former British colonies Category:States and territories of Australia Category:States and territories established in 1851

af:Victoria (Australië) ang:Victoria (Australia) ar:ولاية فيكتوريا zh-min-nan:Victoria (Australia) be:Штат Вікторыя be-x-old:Вікторыя (Аўстралія) br:Victoria (Aostralia) bg:Виктория (щат) ca:Victòria (Austràlia) cs:Victoria (Austrálie) cy:Victoria (Awstralia) da:Victoria (delstat) de:Victoria (Australien) et:Victoria (Austraalia) el:Βικτώρια (Αυστραλία) es:Victoria (Australia) eo:Viktorio (Aŭstralio) eu:Victoria (Australia) fa:ویکتوریا (استرالیا) hif:Victoria (Australia) fr:Victoria (État) ga:Victoria (stát) gv:Victoria, yn Austrail gd:Victoria, Astràilia gl:Victoria, Australia ko:빅토리아 주 hi:विक्टोरिया (ऑस्ट्रेलिया) hr:Victoria (Australija) id:Victoria, Australia os:Виктори (Австрали) is:Victoria it:Victoria (Australia) he:ויקטוריה (אוסטרליה) jv:Victoria, Australia pam:Victoria (Australia) ka:ვიქტორია (შტატი) la:Victoria (Australia) lv:Viktorija (Austrālija) lb:Victoria (Australien) lt:Viktorija (Australija) lij:Vitöia (Australia) hu:Victoria (Ausztrália) mk:Викторија (Австралија) mr:व्हिक्टोरिया, ऑस्ट्रेलिया ms:Victoria, Australia mn:Викториа (Австрали) nl:Victoria (Australië) ja:ビクトリア州 pih:Wiktoreya no:Victoria (Australia) nn:Delstaten Victoria oc:Victòria (Estat) pnb:وکٹوریہ pl:Wiktoria (stan Australii) pt:Vitória (Austrália) ro:Victoria (Australia) rm:Victoria (Australia) ru:Виктория (Австралия) stq:Victoria (Australien) simple:Victoria (Australia) sk:Viktória (Austrália) sl:Viktorija (Avstralija) sr:Викторија (Аустралија) fi:Victoria (Australia) sv:Victoria, Australien tl:Victoria, Australya ta:விக்டோரியா (ஆஸ்திரேலியா) th:รัฐวิกตอเรีย tr:Victoria, Avustralya uk:Вікторія (штат) vec:Victoria (Austrałia) vi:Victoria (Úc) wuu:维克多利亚州 zh:維多利亞州

Coordinates	39°46′5.88″N86°9′29.52″N
name	Victoria Justice
background	solo_singer
birth date	February 19, 1993
origin	Hollywood, Florida, U.S.
instrument	Vocals, piano
genre	Electropop, pop, dance pop
occupation	Actress, singer, songwriter, dancer
years active	2003–present
label	Columbia RecordsSony Music Entertainment
website	VictoriaJustice.net
notable instruments	}}

Victoria Justice (born February 19, 1993) is an American actress, singer, songwriter, and dancer. She debuted as an actress at the age of 10 and has since appeared in several films and television series including the Nickelodeon series ''Zoey 101'' and ''Victorious''. She has made appearances in several theatrical releases, including ''Unknown'' as well as the 2006 thriller ''The Garden''. She has appeared in several Nickelodeon series, including ''True Jackson, VP'', ''The Troop'', ''The Penguins of Madagascar'' and ''iCarly'', as well as on the Nickelodeon game show ''BrainSurge'' as a contestant. In 2010 she starred in the Nickelodeon film ''The Boy Who Cried Werewolf''.

Aside from acting, Justice is involved in her musical career. She has performed several songs for the soundtrack to the Nickelodeon musical ''Spectacular!'', in which she starred. She has recorded a number of songs for the ''Victorious'' series. Justice has announced the release of her debut album, which is expected to be released sometime during the summer of 2011.

Early life

Victoria Justice was born on February 19, 1993, in Hollywood, Florida, to Serene and Zack Justice. Her mother is Puerto Rican and her father is of English, German, and Irish descent. She first developed an interest in acting when she was 8 years old after watching a children's commercial. She and her family relocated to Hollywood, California, in 2003. In 2005, she auditioned and was accepted into the musical theatre program at Los Angeles' renowned Performing Arts Magnet school. Her family moved from Hollywood, Florida, to Los Angeles when she was 11 after Justice had stated she wanted to be a part of filming commercials as well as television series and films. Justice has done commercials for companies such as Ralph Lauren, Gap and Guess. She appeared in national commercials for Mervyn's, Peanut Butter Toast Crunch and Ovaltine.

Career

2003–09: Beginnings and ''Zoey 101''

Justice first began her acting career when she was 10 years old, when she made a guest appearance on the ''Gilmore Girls'' episode "The Hobbit, the Sofa and Digger Stiles". Justice portrayed Jill #2 in a walk-on role. After her appearance in the series, her family moved to Los Angeles, when Justice stated she wanted a career in acting. The following year, Justice guest starred on the second episode of the Disney channel series ''The Suite Life of Zack & Cody'', in which she plays a young pageant contestant named Rebecca. Later, Justice was awarded a role in the 2005 drama-thriller Mary. Justice portrayed the role of Stella, a young girl who begins seeing visions of Mary Magdalene. After informing her family of this, they take her to see a psychiatrist, who places her on medication. Later that night, when Mary comes back, Stella takes her medicine and ignores her. This leads Mary to give Stella's sister the task instead. The film debuted at 2005 Venice Film Festival, before being showed at several other Festivals, including the 2005 Toronto Film Festival, Deauville Film Festival and San Sebastián International Film Festival.

thumb|left|170px|Victoria Justice in June 2007 During the same year, Justice was awarded a main cast role in the Nickelodeon series ''Zoey 101'' as Lola Martinez, a new student who is also an aspiring actress. When she found out she had earned the role, she said "I was extremely happy; I was bouncing up and down and screaming. That was a really great moment." The season 2 episode that introduced Justice's character debuted on September 11, 2005. Justice also had roles in two other films that year. She had a cameo appearance in the R-rated film ''When Do We Eat?'', as well as earning the role of Rose in the Hallmark television film ''Silver Bells'', the following of which has become a Hallmark Hall of Fame film.

In 2006, while filming episodes for ''Zoey 101'', Justice made a guest appearance on an episode of the series ''Everwood'', in the episode "Enjoy the Ride". Justice made her theatrical film debut that year, when she was given a cameo role in the film ''Unknown''. The film was a financial failure, and received mixed reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film currently has a 39% approval rate, and only has a 44% approval rate on metacritic.

2006 also saw Justice in her first major theatrical role, when she was awarded the supporting role of Holly in the thriller film ''The Garden''. The film was met with negative reviews from critics, with Tex Massacre of Bloody Disgusting giving the film a score of 3 out of 10, stating, "Overflowing with way too much exposition, and a barrage of scenes that offer little more than the actors looking pensive, ''The Garden'' felt like five movies – five long strange never-ending tales that were designed to suck the very soul from my body. Perhaps it felt that way because it took me 5 sittings to finally make it through the film!"

2007 and 2008 saw Justice focusing on the third and fourth seasons of ''Zoey 101'', which was coming to a close. Justice released her debut single midway through 2007, while she was still filming ''Zoey 101''. The song was a cover of the Vanessa Carlton song, "A Thousand Miles". The song failed to make an impact on any charts, had little promotion, and no music video was filmed or released. When being interviewed about in 2010 about her musical career, Justice has stated "My family could always tell, ever since I was little, that [music is] something that's always come natural to me and that I've always wanted to do. It's something that's just been in my blood. Ever since I was little, I was taking tap classes, jazz classes, hip-hop classes, acting classes. I just always wanted to cultivate that and do that more. But, the moment where I actually realized, "Woah, this is something that I can actually do for the rest of my life and maybe be successful at," was actually the pilot of Victorious when I did the performance number for the first time. I just remember standing on stage and seeing all these people looking at me and I was nervous. And then, the music started and I started dancing around and really feeling it and having an amazing time, and that's when it clicked for me that this is what I want to do for the rest of my life." May 2, 2008 saw the airing of the final episode of the series.

2009 proved to be a successful year for Justice. She announced plans to guest star on an episode of Nickelodeon's series ''The Naked Brothers Band''. The TV special, titled ''Valentine Dream Date'' featured Justice portraying herself. Justice made no plans of going back into the recording studio until 2009, when she starred in the Nickelodeon musical, ''Spectacular!''. Justice's character performs three songs during the course of the film. When being interviewed about the song writing process, Justice stated "It was really fun. This is the first time that people are going to hear me sing officially. There was a YouTube video where I covered “A Thousand Miles” by Vanessa Carlton, which I did just for fun with my singing coach. Somehow that got leaked online, and I guess people liked it. But this is the first time that my voice will be on any soundtrack and people are actually going to hear me sing in the studio. It’s really cool and I can’t wait for people to hear it! The songs are really catchy and you can dance around to them. When we were filming, that’s all me, Simon [Curtis], Avan [Jogia] and Andrea [Lewis], would listen to! We would dance around to the songs all the time and practice the moves." She also stated "I completed the songs pretty quickly. I sang three songs that were all duets with Simon, and I finished them in 2 days. I practiced them a long time before, because I wanted to be prepared. So for the 2 weeks before that, I was rehearsing every single day, like 10 times a day. It’s a good idea [to memorize the lyrics] because you’re more prepared. I definitely did, but I don’t think everyone does." Justice starred alongside Nolan Funk and Simon Curtis in the musical film, which aired on Nickelodeon on February 16, 2009. The film has become one of Nickelodeon's most popular movies, attracting an audience 3.7 million viewers on its premiere night. The film received a generally positive review from several critics. Common Sense Media said in their review that "With SPECTACULAR!, Nickelodeon attempts to loosen the iron grip Disney established on tween-targeted modern-day musicals with ''High School Musical'' and its sequels. ''Spectacular!'' definitely has some similarities to HSM – including a talented cast, upbeat song-and-dance numbers, and age-appropriate content for tweens – but there are also some marked differences. Nikko is a bit of a bad boy, mouthing off to his older brother (who acts as his guardian) and flaunting a major superiority complex with the choir members. Courtney's also guilty of some errors in judgment, including allowing her passion for upstaging Ta-Da – and lead singer Royce (Simon Curtis), who defected from ''Spectacular!'' – to lead to promising Nikko money that belonged to the group. But rather than weighing the story down, these character flaws actually benefit the overall package. They allow the characters to evolve – and, in the end, that's what tweens will take away from this story. Spectacular! can't boast the same pure star power of its popular Disney rival, but it does offer equally kid-friendly entertainment with strong positive overtones. Though parents will find the story predictable and more than a little cheesy, tweens are sure to embrace it and the messages it sends." The film has a 76% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes as of 2011.

After the success of The Naked Brothers Band special in which Justice guest starred, producers insisted on placing her in yet another episode. The episode, titled "The Premiere", debuted on April 11, 2009. Shortly afterward, it was announced that Victoria Justice would be guest starring on a special episode of the hit television series ''iCarly''. The episode, which aired on August 8, 2009 saw Justice portraying ring fighter Shelby Marx. After Carly jokingly states she could beat Marx in a fight, Marx goes to Carly's home and challenges her. The plan is to rig the fight, so no one really is hurt. The fight is set to air on TV as well. However, after Carly's enemy, Nevel, intervenes, the fight turns real. The special was later released onto a DVD of the same name, which features not only the episode, but also has three other ''iCarly'' episodes, including "iDate a Bad Boy", "iCarly Awards", and "iLook Alike". The DVD also includes ''Big Time Audition'', the pilot movie of ''Big Time Rush''. September 26 saw the release of the ''True Jackson, VP'' episode "True Crush", which featured an appearance by Justice. On its original airdate, the show received 3.6 million viewers.

On November 30 Justice appeared as herself on the latest Nickelodeon show, called ''BrainSurge''. The game show saw Justice competing as a celebrity contestant as part of a series special. Justice announced that year that she would be working on a thriller film, set for theatrical release. It was later announced the film would feature Dylan Sprouse and Cole Sprouse, who star on the Disney series ''The Suite Life of Zack & Cody'' as well as its spin-off series ''The Suite Life On Deck''. The film is about two cousins, Will and Clayton, who witness a murder, but out of fear decide not to tell anyone. They and their friend Betsy (Justice), whose father has been wrongfully accused of the crime, go on a journey to find the real killer, and at the same time redeem themselves. Unlike initial plans of a theatrical release, the film had a limited preview release on December 12, 2009 and was returned to post production. Despite this, the film's worldwide release has been canceled.

Justice guest-starred on the Nickelodeon television series, ''The Troop'', in which she portrays an Eris Fairy who has been running around the school breaking up couples in love in the episode "Speed."

2010–present: ''Victorious'' and other projects

Justice confirmed that she would be receiving her own musical show on Nickelodeon, explaining the show's genesis thus: "I was on ''Zoey 101''. When I was 12, Dan Schneider cast me as a new character, Lola Martinez. From there, I worked with him for three years, on three seasons of ''Zoey 101''. And, after that, Dan found out that I could also sing and dance as well as act, so he thought it would be really cool to create a show for me on Nickelodeon, called Victorious." The pilot for the show, which was presented as a special for the series, debuted on March 27, 2010, and received 5.7 million views, making it the highest rated premiere for a live-action Nickelodeon series. The original broadcast of this episode was an extended cut, all subsequent airings had various scenes and lines were removed to conform to its time-slot. The extended cut version can be downloaded on iTunes and was featured on the ''iCarly'' DVD ''iSpace Out''. The series premiere received generally positive reviews from critics. Brian Lowry of ''variety.com'' said of the shows debut "The difference between "Big Time Rush" – Nickelodeon's lackluster first collaboration with Sony Music—and their latest joint venture, "Victorious," rests almost entirely on 17-year-old Victoria Justice's petite shoulders. Both shows are near plot-free and set in a high school for the performing arts, as if the original "Fame" were given a frontal lobotomy. But Justice is winsome and talented enough to provide the latest show a leg up in connecting with tween girls—and not incidentally, maybe selling some music in the process." Common Sense Media praised Justice's role in the series, stating, "Victorious marks Victoria Justice’s rise from successful supporting roles in ''Zoey 101'' and ''Spectacular!'' to the center stage, and like her TV counterpart, she proves she’s worthy of the promotion. Tweens will find much to like in this upbeat comedy – original music, dance, and plenty of mild teen drama – and the fact that Tori always emerges with unwavering self-assurance sends positive vibes to impressionable viewers."

Justice returned to the recording studio to record music for the series in 2010. She recorded the series first featured song, which also serves as the theme song, titled "Make It Shine". The single had little success charting in the U.S., however it did manage to reach 16 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 singles chart. Several other songs have been featured in the series, including "You're the Reason", "Finally Falling", "Beggin' on Your Knees","Best Friend's Brother" and "Tell Me That You Love Me". Justice performed her third official single, "Freak the Freak Out", during the ''Victorious'' special episode of the same name. The single became her third song to receive an official release, after "A Thousand Miles" and "Make It Shine" and was officially released on November 22, 2010. The single has become her first song to chart on any major chart, when it debuted at 78 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart. Justice performed the song live for the first time at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Justice later guest-starred on the animated series ''The Penguins of Madagascar'', voicing the character of Stacy in the episode "Badger Pride". Justice starred in the 2010 Nickelodeon television movie ''The Boy Who Cried Werewolf'', playing Jordan Sands, a girl who is transformed into a werewolf following her move to a creepy manor. The film was a major success for the network, drawing in 5.8 million viewers for the premiere. The film received generally positive reviews from critics. The film currently holds a 69% approval rate on Rotten Tomatoes based on 24 reviews. Felix Vasques Jr. of ''CinemaCrazed'' gave the film a positive review as well, stating "''The Boy Who Cried Werewolf'' ends up being a surprisingly solid family horror comedy that isn't as soapy or girly as I originally assumed it would be. Within the pandering to preteens salivating after Justice, there is also a solid however flawed and derivative story and some wicked special effects." It has been confirmed that in 2011 the cast of ''iCarly'', along with the cast of Victorious will be doing a crossover episode, titled ''iParty with Victorious''. This will mark the second time Justice has guest starred for iCarly, first as Shelby Marx.

In a 2010 interview with the Associated Press, she stated that she is recording an album but will take her time with the process, rather than rush it, and write the songs on the album. But, she is very excited waiting for it. In March 2011 The Hollywood Reporter confirmed that Justice had landed the lead role in the coming of age comedy ''Fun Size''.

Other endeavors

Philanthropy

Justice has taken part in a few charity events. She has supported charities such as the ''United Nations Foundation'', which benefits numerous causes such as AIDS, Children, Environment, Health, Human Rights and Peace. On September 30, 2010, Justice announced she would be joining the Charity Campaign ''Girl Up''. When asked about joining, she stated "I’m so excited to become a Champion for Girl Up and to help make a difference for girls who aren’t given the same opportunities that most of us take for granted. I know that there are plenty of girls throughout the country who are just like me – ready and motivated to stand up for the rights and well-being of girls in the developing world. I am confident that, together, we will rise to the challenge." Justice joined ''Girl Up'' on September 30, 2010 for the campaign’s official launch in New York City and will go on to support the “Unite for Girls” tour, which travels to cities across the U.S. to activate and engage teens from coast to coast. She will have the chance to visit Girl Up-supported programs in developing countries to observe first-hand the impact they can have on girls and communities. During an interview with ''Seventeen'' magazine, Justice stated:

Filmography

''The Garden'' ''Spectacular!'' ''The Boy Who Cried Werewolf (2010 film) ''Victorious'' ''The Suite Life of Zack & Cody'' ''Everwood'' ''The Naked Brothers Band (TV series) ''The Troop'' ''2010 Kids' Choice Awards'' ''The Penguins of Madagascar'' ''7 Secrets With Victoria Justice'' ''Nick News'' ''2011 Kids' Choice Awards'' ''BrainSurge'' ''iCarly''

colspan="4" style="background: LightSteelBlue;"	Film
Year	Film	Role	! Notes
rowspan="3"	2005	Mary (2005 film)>Mary''	Stella
''When Do We Eat? (2006 film)	When Do We Eat?''	Young Nikky
''Silver Bells (film)	Silver Bells''	Rose
rowspan="2"	2006	|	Holly
''Unknown (2006 film)	Unknown''	Daughter
rowspan="2"	2009	|	Tammi Dyson
''The Kings of Appletown''	Betsy
2010	The Boy Who Cried Werewolf'' ||	Jordan Sands	Lead role
colspan="4" style="background: LightSteelBlue;"	Television series
! Year	! Title	! Role	! Notes
2005–2008	''Zoey 101''	Lola Martinez (Zoey 101)>Lola Martinez
2010–present	|	List of Victorious characters>Victoria "Tori" Vega	Lead role
colspan="4" style="background: LightSteelBlue;"	Television guest appearances
! Year	! Title	! Role	! Episode(s)
2003	''Gilmore Girls''	Jill #2
2005	|	Rebecca	List of The Suite Life of Zack & Cody episodes#ep2>"The Fairest of Them All" (Season 1, episode 2)
2006	|	Thalia Thompson	"Enjoy the Ride" (Season 4, episode 18)
rowspan="4"	2009	The Naked Brothers Band'' ||	Herself	"Valentine Dream Date (TV special)
''[[iCarly''
''True Jackson, VP''
''BrainSurge''	Herself
2010	|	Eris Fairy	List of The Troop episodes#ep15>Speed" (Season 1, episode 15)
2010	|	Herself	(with the cast of ''Victorious'')
2010	|	Stacy	"Badger Pride" (Season 2, episode 14)
2010	|	Herself	Television Special
2011	|	Herself	Episode: Lies We Tell In Middle School
2011	|	Herself	Performed Beggin' On Your Knees, Nominated for "Favorite Television Actress", (with the cast of ''Victorious'')
2011	|	Herself
2011	|	Tori Vega	"iParty with Victorious" (Season 3, episode 11–13, crossover)

Discography

Soundtracks

+	Title	Album details	Peak chart positions
! scope="col" style="width:7em;font-size:90%;"
! scope="row"		* Released: February 3, 2009	* Format: CD, digital download	* Label: Nick Records	44
! scope="row"		* Released: August 2, 2011	* Format: CD, digital download	* Label: Sony Music Entertainment	5

Singles

Promotional singles

Title	Year	Peak chart Positions	Album
		US
"A Thousand Miles"		–

Soundtrack singles

Title	Year	Peak chart Positions	Album
		US
"Make It Shine"		116	align="center" rowspan=5
"Freak the Freak Out"	50
"Beggin' on Your Knees"		58
"Best Friend's Brother"	86
"I Want You Back"	108

As featured artist

! scope="row"

Title	Year	Positions	Album
		US
"Leave It All to Shine" (iCarly cast & Victorious cast featuring Miranda Cosgrove & Victoria Justice)	2011	124

;Notes :1. "Leave It All to Shine" did not enter the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 but peaked on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart at number twenty-four.

Awards

Iconic TV Actress 2011 Kids' Choice AwardsImagen AwardsALMA Awards

style="background-color: #BCBCBC"	Year	Award	Category	Recipient(s)	Result
2010	J-14's Teen Icon Awards	|	Victorious
2011	|	Favorite TV Actress	Victorious
2011	|	Best Young Actress/Television	Victorious
2011	|	Favorite TV Actress – Leading Role in a Comedy	Victorous

See also

List of Puerto Ricans

References

External links

Category:1993 births Category:Actors from Florida Category:American child actors Category:American child singers Category:American film actors Category:American female singers Category:American people of English descent Category:American people of German descent Category:American people of Irish descent Category:American musicians of Irish descent Category:American musicians of Puerto Rican descent Category:American television actors Category:Child pop musicians Category:Hispanic and Latino American actors Category:Musicians from Florida Category:Living people Category:People from Hollywood, Florida

ca:Victoria Justice cs:Victoria Justice da:Victoria Justice de:Victoria Justice es:Victoria Justice fa:ویکتوریا جاستیس fr:Victoria Justice it:Victoria Justice he:ויקטוריה ג'סטיס nl:Victoria Justice ja:ヴィクトリア・ジャスティス pl:Victoria Justice pt:Victoria Justice ru:Джастис, Виктория sl:Victoria Justice fi:Victoria Justice sv:Victoria Justice

Coordinates	39°46′5.88″N86°9′29.52″N
Name	The ExponentsThe Dance Exponents
Background	group_or_band
Origin	Christchurch, New Zealand
Years active	1981–2000, 2006, 2010-2012
Associated acts	Jordan Luck BandLuckThe Diamond RingsThe StarlingsBasementChannel 4
Current members	Jordan LuckDavid GentBrian JonesMichael "Harry" Harralambi
Past members	Steve CowanMartin MorrisChris SheehanEddie OlsonDavid BarracloughSteve Simpson }}

The Exponents are a New Zealand rock group led by vocalist and songwriter Jordan Luck.

Their major hits, including "Why Does Love Do This To Me", "Who Loves Who The Most", "Victoria", "I'll Say Goodbye (Even Though I'm Blue)" and "Whatever Happened To Tracey" have been taken up by successive generations of younger New Zealanders, with social commentators going so far as to say that an Exponents concert forms a rite of passage for New Zealand youth.

History

The group formed in 1981 after vocalist Jordan Luck and guitarist Brian Jones disbanded their first group, Basement, and relocated from the South Canterbury town of Timaru to Christchurch with their ex-Splash Alley friend, Steve "Fingers" Cowan. Searching for a drummer in Christchurch, the trio met Dave Gent (bass) and Michael "Harry" Harralambi (drums) from punk band Channel 4. Cowan moved from bass to keyboards and guitar and the five piece became The Dance Exponents. Their first gig was at the Hillsborough Tavern on Luck's 20th birthday and Cowan's 22nd - October 15th 1981. A residency at Christchurch's Aranui Tavern quickly earned them a strong live reputation, and on the recommendation of Jim Wilson they were signed by Mushroom Records by Mike Chunn in 1982.

The band's debut single "Victoria" was a top ten hit and was quickly followed by the singles "Airway Spies" and "All I Can Do". During this period guitarist Steve Cowan left the group and they played as a four piece until Martin Morris was added to the live band following the recording of the band's debut album in 1983. Sadly Steve Cowan died a couple of years after leaving the group.

With their popularity growing nationally from extensive touring, TVNZ recorded them live at Mainstreet in Auckland. The show was simulcast on television and FM radio and the companion album released in June 1983 saw six songs from the Dance Exponents on one side of the album with four songs from The Legionnaires on the other side.

In December 1983 the group's debut album "Prayers Be Answered" was released and it stayed in the NZ Album chart for nearly a year, selling double platinum in the process - a rare feat for a new New Zealand act at the time . Luck's songs, their exuberant live shows and the group's broad appeal made them one of the most popular new bands in New Zealand in the early 80s.

In 1984 Martin Morris left the band and Chris Sheehan joined on guitar. Sheehan brought a new edge to the group, best heard on his first recording with the group the Julian Mendlesohn produced single "Sex & Agriculture". The Dance Exponents second album "Expectations" was released in May 1985. Harry left the group before Expectations was recorded and Vince Ely from The Psychedelic Furs was hired by producer Ian (Fab) Taylor to drum on the album. Eddie Olson joined the band on drums following the album's release.

The band's third album "Amplifier" was co produced by John Jansen and Doug Rogers and released on Roger's Zulu label in 1986. Amplifier featured the single "Caroline Skies" and re-recordings of "Sex & Agriculture", "Victoria" and "Only I Could Die", the latter becoming the second single from the album. Without the band's approval, Zulu released a recording of "Brand New Doll" as single. It was not featured on the Amplifier album but was included on the CD when it was released in 1999. After only a moderate response to the album, Eddie Olson left the group and the band moved to Britain in 1987. There, they were a popular draw for expatriate New Zealanders (and sometimes Australians and South Africans) and attracted A&R; interest, but did not gain a record contract. During their four year hiatus in the UK, Luck continued to write and accumulated a number of strong songs which were demoed by the band.

Interest in the UK demos from PolyGram Records NZ brought the band back to New Zealand in 1990, although Sheehan remained in the UK and went on to form The Starlings. In New Zealand, Harry rejoined the group and to mark the new start of the four original members, they dropped the "Dance" from their name to become The Exponents. Their subsequent 1992 album for PolyGram "Something Beginning with C", yielded the group's biggest hits of their career in "Why Does Love Do This To Me" and "Who Loves Who The Most" and the album became the band's first number 1 record in New Zealand. It includes some of Luck's strongest songs and is marked by simple arrangements and Brian Jones' vocal harmonies with Luck. Widely considered a New Zealand classic, it is included in Nick Bollinger's book "100 Essential New Zealand Albums".

In 1992 The Exponents signed to Phonogram Records in Australia and relocated to Sydney to record their fifth album "Grassy Knoll". Before they began Jones left the band and relocated to the UK. With guitars played by Dave Dobbyn and Brent Williams (an old band mate of David Gent who went on to join Pop Mechanix), "Grassy Knoll" was significantly rockier than it's predecessors and delivered the singles "Like She Said", "Don't Say Goodbye" and "House Of Love". With limited promotion in New Zealand, "Grassy Knoll" went gold but failed to match the success of "Something Beginning With C".

Following the release of Grassy Knoll, the band met Rockingham raised Dave "Duck" Barraclough in Sydney in 1994 and he joined them as guitarist and songwriting partner to Luck. His first contribution to the group was his song "La La Lulu" which was backed by a co-write with Luck called "Summer You Never Meant". "La La Lulu" returned the band to the singles charts and the two songs featured on the group's first hits compilation entitled "Once Bitten, Twice Bitten - The Singles 1981 - 1995" which was released by Warner Music. The album was a massive success hitting Number 1 on the New Zealand album charts and selling 5 x Platinum. In 1996 the group recorded a final, one off single for Warner Music entitled "Do You Feel In Love".

In 1997 the Exponents signed to Sony Music and released their sixth studio album Better Never Than Late which featured the singles "One In A Lifetime", "Close" and "Change Your Mind". Produced by Eddie Rayner and The Exponents it reached number 3 on the album chart.

In 1999, Dave Gent took a break from the group and Steve Simpson was drafted in on bass. Shortly after The Exponents decided to call it quits and went out on a final New Zealand tour in support of their final album "Hello, Love You, Goodbye". The record featured Simpson on bass with 6 new tracks and 8 live tracks recorded at the Pounamu Hotel in Takapuna in 1999. Following the tour Barraclough returned to Australia and joined Mental As Anything.

Luck formed his own band, Luck, playing Exponents songs and new compositions with songwriting partner Bryan Bell and he continues to play in the Jordan Luck Band today.

Brian Jones returned to New Zealand in the early 2000s and began working with former Bird Nest Roys singer Little Ross Hollands in their new group The Diamond Rings which also included a rhythm section of fellow Exponents David Gent and Harry. The Diamond Rings released their debut album "The Rasper" in June 2009.

In 2005 the four original Exponents - Luck, Gent, Jones and Harry got together to record "Geraldine" and "Or A Girl I Knew" with producer Neil Finn for inclusion in a new Exponents hits compilation called "Sex & Agriculture - The Very Best Of The Exponents". The album featured one disc of the hits and a second of b-sides and rarities. They played a few shows in support of the album which went platinum and reached number 7 on the charts.

The four reunited again in 2010 to play at the benefit concert for the 2010 Canterbury earthquake. Their 1985 hit "Christchurch (In Cashel Street I Wait)" became the theme song for the concert and the band closed the show with a mass chorus of the song featuring all the artists who performed at the concert.

The Exponents are currently working on a new project for 2011 and 2012.

New Zealand Music Awards

In 1984 The Dance Exponents won three NZ Music Awards:

Album Of The Year "Prayers Be Answered"

Top Male Vocalist - Jordan Luck

Best Group

In 1992 The Exponents won two NZ Music Awards:

Single Of The Year "Why Does Love Do This To Me"

Top Male Vocalist - Jordan Luck

APRA Awards

In 2001, to celebrate 75 years of its existence, APRA invited its members and an academy to vote on what they believe are to be New Zealand's top songs of all time. The Exponents had several songs appearing in the top 100:

#8 - "Victoria"

#47 - "Why Does Love Do This To Me"

#89 - "I'll Say Goodbye"

At the 2007 APRA Silver Scroll Awards on September 18, Jordan Luck was named by Mike Chunnas the first inductee to the New Zealand Music Hall of Fame.

Discography

Albums

Date	Title	Producer	Label	Charted	Certification	Catalog Number
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Singles

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Year	Single	Album	Charted	Certification	Catalogue
					Mushroom X13083 (12")Mushroom K8793 (7")
					Mushroom X13097 (12")Mushroom K8905 (7")
					Mushroom:K9044
					Mushroom K9250
					Mushroom K9051
					Mushroom K9053
					Mushroom X14083 (12")Mushroom K9478 (7")
					Mushroom K9711
					Mushroom X14205 (12")Mushroom K9713 (7")
					Mushroom K9659
					Zulu Z001
					Zulu Z003
					Zulu Z007
					Mercury 868176-2
					Mercury 866543-2
					Mercury 868776-2
					Mercury 866658-2
					Mercury 864013-2
					Mercury 864775-2
					Mercury 858052-2
					Mercury 858847-2
					Mercury 856375-2
					Warner 063012167-2
					Warner 063015229-2
					Columbia 664262-2
					Columbia 664717-2
					Columbia 664991-2
					Digital Only

Videos

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Year	Video	Director

Notes

Exponents, The

Coordinates	39°46′5.88″N86°9′29.52″N
Name	Nicki Minaj
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Onika Tanya Maraj
Birth date	December 08, 1982
Birth place	Saint James, Trinidad and Tobago
Origin	South Jamaica, Queens, New York, USA
Genre	Hip hop, R&B;, pop
Occupation	Rapper, singer-songwriter
Years active	2002 – present
Label	Cash Money Records, Young Money Entertainment, Universal Republic Records, Universal Motown
Associated acts	Young Money
website	}}

Onika Tanya Maraj (born December 8, 1982), known by her stage name Nicki Minaj (), is a Trinidadian-born American musician. She was born in Saint James, Trinidad and Tobago, and moved to the New York borough of Queens when she was five.

After releasing three mixtapes between 2007 and 2009 and being signed to Young Money Entertainment in August 2009, Minaj released her debut album, ''Pink Friday'', in November 2010. It quickly became a commercial success, peaking at number one on the U.S. ''Billboard'' 200 and being certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) a month after its release. She became the first female solo artist to have seven singles on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 at the same time. Her second single, "Your Love", reached #1 on the ''Billboard'' Hot Rap Songs chart, making Minaj the first female artist to top the chart unaccompanied since 2002. She also became the first female artist to be included on MTV's Annual Hottest MC List. Minaj was named the 2011 ''Rising Star'' by ''Billboard''. Her second studio album, ''Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded'' will be released on April 3, 2012.

Early life

Maraj was born in 1982 in Saint James, a suburb of Trinidad and Tobago's capital city Port of Spain. Her parents are of mixed Indian and Afro-Trinidadian ancestry and she lived in Saint James with her grandmother until age five, because her parents were looking for a place to live in the Queens borough of New York City at the time. Her mother would occasionally visit, and one day, when Minaj was five, her mother picked her up to move to Queens. According to Minaj, her father drank heavily, took drugs, and once tried to kill her mother by setting the house on fire.

She attended Elizabeth Blackwell Middle School 210, where she played the clarinet. She graduated from LaGuardia High School. At LaGuardia, a school specializing in music and the visual and performing arts, Minaj participated in the drama program. She had initially planned to sing at LaGuardia, but lost her voice on the day of the audition.

Career

2007–09: Mixtapes and Young Money

Minaj released her first mixtape in 2007 after releasing ''Playtime Is Over'' with ''Dirty Money Records''. She released another mixtape on July 7, 2008, titled ''Sucka Free'', under the label ''Be''. On April 18, 2009, Minaj released a third mixtape and appeared in ''XXL'' magazine. She won the Female Artist of the Year award at the 2008 Underground Music Awards. Minaj released ''Beam Me Up Scotty'', another mixtape, in April 2009 under the label of ''Trapaholics Records''; it received positive coverage on both BET and MTV.

In August 2009, Minaj signed a record deal with Young Money Entertainment, with distribution from Universal Motown Records, after fellow American rapper Lil Wayne discovered her and secured the record deal. She then had a solo rap verse in their single "BedRock," which became a commercial success, reaching #2 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Minaj also appeared on "Roger That", which charted at #56. The song, and in particular Minaj, received positive reviews from critics. Both songs were included in Young Money Entertainment's debut collaborative studio album ''We Are Young Money'', which was released in December 2009. The album charted in the top ten on the ''Billboard'' 200, reaching #9 and later receiving a Gold Certification by the RIAA. She was then chosen by Mariah Carey to be featured on her single and music video for "Up Out My Face". Critics praised her collaboration for helping to maintain Carey's feminine image and providing a polite track for the female R&B; singer.

2010–present: ''Pink Friday'' and ''Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded''

After a major record label bidding war, Young Money Entertainment announced on August 31, 2009 that Minaj had been released a 360 deal with the label in which she retains and owns all of her 360 rights – including merchandising, sponsorships, endorsements, touring and publishing. In an interview with 95.8 Capital FM, Rihanna stated that after the two collaborated on "Raining Men" from her album ''Loud'' that the duo would be teaming up together for a possible second collaboration on Minaj's ''Pink Friday''. Hip-hop rap artist and producer Kanye West was also confirmed for the album. On August 3, 2010 Minaj revealed on a Ustream.tv channel that the album's name would be ''Pink Friday'', in reference to Black Friday.

''Pink Friday'' was released on November 19, 2010 in both standard and deluxe versions. A buzz single, "Massive Attack", was released in April. In August, Minaj released "Your Love" as the first official single from her debut album. The single peaked at 14 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, 7 on the Hot R&B;/Hip-Hop Songs chart and topped the Rap Songs chart. Minaj became the first female artist to be included on MTV's Annual Hottest MC List and the first female artist to top the chart unaccompanied since 2002. In October 2010, Minaj became the first artist to have seven songs on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart simultaneously. Minaj released a joint single with The Black Eyed Peas front man, will.i.am titled, "Check It Out", which is Minaj's most successful single to date in Europe. "Right thru Me" was released September 24, 2010; the music video was released in late October. "Moment 4 Life" was released as the fourth single. The track featured Canadian rapper Drake and was released on December 7, 2010, becoming a success on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. The single peaked at number 5 on the Hot Rap Songs. The album gained a Platinum certification in the United States a month after the release. It was hinted by Simon Cowell that Minaj would join the judging panel of the American version of the ''The X Factor.'' Starting in June 2011, Minaj will be supporting ''Pink Friday'' by serving as an opening act along with Jessie and the Toy Boys and Nervo on Britney Spears' sixth concert tour, the Femme Fatale Tour, in support of her seventh studio album, ''Femme Fatale''. She also was featured on the official remix of Spears' track "Till the World Ends" along with Spears and singer Kesha, which charted at number 3 in the US in April 2011. "Super Bass" was released from ''Pink Friday'' in May 2011, the single charted within the top 10 in many countries including; United Kingdom, United States, Australia, Canada and more. The song gained positive reviews from critics. Minaj will voice a character in the 3D animated film, ''Ice Age: Continental Drift'', as an unknown character. Minaj is also featured on French DJ David Guetta's 2011 album, ''Nothing but the Beat'' on "Where Them Girls At" and "Turn Me On". She will be featured alongside Madonna and M.I.A. on an upcoming single from Madonna's twelfth studio album, for which a music video has been directed by Megaforce. The trio performed "Give Me All Your Luvin'" from Madonna's new album for the Super Bowl XLVI halftime show.

Minaj's second studio album, ''Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded'', was announced through Twitter in November 2011 and is set to be released on April 3, 2012. The album's first single, "Starships", was released on February 14. On February 12, 2012, Minaj debuted her song "Roman Holiday" at the 54th Grammy Awards. The exorcism-themed perfomance drew a mixed response online.

Musical style and image

Image

In an interview with ''Vibe'' Minaj discussed her sexual image stating, "[w]hen I grew up I saw females doing certain things, and I thought I had to do that exactly. The female rappers of my day spoke about sex a lot... and I thought that to have the success they got, I would have to represent the same thing. When in fact I didn’t have to represent the same thing." In an interview with ''Interview'', Minaj commented on her sexual image again stating, "I made a conscious decision to try to tone down the sexiness, I want people—especially young girls—to know that in life, nothing is going to be based on sex appeal. You’ve got to have something else to go with that.” Minaj has a tattoo in Chinese characters that reads "" (''shangdi yu ni chang zai'') on her left arm, meaning, "God is always with you."

Alter egos

While growing up, Minaj's home life was often chaotic, with her parents constantly fighting. As a means of escape, she would create characters and live her life through them. In an interview with ''New York'' she stated, "To get away from all their fighting, I would imagine being a new person. 'Cookie' was my first identity – that stayed with me for a while. I went on to 'Harajuku Barbie,' then 'Nicki Minaj'. Fantasy was my reality."

For her debut album, Minaj created another alter-ego named "Roman Zolanski". She stated that in songs like "Bottoms Up" with Trey Songz it is not Minaj rapping, but instead Roman Zolanski, and claims that Roman is her "twin sister". She claims that he was born inside her, out of rage, and becomes him when she is angry. She has also said 'He is a demon inside her'. Roman has been compared to Eminem's alter ego Slim Shady, and on the song "Roman's Revenge" from ''Pink Friday'', Minaj and Eminem collaborate, using these alter egos. On the collaboration, she said "The new album is going to have a lot of Roman on it ... And if you're not familiar with Roman, then you will be familiar with him very soon. He’s the boy that lives inside of me. He's a lunatic and he's gay and he'll be on there a lot." Roman also has a "mother" called "Martha Zolanski", who also appeared on the song Roman's Revenge, with a British accent. Martha appears in the video for "Moment 4 Life" where she appears to be Minaj's magical Godmother. In songs such as "All I Do Is Win (Remix)" it is Minaj rapping. Minaj stated that on her debut album, fans will get to "meet" Nicki, Roman and Onika.

On November 18, 2010, Minaj assumed a different alter-ego named "Nicki Teresa". Wearing a colorful scarf around her head, she went around as the "healer to her fans" as she visited them at The Garden of Dreams Foundation at Fuse studios in New York City. Minaj made an appearance on ''Lopez Tonight'' on December 6, 2010 and presented a different alter-ego for the Spanish-inspired occasion, named "Rosa" (pronounced Rrrrrosa).

Influences

Minaj has stated that artists who have influenced her musical style include Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes, Lil Wayne, Lauryn Hill, Jadakiss, Natasha Bedingfield, Foxy Brown, Lil' Kim and Missy Elliott. She was also inspired by Janet Jackson, Madonna, Britney Spears, Marilyn Monroe, Grace Jones, M.I.A., and Cyndi Lauper.

Personal life

While some songs and interviews have implied that Minaj is bisexual, she has said that she does not date nor have sex with women, but added in an interview with ''Out'' magazine, "I don’t date men either." In an interview with ''Vibe'' she commented, "I just embrace all people of all lifestyles and I don’t tell them they are bad people. And I say girls are beautiful and girls are sexy and they need to be told that, and if they don’t have anyone to tell them that and mean it, I’m gonna tell them that. But I feel like people always wanna define me and I don’t wanna be defined." She reiterated her dislike of being labeled in an interview with ''Out'', saying: "The point is, everyone is not black and white. There are so many shades in the middle, and you’ve got to let people feel comfortable with saying what they want to say when they want to say it."

During an interview in the May 2010 issue of ''Details'', Minaj was asked if she felt hip-hop was becoming more gay-friendly. She responded, "I think the world is getting more gay-friendly, so hip-hop is too. But it's harder to imagine an openly gay male rapper being embraced, people view gay men as having no street credibility. But I think we'll see one in my lifetime."

In July 2011, Minaj's cousin Nicholas Telemaque was murdered near his home in Brooklyn, New York City.

Discography

''Pink Friday'' (2010)

''Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded'' (2012)

See also

List of awards and nominations received by Nicki Minaj

Notes

References

External links

Category:Nicki Minaj Category:1982 births Category:Living people Category:African American female singers Category:African American rappers Category:American musicians of Indian descent Category:American people of Trinidad and Tobago descent Category:Female rappers Category:Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School alumni Category:Hip hop singers Category:Naturalized citizens of the United States Category:People from Queens Category:People from Port of Spain Category:Rappers from New York City Category:Singers from New York City Category:Trinidad and Tobago emigrants to the United States Category:Trinidad and Tobago musicians Category:Trinidad and Tobago people of Dougla descent Category:Young Money Entertainment artists

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Coordinates	39°46′5.88″N86°9′29.52″N
name	Miranda Kerr
birth name	Miranda May Kerr
birth date	April 20, 1983
birth place	Sydney, Australia
height
haircolor	Brown
eyecolor	Blue
measurements	32–24–34 (US)81–61–86 (EU)
dress size	6 US/36 EU
shoesize	8 US/39 EU
spouse	Orlando Bloom (2010–present)
children	Flynn (2011) }}

Miranda May Kerr (born 20 April 1983) is an Australian model best known as one of the Victoria's Secret Angels since mid-2007. She is the first Australian to participate in the Victoria's Secret campaign and also represents Australian fashion chain David Jones. Kerr began modeling in the fashion industry when she was 13, starting at Chaay's Modelling Agency, and soon after winning a 1997 Australian nationwide model search hosted by ''Dolly'' magazine and Impulse fragrances.

She is married to actor Orlando Bloom, with whom she has a son, Flynn.

Early life and family

Kerr was born in Sydney, and raised in the small town of Gunnedah, New South Wales. Her parents are Therese and John Kerr, and she has a younger brother named Matthew (born 1985). In an interview, Kerr stated she is of English, French and Scottish descent. During her childhood, Kerr "raced motorbikes and rode horses on her grandmother's farm." She describes her early life in the Australian countryside as "very grounding ... there wasn't any pretentiousness and no one really cared what you were wearing. You could just be you." Her family moved to Brisbane to allow Kerr and her brother to experience city life, where she graduated from All Hallows' School in 2000. Kerr originally went on to study nutrition and health psychology before pursuing modeling.

Career

''Dolly'' magazine and early work, 1997–2006

At age 13, Kerr entered and won the 1997 annual ''Dolly'' Magazine/Impulse Model Competition. She was flown to Sydney a week before her 14th birthday to shoot for the magazine. Upon Kerr's win, local media expressed "concerned outrage" at her young age. The controversy raised concerns about the glorification of young girls within the fashion, beauty, and entertainment industries. Some conservative media outlets claimed her ''Dolly'' shoot (including images of a 14-year-old Kerr in bathing suits) constituted a form of child pornography. Of the press, Kerr said: "In the media at the time they were trying to cling on to anything remotely to do with paedophilia. Dolly is a magazine for teenage girls, not for old men. And I was fully clothed! Doing a winter shoot! They just made something out of nothing."

Kerr signed to Chic Management's Sydney division. She received considerable commercial exposure after a series of beachwear ads predominantly for Australian surf chain Billabong, in which Kerr modeled surf brands Tigerlily, Roxy, Billabong Girls, and One Teaspoon. This increased her profile in the Australian and Asian markets, after which Kerr relocated to New York.

Once in New York, Kerr had a multitude of runway appearances and then signed with NEXT Model Management in early 2004. From there, she was booked for runway and print campaigns for major labels, including Alex Perry, Baby Phat, Lisa Ho, Voodoo Dolls, Levi's, Bettina Liano, Nicola Finetti, L.A.M.B., Heatherette, Betsey Johnson, Trelise Cooper, Jets, John Richmond, Blumarine Swimwear, Neiman Marcus, Seafolly Swimwear, Anna Molinari, Rock and Republic, Roberto Cavalli, and Ober Jeans.

Kerr was also booked for print in magazines such as ''Elle'', Australian ''Vogue'' and ''Harper's Bazaar'', and was featured in television advertisements for brands like Portmans, Bonds, and Veet.

In early 2006, Kerr appeared in the finale episode of the TV show ''Project Runway'', modeling clothes for contestant Daniel Vosovic's final collection. She was the first woman to walk down the catwalk.

In 2006, Kerr broke into the United States market when she signed a lucrative cosmetics contract with Maybelline New York. The campaign ran in a series of internationally sold women's beauty magazines, including ''Cosmopolitan'', ''CLEO'', and ''Elle'', and was eventually featured in Victoria's Secret catalogues. She (along with several other Victoria's Secret and Next agency models) was also featured in a music video for the American hip-hop single "Number One" by artists Kanye West and Pharrell.

Victoria's Secret and beyond, 2007–present

Following her success with Maybelline, Kerr became the first Australian model to be offered a contract with Victoria's Secret in 2007, replacing Gisele Bündchen. Upon her acceptance, she became the first ever Australian Victoria's Secret Angel joining the stable of models already signed to the lingerie giant, including Alessandra Ambrosio, Karolína Kurková, Adriana Lima, Selita Ebanks, Izabel Goulart, and Heidi Klum. Before becoming an Angel in 2007, Kerr was already picked to become the successor of Alessandra Ambrosio as the face of PINK in 2006. Kerr's popularity continued to increase as one of the globally recognized Angels when she appeared in the Victoria's Secret 2006, 2007, 2008, and 2009 televised runway shows, which aired on four continents.

In 2007, Kerr had signed on as the face of Californian fashion retailer Arden B. After debuting in their Spring and Summer ad campaigns, Kerr returned for their Fall 2007 campaign, shot by fashion photographer Diego Uchitel. Following her modeling success with Victoria's Secret, Kerr made a small guest appearance in the CBS sitcom ''How I Met Your Mother'' alongside fellow Angels: Adriana Lima, Marisa Miller, Alessandra Ambrosio, Heidi Klum, and Selita Ebanks. She also became the new face of Clinique Happy and signed a lucrative six-figure deal to be the new face of Australian department store David Jones, replacing model Megan Gale. In 2008, having earned an estimated $3.5 million in the past 12 months, ''Forbes'' placed Kerr tenth in the list of the world's top-earning models.

Since 2009, Kerr has been featured on the cover of Rolling Stone Australia magazine, ''Harper's Bazaar Australia'', CS magazine, Sunday Magazine, Tempo magazine Turkey, Cosmopolitan magazine Spain and GQ Germany magazine. Kerr has also been featured in the Pirelli Calendar 2010 and editorials for XOXO Spring/Summer 2009 collection, ''V Magazine'', ''Vogue'' Japan, Russian ''Vogue'', ''Glamour magazine Germany'', ''Numero'' Magazine, US ''Vogue'' and ''Harper's Bazaar Australia''.

Kerr also made an appearance in the spring/summer runway show for Balenciaga, her first designer fashion show, aside from Victoria's Secret, since 2007.

She was chosen to be in the 2010 Pirelli Calendar photographed by Terry Richardson in Bahia, Brazil. The calendar was launched that January. In 2010, Kerr walked for design company Prada for their Fall 2010 collection in Milan Fashion Week alongside fellow Angels Doutzen Kroes and Alessandra Ambrosio and subsequently got booked for the Prada Fall/Winter-campaign alongside Angela Lindvall. Kerr also received an Ad Campaign for top fashion label, Jil Sander.

In September 2010, Kerr landed two editorials and one feature in US ''Vogue'''s September Issue. She recently became the first ever pregnant ''Vogue'' cover girl when landing the cover of ''Vogue'' Australia while six months pregnant.

At models.com, she is ranked at number 4 on the Top 20 sexiest models and 6 most in demand.

She is currently signed with IMG Models, Next Model Management Paris, Traffic Models and Chic Management. In March she hit the catwalk for Balenciaga's Fall 2011 Ready-to-Wear collection as part of Paris Fashion Week, this came just two months after giving birth.

KORA Organics

In October 2009, Kerr launched an organic skincare line, called KORA Organics, in Australia with co-founder George Moskos. Kerr's mother Therese has been the General Manager of KORA Organics since February 2010. The company is based in Sydney. Kerr's brother Matt also works for the company.

Public image

Kerr's model trademark are her dimples. Celebrity photographer Russell James said of Kerr, "The US has fallen in love with her. We love her because she has the most incredible girl-next-door look and she's also insanely beautiful. It means women are not intimidated by her looks and guys think they might be able to talk to her. It's a fantastic combination ... people want to be around her; she's fun on a shoot … and she's not stupid, which can be a very annoying trait among some models." Model agent Ursula Hufnagl described Kerr as "the perfect endorsement", citing her ability to "truly sell a product."

She has been ranked in FHM's '100 Sexiest Women' poll at #56 in 2009, #36 in 2010, and #44 in 2011.

Kerr's charitable work includes Wildlife Warriors Worldwide and Children International. In June 2009, Kerr posed naked, chained to a tree, for the Australian issue of ''Rolling Stone'' magazine, in order to attract public attention for the koala.

In early February 2010, Kerr inadvertently became the subject of global headlines when David Kiely, a banker at Macquarie Bank in Sydney, was caught viewing "racy" photos of the model on his computer while in the background of a colleague's live television interview with Channel 7. Within days, a clip of the interview uploaded onto YouTube received over 1.3 million hits. When Kiely was suspended and an internet campaign launched on his behalf, Kerr herself gave him her backing: "I am told there is a petition to save his job, and of course I would sign it." The episode prompted a 100% increase in the number of Google searches for Kerr's name. A few days after the incident, Macquarie Bank announced that Mr Kiely would keep his job.

Personal life

Kerr practices Nichiren Buddhism and believes "we have a responsibility to bring peace and harmony to our lives and the world." As part of her Nichiren beliefs, Kerr reportedly chants every morning and night for 20 minutes, practices yoga, meditates, and reads widely on spirituality. She maintains her physique through daily yoga, light jogging, and a diet of steamed vegetables, fresh fruit, and fish. Kerr has written an inspirational self-esteem, self-help book called ''Treasure Yourself'' (2010) aimed at the female teenage demographic.

In 2003, Kerr began dating finance broker Adrian Camilleri. Following an Australian Securities and Investments Commission investigation, Camilleri was found guilty on five counts of fraudulent behaviour from February 2003 to February 2004. Kerr subsequently ended the relationship. A 2007 newspaper report claims that Kerr suffered financially "after taking her boyfriend's financial advice" but chose not to take legal action.

She was formerly in a long-term relationship with Jay Lyon (formerly known as Brent Tuhtan), the lead singer of the band Tamarama, who has made appearances on season one of the MTV series ''The City''. Kerr was featured in Tamarama's video clip for "Everything To Me". The two dated for approximately four years but ended on mutual terms in mid-2007.

In late 2007, Kerr began dating actor Orlando Bloom, who also is an SGI member. On 12 February 2009, Kerr and Bloom participated in the "Australia Unites" fundraiser to raise money for the victims of the Australian bushfires on 7 February 2009.

In 2009, the Bling Ring broke into Bloom's home. The group stole luxury brand clothing and jewelry. In this case, the ringleader allegedly wanted Kerr's Victoria's Secret lingerie.

The couple's engagement was announced on 21 June 2010. Kerr released a statement on 22 July 2010, announcing that she and Bloom had married in "an intimate ceremony." Kerr gave birth to a son, Flynn Christopher Blanchard Copeland Bloom, on 6 January 2011 in Los Angeles. The middle name 'Christopher' is named after Kerr's ex-boyfriend, Christopher Middlebrook who died in a car accident in 1998, when he was 15. The two were still dating at the time.

References

External links

Category:1983 births Category:Australian female models Category:Living people Category:People from New South Wales Category:Members of Soka Gakkai Category:People from Sydney Category:Australian Buddhists Category:Australian people of English descent Category:Australian people of French descent Category:Australian people of Scottish descent

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