Australia

Coordinates: 27°S 133°E / 27°S 133°E / -27; 133

Australia (/ɒˈstreɪliə/, /ə-/, colloquially /-jə/), officially known as the Commonwealth of Australia, is an Oceanian country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area. Neighbouring countries include Papua New Guinea, Indonesia and East Timor to the north; the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu to the north-east; and New Zealand to the south-east.

For about 50,000 years before the first British settlement in the late 18th century, Australia was inhabited by indigenous Australians, who spoke languages grouped into roughly 250 language groups. After the European discovery of the continent by Dutch explorers in 1606, Australia's eastern half was claimed by Great Britain in 1770 and initially settled through penal transportation to the colony of New South Wales from 26 January 1788. The population grew steadily in subsequent decades; the continent was explored and an additional five self-governing crown colonies were established. On 1 January 1901, the six colonies federated, forming the Commonwealth of Australia. Since federation, Australia has maintained a stable liberal democratic political system that functions as a federal parliamentary democracy and constitutional monarchy comprising six states and several territories. The population of 24 million is highly urbanised and heavily concentrated in the eastern states and on the coast.

Geri Halliwell

Geraldine Estelle "Geri" Horner (/ˈdʒɛəri/; née Halliwell; born 6 August 1972) is an English pop singer-songwriter, clothes designer, author and actress. Halliwell came to international prominence in the 1990s as Ginger Spice, a member of the successful girl group the Spice Girls; together they sold over 80 million records worldwide. In 1998 Halliwell left the Spice Girls, however she rejoined the group when they reunited in 2007. Halliwell has reportedly amassed a $30 million fortune during her last two years in the group.

In 1999, Halliwell launched her solo career and released her debut album Schizophonic which spawned three number ones at the UK Singles Chart; "Mi Chico Latino", "Lift Me Up", and "Bag It Up", while the lead single "Look at Me" peaked at number two. In 2001, Halliwell released her second album Scream If You Wanna Go Faster; the first single, "It's Raining Men" peaked at number one in the UK and went on to become Halliwell's biggest hit of her career. She released her third studio album Passion in 2005. Halliwell has been nominated for four Brit Awards (in 2000 and 2002).

Jessica Mauboy

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Jessica Hilda Mauboy (born 4 August 1989) is an Australian R&B and pop singer, songwriter, and actress. In 2006, Mauboy was the runner-up on the fourth season of Australian Idol; she had auditioned for the talent show in Alice Springs, Northern Territory to pursue a recording career. Mauboy subsequently signed a contract with Sony Music Australia.

In February 2007, she released her debut live album, The Journey, which debuted at number four on the ARIA Albums Chart, and was certified gold by the Australian Recording Industry Association. Later that year, she briefly became a member of all-girl pop group Young Divas, before resuming her solo career early in 2008. Mauboy released her debut studio album, Been Waiting, in November 2008, which spawned her first number-one single, "Burn", as well as the top ten hits, "Running Back" and "Because". Been Waiting became the second highest-selling Australian album of 2009, and was certified double platinum. Her second studio album, Get 'Em Girls (2010), included the top ten singles, "Saturday Night" and "Inescapable". Mauboy's third studio album, Beautiful, was released in 2013 and produced the top-ten singles "Pop a Bottle (Fill Me Up)", "Never Be the Same" and "Can I Get a Moment?".

Mariah Carey

Mariah Carey (born March 27, 1969 or 1970) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. She rose to prominence after the release of the first single taken from her eponymous debut album in 1990, "Vision of Love". More than two decades later, Rolling Stone defined the song as an influence on "virtually every other female R&B singer since the nineties". Mariah Carey produced four chart-topping singles in the US and began what would become a string of commercially successful albums which solidified the singer as Columbia's highest selling act. Carey and Boyz II Men spent a record sixteen weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100 with "One Sweet Day", which remains the longest-running number-one song in US chart history. Following a contemptuous divorce from Sony Music head Tommy Mottola, Carey adopted a new image and traversed towards R&B with the release of Butterfly (1997). In 1998, she was honored as the world's best-selling recording artist of the 1990s at the World Music Awards and subsequently named the best-selling female artist of the millennium in 2000.