Hard Yakka!
It's a long way to the top if you wanna rock and roll... just ask Popstars' Danielle Stearman!
We don't like it!
[Confused] Erm...what?!
We don't like it - we love it!
[Pause] Ahhh... what exactly are you talking about?
You're new single, silly - Tell me if you like it!
[Laughs] You guys are sick!
Yeah, we know! But seriously Dan, how's it feel to finally have your song out?
I'm so overwhelmed, I don't know what to think! Everybody's so excited! Ever since I was a little girl I always wanted to be a singer, but I don't know whether I ever believed it would really happen.
Not a lot of people know that you'd been through some hard times, with both your father and best friend passing away recently. How'd you cope?
I learnt a lot when my dad passed away. I was very immature until my dad passed away, and I think it taught me a lot. Six months later, my best friend passed away due to an illness as well. And in that period of eight months - from my dad dying to my best friend dying - it was one of those things where you sort of think you could easily sit in your bed, never get out again and watch your life pass by.
Who did you turn to for help?
I'm really lucky my mum is really good support for me, and sometimes people don't have that support. But there are people out there - whether it is a friend or whatever - there's always someone you can talk to. And I think that's probably one thing I have to my advantage, I'm really good at expressing my feelings.
Did you ever think of quitting singing altogether?
I went though a stage after my dad passed away where I just thought, "I don't want to sing ever again." And it wasn't until my friend Aaron - who was the one that passed away - said to me, "Danni, just get over it, you know? Singing is what you love, when you're on stage you shine!" So we started writing together, and I found my passion again, and then when he passed away, I just couldn't understand the concept. How could I be robbed twice, in such a short period of time, of two people that I just had all the time in the world for? But I've still got the support of his family as well, so...
That must've been a tough process...
It's horrible. You sit back and assess your life, and you think, "What did I ever do to deserve this?" But it's now made me even more determined to succeed, because I know that I can't just sit back. I mean, my dad use to come and watch me sing ever since I was little, and so did Aaron. They were both very supportive, and for me to just let this passion that I have inside die would be an injustice to them. I feel I'd be letting them down.
Did you look at Scott winning Popstars as another set back?
I was happy - I genuinely was. There was an element of disappointment, but it didn't hit me for a couple of days. I wasn't disappointed that I didn't win, but that the whole thing was over.
How quickly did you score your record deal after Popstars ended?
I went back to Melbourne for a month, and it's sort of like, "Oh my goodness! What do I do?" It was just one of those things where you have to hang in there and keep yourself busy. That's hard when you go from doing things from 5 o'clock in the morning to midnight, then you've go to stop and take it all back. But I hung in there, just took it easy, and did bits and pieces. And now it's my turn to get out and do this!
Are you and Scott really dating each other?
If you believed all the rumours that went around about me - I was with James the first week, Azaria the second, I was back with James the third week and from then on in it was Scotty! I don't know, I think because we got along so well it was one of those things where people wanted us to be together, so it gives a bit of a story.
Are you at least friends, then?
Well, he's got to work on his communications skills because he's a bit slack when it comes to staying in touch with people! But I think I'll make sure we stay in contact.