Background

Nicki Gillis is a female vocalist and entertainer from Australia who was born in Western Australia and grew up a child of entertainer parents from Croatian and Italian backgrounds. She spent her early years working on the family farm just out of Perth as she attended school and watched her parents work at nights in various entertainment venues around Western Australia.

At the age of 15 Nicki had her first professional engagement as a singer as a backing vocalist for Jackie Love's Western Australia tour. At 17 Nicki joined her first band, Perth's "The Power Station" a seven piece rock covers band that later became a five piece "Cold Chisel" cover band called "East".

Nicki played in numerous Perth based bands and toured nationally with Buckshot Dolly a six piece Country Rock band that she formed with her mother Lucy D'Olimpio in 1992. In 1996 she decided at the last minute to enter Australia's premier country music talent competition, the Gympie Muster Talent Quest, which she won[1].

1997 Nicki recorded her first self penned collection of songs - this EP, "Nicki", was then released to radio in Australia.

Having spent 18 months living in Brisbane, after her Gympie Muster win, Nicki returned to Western Australia to spend time writing and recording. In 2002 she headlined the World Women's Hockey Championships and performed via satellite to viewers in 16 countries. In 2004 Nicki moved to Sydney to progress a career as a solo entertainer.

In 2004 Nicki joined with Newcastle based, Brooke Leale, in an acoustic duet called "Velvet Moon". This was a project that lasted two years before Nicki and Brooke went on their own personal music ventures.

In 2005 Nicki released her "On the Mountain" EP - a subdued introspective blend of songs bordering on acoustic folk rock rather than Nicki's trademark country infused rock of recent years. She later combined her first three EP's into one album calling it "On The Mountain - Special Edition".

Nicki's album “Lucy’s Daughter” was released in Australia in 2007 to great applause and received glowing reviews from all areas. Re-released in the UK in 2010 the album included a bonus track, "On The Mountain" and was broadly accepted as a quality release, with much praise from reviewers in some of the UK's leading country music magazines.

Nicki's third recording, a joint effort with Bob Howe, called "Collaboration" was a collection of cover versions of classic rock songs that had inspired her and Bob throughout their careers. Including songs originally performed by T-Rex, REM and Snow Patrol. The album maintains a country infused feel and also received positive acclaim across the industry.

In 2011, Nicki's fourth album was released in response to requests from audiences across the world. Consisting of cover versions of songs from 1965 - 1975 that were made famous by strong women with a message. This album, "Woman of Substance" has provided Nicki's fans with a valuable insight into the songs and women that inspired Nicki from a very young age.

Nicki has toured the UK, US, South Pacific, Middle East, Germany and South East Asia. This considerable international experience has allowed her to develop a stage show that takes audiences on a journey from nostalgic and classic hits through to contemporary rock and self-penned hits.

Nicki toured the UK in 2009 and 2010 with a band consisting of Bob Howe on guitar, Cozy Dixon on drums (both members of Frank Ifield's backing band in the 1970s) and Dave Clemo on bass. Her Australian band consists of Mitch Hutchinson on guitar, Dave Roberts on drums and Bryen Willems on bass.

Nicki's music and performances are able to engage audiences from many different demographics and musical genres. She donates significant time to charity work and is a strong supporter of returned Australian and UK service men and women. She has also been overseas to perform for Australian, US, British and NATO troops in Iraq, East Timor and the Solomon Islands. In 2010 she was granted honorary membership of the Blue Mountains Vietnam Veterans and Associated Forces Association. In 2011 she was made a member of the Australian Forces Entertainment Association and won the Australian Entertainment Industry's highest award for a country performer.

Awards

2011 Best Country Performer or Band - Australian Entertainment ("Mo") Awards

2010 People's Choice Award - Australian Capital Territory Country Music Festival

2009 Frank Ifield International Spur Award

2008 Australian Golden Saddle Award for Best Entertainer

2007 Horsham Female Artist of the Year

2006 Blue Mountains Best Blues Jazz Album

Before 2006 - numerous awards include prestigious Young Talent Time Scholarship at the age of 12.

Top Ten Hits - (original compositions)

Leavin’ You For Myself

Remember Me

Honey I Don't Have Time

On the Mountain

Watch the Wildflowers Grow

Be a Star

Top Ten Hits - (cover songs)

Chasing Cars (with Bob Howe)

It Doesn’t Matter Anymore

I Remember You (with Frank Ifield)

The Ballad of Lucy Jordan

International Tours

2006 - Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, UAE

2008 - Solomon Island, East Timor, United States, Germany

2009 - United Kingdom

2010 - United Kingdom

2011 - New Zealand, USA, United Kingdom

External links

• http://www.nickigillis.com www.nickigillis.com
• http://www.frankifield.com www.frankifield.com