Across her 25-year-long career, Australian singer-songwriter Vanessa Amorosi has sold millions of albums, earned numerous accolades, and even represented Australia at Eurovision in 2020.
After her vocal talents were discovered at the tender age of 16 in a Russian restaurant in her home city of Melbourne, Vanessa was signed to her first recording contract, and her debut single ‘Have a Look‘ was released two years later – becoming a global top 20 hit, and going gold in Australia.
From there her stardom only grew with the release of her second single ‘Absolutely Everybody‘ which was certified platinum and became the longest-charting Australian single by an Australian female artist ever.
Reaching the top of the charts overseas (especially in Europe), Vanessa was quick to release new music, all of which amplified her success and fame, earning her an impressive 16 ARIA and APRA nominations, and the opportunity to perform in front of the eyes of the world at the likes of both the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2000 Sydney Paralympics.
Take a look back at everything this powerhouse performer has been up to since bursting onto the music scene as a talented teen…

What is Vanessa Amorosi doing now?
After the chart-topping success of her debut album The Power in 2000, Vanessa went on to release seven more: Change (2002), Somewhere in the Real World (2008), Hazardous (2009), Back to Love (2009) The Blacklisted Collection (2020), gospel album City of Angels (2022) and more recently Memphis Love which was released in November 2023.
These albums included hits such as ‘Shine‘, ‘This is Who I Am‘, ‘Perfect‘ and ‘Mr. Mysterious‘.
In 2023, Vanessa was recognised for her contributions to the Australian Music Industry at the Australian Women in Music Awards where she was presented with the Inspiration Award.

Following the release of her album Hazardous in 2009, Vanessa relocated to Los Angeles where she met, fell in love with, and married martial arts trainer Rod Busby.
“I fell in love the minute I met him. Our first conversation lasted for two hours. Within three months, we got engaged,” she recalled in an interview with The Daily Telegraph of when she first met Rod in 2014.
In a 2020 interview with 9Honey, Vanessa described her husband as her “best friend.”
“I like being with my husband, which is bizarre because I know a lot of women who are always looking for girls’ weekends and to get away. I actually really enjoy being with him.”
The lovebirds share a son, Killian, born in 2016, together.

Why is Vanessa Amorosi suing her mother?
In October 2023, news broke that the now 43-year-old singer was suing her mother, Joyleen Robinson over alleged unpaid earnings.
Specifically, the court case set out to determine the ownership of two properties in Narre Warren, Victoria, and California that were allegedly purchased using these earnings, [and] that they were deposited in a trust established by Ms Robinson in 2001.
Ms Robinson claimed that her daughter had gifted her the properties purchased via the trust, and even claimed squatters’ rights to the Narre Warren property which the court rejected.
Ultimately in August 2024, a judge ruled in favour of Mrs Amorosi, finding that there “was no such agreement” in relation to the singer agreeing to “gift” the Narre Warren property to her mother in 2001.
Mrs Amorosi has also now been made trustee of the trust that owns her Los Angeles home (which she also lives in). Formerly, her stepfather was the director of said trust.
It is not a complete victory, however. Vanessa has been ordered to pay $650,000 plus $219,486,33 in interest as a means of “restitution” to her estranged mother.
Previously her lawyer Philip Solomon KC described the case to the media as “a matter of regret and disappointment” for his client.
“It is always vexing for a family dispute to play out in court,” he added.
This isn’t the first time the mother-daughter duo have been on opposing sides of the courtroom after a bitter legal dispute took place in 2019.

Was Vanessa Amorosi in the army?
Believe it or not, prior to her singing skills catapulting her to stardom, the ‘Absolutely Everybody’ singer had dreams of joining the army.
As a teenager, she was training as a cadet, telling MTV Asia that from a young age she had “really wanted to go into the army.”
“Then I was discovered, and my singing career took off.”