Rob Mills
Encyclopedia
Rob Mills is an Australia
n singer best known as one of the finalists from Australian Idol 2003. He was a co-host on the late-night quiz show The Mint
as well as a regular singer on the game show The Singing Bee
both on the Nine Network
. Until August 2009 Mills starred as Fiyero in the Melbourne
production of the musical Wicked
and continued the role when it moved to Sydney on 5 September 2009. Mills will host Network Ten
's Young Talent Time
, when it returns in 2012.
Mills formed a band called "The Megamen" with two friends and soon developed a keen following on the Melbourne
live music scene with their sessions every Sunday at the Red Eagle Hotel at Albert Park
. Mills is a resident of Melbourne.
and he made the top five. He performed on "Rise Up
", the #1 Australian single performed by all the Australian Idol
finalists in 2003. Mills performed the song "Dirty Girl" on the double platinum album Australian Idol
: Final 12 soundtrack released in October 2003. It was during this time that Mills had an affair with Paris Hilton
, while she was in Australia for the Melbourne Cup
festivities.
Mills' Australian Idol song list:
in 2004. His first album "Up All Night" was released in Australia on 14 June 2004 and debuted in the top 40. The first single from the album Ms Vanity was released on 31 May in Australia and debuted at #6 in the Australian singles charts.
In July 2005, Mills toured the east coast of Australia, playing from Cairns to Tasmania. Also performing on national TV, KAK, The Today Show and Carols by Candlelight
while on tour.
After having completed his tour, he had a starring role as Johnny Casino alongside John Farnham
, Natalie Bassingthwaite and Craig McLachlan
in Grease - The Musical Arena Tour. The tour was a commercial and critical success. .
Mills hosted a television show Stooged on Network Ten
, a hidden-camera show. The show premiered on 28 July 2005 however was cancelled shortly after due to declining ratings.
During Triple M
's tsunami
fundraiser, where people pledged money to hear their favourite song played, Mills called the station and requested his own song. This was a request made of him by the radio station.
Mills confessed on the television show Spicks and Specks that he had a brief but highly publicised tryst with celebrity
heiress Paris Hilton
at the Melbourne Cup
of 2003. He later made fun of the tryst by singing "I Love Paris
" (best known in a recording by Frank Sinatra
) to close-off the show.
In May 2007, Mills appeared as the lead role of Claude in the sold out Perth
production of the rock musical Hair
along with Cosima De Vito
and Nikki Webster
. The production was directed by Chris Kabay and musically directed by Simon Holt
of yellow glass theatre.
On 31 July 2007, Mills started a co-hosting role on the late-night quiz show The Mint
which aired on the Nine Network
.
He appeared in a stunt for the ABC TV
show The Chaser's War on Everything
alongside Craig Reucassel
that satirised the Tasmanian Premier Paul Lennon
.
In October 2007, Mills and three others were selected to be regular singers on the game show The Singing Bee
.
Mills then originated the role of Fiyero in the Australian production of the Broadway musical Wicked
. The show opened on 12 July 2008, in Melbourne
where it ran for 13 months, closing on 9 August 2009. It then transferred to Sydney
from 12 September. He originally starred oppostie Lucy Durack
as Glinda, Amanda Harrison
as Elphaba and the late Rob Guest
as The Wizard. Mills played his final performance on 6 June 2010, and was replaced by Tim Campbell.
On 4 June 2009 it was announced on Today Tonight that he was on the new season of Dancing with the Stars. He was the second person to be eliminated
In 2009 and early 2010 Mills had a role as a recurring character on the Australian children's show The Shak
On 26 May 2010, Mills appeared on a episode on the children's game show Pyramid
and again on 7, 16 and 23 June 2010.
On 9 June 2010 Mills appeared on variety show Hey Hey It's Saturday, accompanying the show's band.
After rumors began circulating the Australian theatre scene that Mills had auditioned for the musical Hairspray
which begins its Melbourne run in October 2010, Mills confirmed that he had auditioned for the show on his Twitter page, though for which role he auditioned is not yet known. Mills however, did not receive a part in the production.
He appeared in a guest role in the Australian TV show Winner's and Losers as Sean.
From 13–30 July 2011, Rob played the role of Jamie in Jason Robert Brown's musical THE LAST FIVE YEARS at Sydney's Seymour Centre.
In August 2011, it was announced that Rob would host a new version of the popular Australian talent show Young Talent Time
, with co-production duties from original host Johnny Young
.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n singer best known as one of the finalists from Australian Idol 2003. He was a co-host on the late-night quiz show The Mint
The Mint (Australia)
The Mint was an Australian phone-in quiz show based on the British program of the same name, and broadcast on the Nine Network in the late night time slot ....
as well as a regular singer on the game show The Singing Bee
The Singing Bee (Australian game show)
The Singing Bee is an Australian game show which is based on the original American version of the same name. By combining karaoke singing with a spelling bee-style competition, contestants have to sing lyrics to songs without making a mistake or risk being eliminated immediately.The show premiered...
both on the Nine Network
Nine Network
The Nine Network , is an Australian television network with headquarters based in Willoughby, a suburb located on the North Shore of Sydney. For 50 years since television's inception in Australia, between 1956 and 2006, it was the most watched television network in Australia...
. Until August 2009 Mills starred as Fiyero in the Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
production of the musical Wicked
Wicked (musical)
Wicked is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a book by Winnie Holzman. It is based on the Gregory Maguire novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West , a parallel novel of the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz and L. Frank Baum's classic story The Wonderful Wizard...
and continued the role when it moved to Sydney on 5 September 2009. Mills will host Network Ten
Network Ten
Network Ten , is one of Australia's three major commercial television networks. Owned-and-operated stations can be found in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, while affiliates extend the network to cover most of the country...
's Young Talent Time
Young Talent Time
Young Talent Time is an Australian television variety program screened on Network Ten, running from 1971 until 1988. The series features a core group of young performers in the vein of The Mickey Mouse Club, and a weekly junior talent quest. The "Young Talent Team" regularly performed popular...
, when it returns in 2012.
Early life
Mills attended Brentwood Secondary College, frequently participating in the school Battle of the Bands concert.Mills formed a band called "The Megamen" with two friends and soon developed a keen following on the Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
live music scene with their sessions every Sunday at the Red Eagle Hotel at Albert Park
Albert Park, Victoria
Albert Park is an inner city suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 3 km south from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Port Phillip. At the 2006 Census, Albert Park had a population of 5827....
. Mills is a resident of Melbourne.
Australian Idol
Mills was a contestant for the first series of Australian IdolAustralian Idol
Australian Idol is a Logie Award-winning Australian singing competition, which began its first season on July 2003 and ended its run in November 2009. As part of the Idol franchise, Australian Idol originated from the reality program Pop Idol, which was created by British entertainment executive...
and he made the top five. He performed on "Rise Up
Rise Up (Vanessa Amorosi song)
"Rise Up" is a pop song written by Vanessa Amorosi, Axel Breitung, Mark Holden and S. Monopoly, originally recorded by Vanessa Amorosi for her second album Turn to Me .-Australian Idol 2003 cover:...
", the #1 Australian single performed by all the Australian Idol
Australian Idol
Australian Idol is a Logie Award-winning Australian singing competition, which began its first season on July 2003 and ended its run in November 2009. As part of the Idol franchise, Australian Idol originated from the reality program Pop Idol, which was created by British entertainment executive...
finalists in 2003. Mills performed the song "Dirty Girl" on the double platinum album Australian Idol
Australian Idol
Australian Idol is a Logie Award-winning Australian singing competition, which began its first season on July 2003 and ended its run in November 2009. As part of the Idol franchise, Australian Idol originated from the reality program Pop Idol, which was created by British entertainment executive...
: Final 12 soundtrack released in October 2003. It was during this time that Mills had an affair with Paris Hilton
Paris Hilton
Paris Whitney Hilton is an American businesswoman, heiress, and socialite. She is a great-granddaughter of Conrad Hilton . Hilton is known for her controversial participation in a sex tape in 2003, and appearance on the television series The Simple Life alongside fellow socialite and childhood...
, while she was in Australia for the Melbourne Cup
Melbourne Cup
The Melbourne Cup is Australia's major Thoroughbred horse race. Marketed as "the race that stops a nation", it is a 3,200 metre race for three-year-olds and over. It is the richest "two-mile" handicap in the world, and one of the richest turf races...
festivities.
Mills' Australian Idol song list:
- Melbourne Audition – "Swear It Again" (WestlifeWestlifeWestlife are an Irish boy band established on 3 July 1998. They are to disband in 2012. The group's line-up was Nicky Byrne, Kian Egan, Mark Feehily, Shane Filan, and Brian McFadden . The group are the only act in British and Irish history to have their first seven singles peak at number one...
) - Semi Final Group 5 – "Angels" (Robbie WilliamsRobbie WilliamsRobert Peter "Robbie" Williams is an English singer-songwriter, vocal coach and occasional actor. He is a member of the pop group Take That. Williams rose to fame in the band's first run in the early- to mid-1990s. After many disagreements with the management and certain group members, Williams...
) - Final 12 (70s) – "Alright Now" (Free)
- Final 10 (#1 Hits) – "You Don't Treat Me No Good No More" (Sonia DadaSonia DadaSonia Dada is a Chicago-based rock/soul/rhythm and blues band, which tours with anywhere from six to eight members. The band formed in 1990, when founding member Daniel Pritzker heard three future members singing in a subway station...
) - Final 8 (Aussie Hits) – "Take Me Back" (NoiseworksNoiseworksNoiseworks is an Australian rock band formed in Sydney in 1986 with bass guitarist Steve Balbi, guitarist Stuart Fraser, drummer Kevin Nicol, keyboardist Justin Stanley and lead vocalist Jon Stevens...
) - Final 6 (80s) – "If I Could" (1927)
- Up, Close and Personal – "When You Say Nothing At All" (Ronan KeatingRonan KeatingRonan Patrick John Keating is an Irish recording artist, singer-songwriter, musician, and philanthropist. Keating debuted on the professional music scene alongside Keith Duffy, Mikey Graham, Shane Lynch and Stephen Gately, in 1994 as the lead singer of Boyzone. His solo career started in 1999, and...
) - Final 5 (R&B/Soul) – "Too Close" (NextNext (band)Next is an American R&B musical group, popular during the late 1990s. They are best known for their hit singles "Too Close" and "Wifey".-History:...
) and "If I Could Turn Back The Hands Of Time" (R. KellyR. KellyRobert Sylvester Kelly , better known by his stage name R. Kelly, is an American singer-songwriter and record producer. A native of Chicago, Kelly began performing during the late 1980s and debuted in 1992 with the group Public Announcement. In 1993, Kelly went solo with the album 12 Play...
)
Post-Idol
He signed a contract with BMGBMG
Bertelsmann Music Group, , was a division of Bertelsmann before its completion of sale of the majority of its assets to Japan's Sony Corporation of America on October 1, 2008. It was established in 1987 to combine the music label activities of Bertelsmann...
in 2004. His first album "Up All Night" was released in Australia on 14 June 2004 and debuted in the top 40. The first single from the album Ms Vanity was released on 31 May in Australia and debuted at #6 in the Australian singles charts.
In July 2005, Mills toured the east coast of Australia, playing from Cairns to Tasmania. Also performing on national TV, KAK, The Today Show and Carols by Candlelight
Carols by Candlelight
Carols by Candlelight is an Australian Christmas tradition that originated in southeastern Australia in the 19th century and was popularised in Melbourne in the 1930s. The tradition has since spread around the world. It involves people gathering, usually outdoors in a park, to sing carols by...
while on tour.
After having completed his tour, he had a starring role as Johnny Casino alongside John Farnham
John Farnham
John Peter Farnham, AO, formerly billed as Johnny Farnham , is an English-born Australian pop singer. He was a teen pop idol from 1964 to 1979, and has since forged a career as an adult contemporary singer. His career has mostly been as a solo artist although he briefly replaced Glenn Shorrock as...
, Natalie Bassingthwaite and Craig McLachlan
Craig McLachlan
Craig McLachlan is an Australian actor and singer. He appeared in shows such as Sons and Daughters, Neighbours, Bugs and Home and Away.-Biography:...
in Grease - The Musical Arena Tour. The tour was a commercial and critical success. .
Mills hosted a television show Stooged on Network Ten
Network Ten
Network Ten , is one of Australia's three major commercial television networks. Owned-and-operated stations can be found in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, while affiliates extend the network to cover most of the country...
, a hidden-camera show. The show premiered on 28 July 2005 however was cancelled shortly after due to declining ratings.
During Triple M
Triple M
The Triple M Network is an active rock radio network in Australia owned by media company Austereo, who also own the Today Network.- History :...
's tsunami
Tsunami
A tsunami is a series of water waves caused by the displacement of a large volume of a body of water, typically an ocean or a large lake...
fundraiser, where people pledged money to hear their favourite song played, Mills called the station and requested his own song. This was a request made of him by the radio station.
Mills confessed on the television show Spicks and Specks that he had a brief but highly publicised tryst with celebrity
Celebrity
A celebrity, also referred to as a celeb in popular culture, is a person who has a prominent profile and commands a great degree of public fascination and influence in day-to-day media...
heiress Paris Hilton
Paris Hilton
Paris Whitney Hilton is an American businesswoman, heiress, and socialite. She is a great-granddaughter of Conrad Hilton . Hilton is known for her controversial participation in a sex tape in 2003, and appearance on the television series The Simple Life alongside fellow socialite and childhood...
at the Melbourne Cup
Melbourne Cup
The Melbourne Cup is Australia's major Thoroughbred horse race. Marketed as "the race that stops a nation", it is a 3,200 metre race for three-year-olds and over. It is the richest "two-mile" handicap in the world, and one of the richest turf races...
of 2003. He later made fun of the tryst by singing "I Love Paris
I Love Paris
"I Love Paris" is a popular song written by Cole Porter and published in 1953. The song was introduced by Lilo in the musical Can-Can.Was the title of Michel Legrand's most popular album, which included an orchestral arrangement of the song...
" (best known in a recording by Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
) to close-off the show.
In May 2007, Mills appeared as the lead role of Claude in the sold out Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
production of the rock musical Hair
Hair (musical)
Hair: The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical is a rock musical with a book and lyrics by James Rado and Gerome Ragni and music by Galt MacDermot. A product of the hippie counter-culture and sexual revolution of the 1960s, several of its songs became anthems of the anti-Vietnam War peace movement...
along with Cosima De Vito
Cosima De Vito
Cosima De Vito , also known simply as Cosima, is an Australian singer-songwriter. She rose to fame as a contestant of the original Australian Idol series in 2003...
and Nikki Webster
Nikki Webster
Nikki Webster is an Australian pop performer. She is best known for her starring role in the 2000 Sydney Summer Olympics Opening Ceremony and her single "Strawberry Kisses".-Recording career:...
. The production was directed by Chris Kabay and musically directed by Simon Holt
Simon Holt
Simon Holt is a British composer.-Biography:Holt was educated at Bolton School. Shortly after graduating from the Royal Northern College of Music, he became firmly established on the new music circuit with a series of commissions and fruitful collaborations with the London Sinfonietta and the Nash...
of yellow glass theatre.
On 31 July 2007, Mills started a co-hosting role on the late-night quiz show The Mint
The Mint (Australia)
The Mint was an Australian phone-in quiz show based on the British program of the same name, and broadcast on the Nine Network in the late night time slot ....
which aired on the Nine Network
Nine Network
The Nine Network , is an Australian television network with headquarters based in Willoughby, a suburb located on the North Shore of Sydney. For 50 years since television's inception in Australia, between 1956 and 2006, it was the most watched television network in Australia...
.
He appeared in a stunt for the ABC TV
ABC Television
ABC Television is a service of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation launched in 1956. As a public broadcasting broadcaster, the ABC provides four non-commercial channels within Australia, and a partially advertising-funded satellite channel overseas....
show The Chaser's War on Everything
The Chaser's War on Everything
The Chaser's War on Everything is an Australian television satirical comedy series broadcast on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation television station ABC1. It has won an AFI Award. The cast perform sketches mocking social and political issues, and often feature comedic publicity stunts...
alongside Craig Reucassel
Craig Reucassel
Craig Bruce Reucassel is a television and radio comedian from Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. He is best known for being a member of satirical team The Chaser...
that satirised the Tasmanian Premier Paul Lennon
Paul Lennon
Paul Anthony Lennon is an Australian Labor Party politician. He was Premier of Tasmania from 21 March 2004 until his resignation on 26 May 2008. He was member of the Tasmanian House of Assembly for the seat of Franklin from 1990 until officially resigning on 27 May 2008...
.
In October 2007, Mills and three others were selected to be regular singers on the game show The Singing Bee
The Singing Bee (Australian game show)
The Singing Bee is an Australian game show which is based on the original American version of the same name. By combining karaoke singing with a spelling bee-style competition, contestants have to sing lyrics to songs without making a mistake or risk being eliminated immediately.The show premiered...
.
Mills then originated the role of Fiyero in the Australian production of the Broadway musical Wicked
Wicked (musical)
Wicked is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a book by Winnie Holzman. It is based on the Gregory Maguire novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West , a parallel novel of the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz and L. Frank Baum's classic story The Wonderful Wizard...
. The show opened on 12 July 2008, in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
where it ran for 13 months, closing on 9 August 2009. It then transferred to Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
from 12 September. He originally starred oppostie Lucy Durack
Lucy Durack
Lucy Durack is an Australian musical theatre performer most recognised for playing Glinda in the Australian production of Wicked.-Biography:...
as Glinda, Amanda Harrison
Amanda Harrison
Amanda Harrison is an Australian musical theatre performer who will be originating the role of Paula in the World Premiere of An Officer and a Gentleman in Sydney 2012.-Early years:...
as Elphaba and the late Rob Guest
Rob Guest
Robert John Guest, OBE was a British born New Zealand-Australian actor and singer, best known for his work in Australian musical theatre, particularly in various productions of The Phantom of the Opera...
as The Wizard. Mills played his final performance on 6 June 2010, and was replaced by Tim Campbell.
On 4 June 2009 it was announced on Today Tonight that he was on the new season of Dancing with the Stars. He was the second person to be eliminated
In 2009 and early 2010 Mills had a role as a recurring character on the Australian children's show The Shak
On 26 May 2010, Mills appeared on a episode on the children's game show Pyramid
Pyramid (Australian children's TV series)
Pyramid is an Australian children's quiz show screening on the Nine Network hosted by Shura Taft. It is co-produced by Sydney-based Ambience Entertainment. It began broadcasting on 1 September 2009 and is filmed in front of a live studio audience. It involves two teams competing in games of “vocal...
and again on 7, 16 and 23 June 2010.
On 9 June 2010 Mills appeared on variety show Hey Hey It's Saturday, accompanying the show's band.
After rumors began circulating the Australian theatre scene that Mills had auditioned for the musical Hairspray
Hairspray (musical)
Hairspray is a musical with music by Marc Shaiman, lyrics by Scott Wittman and Shaiman and a book by Mark O'Donnell and Thomas Meehan, based on the 1988 John Waters film Hairspray. The songs include 1960s-style dance music and "downtown" rhythm and blues...
which begins its Melbourne run in October 2010, Mills confirmed that he had auditioned for the show on his Twitter page, though for which role he auditioned is not yet known. Mills however, did not receive a part in the production.
He appeared in a guest role in the Australian TV show Winner's and Losers as Sean.
From 13–30 July 2011, Rob played the role of Jamie in Jason Robert Brown's musical THE LAST FIVE YEARS at Sydney's Seymour Centre.
In August 2011, it was announced that Rob would host a new version of the popular Australian talent show Young Talent Time
Young Talent Time
Young Talent Time is an Australian television variety program screened on Network Ten, running from 1971 until 1988. The series features a core group of young performers in the vein of The Mickey Mouse Club, and a weekly junior talent quest. The "Young Talent Team" regularly performed popular...
, with co-production duties from original host Johnny Young
Johnny Young
Johnny Young is an Australian singer, composer, record producer, disc jockey, television producer and host. Originally from Netherlands, his family settled in Perth, Western Australia in the early 1950s...
.
Singles
- Rise Up - with the Australian IdolAustralian IdolAustralian Idol is a Logie Award-winning Australian singing competition, which began its first season on July 2003 and ended its run in November 2009. As part of the Idol franchise, Australian Idol originated from the reality program Pop Idol, which was created by British entertainment executive...
Cast - #1 - Dirty Girl – (radio promo release only)
- Ms. VanityMs. Vanity"Ms. Vanity" is the debut single by former Australian Idol contestant Rob Mills. "Ms. Vanity" was released as the lead single from Rob's debut album Up All Night, and reached a peak position of #6 on the Australian ARIA Singles Chart. It is to date Rob's first and only top ten single. "Ms. Vanity"...
– #6 Australia (Gold) - Every Single Day (song)Every Single Day (song)"Every Single Day" is the second single released by former Australian Idol contestant, Rob Mills. "Every single day" was released in 2004 and reached a peak position of #24 on the Australian ARIA Singles Chart. It was not successful as its predecessor, and remained on the chart for a relatively...
– #24 Australia - Overrated – (digital release only)