Jessica Mauboy and Tones and I to bring local music to Paris Olympics TV coverage

Jessica Mauboy and Tones and I are chasing a different Olympic dream - to have TV run homegrown songs to soundtrack our athletes’ winning moments in Paris.

Jessica Mauboy and Tones and I are chasing Olympics gold as Australian artists campaign for homegrown songs to soundtrack our athletes’ winning moments in Paris on television and social media.

With Australian artists struggling to get their music heard on playlists, social media, television and radio, Olympics coverage offers them a lucrative opportunity to boost streams and views.

Mauboy, along with songwriters Shannon Busch and Stephen Mowat, whom she worked with on her latest album Yours Forever, won the race to create the Australian team song with their uplifting anthem Higher.

Before heading to Paris to perform at the Flag Bearer Ceremony this week and in the athletes’ village, Mauboy said singing Higher for the medal aspirants felt the same as when she competed at Australian Idol and Eurovision.

Australian singer, Jessica Mauboy. Picture: Jason Henley

“It was basically a competition and lots of other artists and producers submitted songs and we sent it off wondering what would the Australian Olympic Committee and the athletes think of it, would it have the right feeling?” Mauboy said.

“I feel like I did stepping out on that Eurovision stage when we submitted Higher, that same feeling you have been selected to go and represent.”

AOC Athletes’ Commission chair and Olympian Cate Campbell was among those who decided on Higher for the Paris team.

Australian singer Tones and I with Australian basketballer, Patty Mills. Picture: Instagram

“Lyrically it speaks to the reality of an Olympian’s path to the Games and melodically, it’s a killer track,” she said.

Olympics broadcaster Nine commissioned Tones and I to cover the iconic Down Under with Men at Work legend Colin Hay to soundtrack their emotive promo video for the Paris games.

The new version has already had more than one million streams on Spotify and tens of thousand of plays on YouTube and Nine plans to have it on high rotation during their Olympics broadcast

“We will also be giving airtime to other Australian artists such as Delta Goodrem and Jessica Mauboy – who has sung the official Team Australia track – and have been approached by numerous local production companies offering up tracks. We welcome any suggestions by local record labels/ARIA for appropriate music,” a Nine spokeperson said.

Seven quickly added more Aussie songs to their coverage of the Tokyo Olympics after artist activist Jack River went viral with her post campaigning for more local tunes: “These are Australian moments, they deserve Australian music”.

She set up the Our Soundtrack Our Stories lobby group with ARIA to lobby broadcasters, ad agencies and businesses to play more Aussie music on their platforms, in stores and in advertising campaigns.