Arq-ing Up

Who would have thought an average girl from Perth with a commerce degree could make music history by selling thousands of records?

Gone are the heavy eyebrows and crazy fashion from her Australian Idol debut – these days Cosima De Vito sports an assured sense of self and a desire to once again set the ARIA charts on fire.

Her new single, Keep It Natural, is already a dancefloor hit and is on high rotation with Melbourne gay and lesbian radio station Joy FM.

De Vito is understandably flattered by the response and proud the gay community has taken the new release to heart.

“It’s different from the stuff I’ve done before because of the rock undertone. It’s about life and being yourself,” she said.

“The song also explores not putting restrictions on relationships and just going with the flow. It’s positive and the general message is, whatever happens in life, happens.”

De Vito’s second album, the follow-up to her gold-selling self-titled 2004 debut, will hit the stores this September. But don’t expect a CD crammed with power ballad after power ballad – De Vito has discovered a new sound.

“I’m still doing a few ballads, but the majority is pop rock,” she told SSO. “I wrote most of the songs, but I wanted this album to be youthful and more of a reflection of myself compared to my first.”

Not that the Perth singer-songwriter has been soaking up the sun between albums. She recently caught the theatre bug and has been starring in Hair as Mother Nature.

De Vito is no stranger to the gay community and openly cites performing at Queensland’s Big Gay Day as one of the highlights of her career.

“The crowd was amazing and it felt so special to perform for everyone,” she said. “I never knew that Brisbane had such a big gay community. Everyone was cheering and singing along.”

But her performance this Sunday at Arq could well surpass that milestone. De Vito will add a bit of camp value to her new single for the performance to help Sydney celebrate the Queen’s Birthday long weekend.

“I love performing at Arq, it’s got the best sound system and the audience dances along,” she said. “The community is so supportive and I love dressing up for everyone.”

Keep It Natural is out now. She will perform at Arq this Sunday, with the doors opening at 9pm. Cosima’s website is www.cosima.net.au.