Dami Im will win the X-Factor

If anyone thinks Australians are racist they should watch the X-Factor, Channel Seven's reality TV program, and see the overwhelming manner with which locals have embraced the amazing Dami Im, the 24-year-old who migrated to Brisbane from Korea as a child and grew up living with her mother who encouraged her interest in classical music. Im's stage presence has developed over the course of the program from hesitant and apologetic to the point where she confidently occupies the stage, delivering week-on-week stand-out performances to a large studio crowd as well as millions of Australians sitting in their lounge rooms. Those people at home have delivered Im telephone approval rates that have seen her emerge as the strongest contender in the competition.

Each week one contender is knocked out of the running in a sing-off judged by the panel of experts. One singer will go through at the end of the competition to secure a recording contract and sponsorship.

Im's strongly Asian features and slight build belie the legitimacy of her diction and the strength of her voice. From the early stages of the competition I was telling my daughter, who is half Japanese and who was staying with me at the time, that Im was the strongest contender and I think most people who have been exposed to the show had the same idea. Across a range of genres - from rock to soul - Im has delivered clarity, long notes, controlled vibrato, sheer volume, and complete mastery of the material that her mentor, Danii Minogue, has given her. I look forward to adding Im's recordings to those by Australia's current leading singer, Delta Goodrem, in my CD collection.

Im is just awesome.