AFL fans have praised Australian singer Christine Anu and her daughter Zipporah’s heartfelt rendition of Island Home at the AFL Grand Final on Saturday.
Christine, 54, and her daughter Zipporah, 22, wowed 100,000 fans at the MCG when they performed a breathtaking rendition of the singer’s 1995 ode to life in Australia.
The Cairns-born singer and her daughter, who she shares with Australian actor Rodger Corser, oozed confidence and style as they belted out the hit to a stunned audience.
Christine and her mini-me Zipporah had the audience in the palm of their hands as they passionately sang the iconic song, with roaring fans singing along during the chorus.
Stunned viewers quickly took to social media to praise the incredible feat – with many claiming Zipporah was even better than her famous mother.
Many also wondered why the talented duo weren’t the headline act instead of Katy Perry, as they criticized AFL bosses for not using a local lead artist.
“Daughter now sings better than Christine Anu,” said one viewer, with a second person adding: “Oh wow…Christine Anu and her daughter…how incredibly beautiful.”
“Why do we need Katy Perry when Christine Anu and Zipporah and her family are singing Island Home?” a third person asked.
AFL fans have praised Australian singer Christine Anu and her daughter Zipporah’s heartfelt rendition of Island Home at Saturday’s AFL Grand Final
“It’s wild that we have so much cultural criticism of the #AFLGF that we feel the need to bring in a star from abroad. Like the Logies used to be.’
Their performance took place just before Katy Perry, 39, took the stage for the main pregame headliner entertainment slot.
She stunned fans almost immediately when she kicked off her 20-minute set – for which she was reportedly paid $5 million – with her smash hit Roar, despite it being widely assumed she wouldn’t perform the hit.
There had been feverish speculation that the song had been blacklisted because it showed a perceived bias against the Lions, with Perry herself even admitting that she had been warned not to sing it.
However, despite the rampant theories, Perry threw caution to the wind by performing the song that some fans consider the unofficial anthem of the underdogs.
She then added to the surprise with her setlist by not singing Hot n Cold, despite it being known as the MasterChef Australia theme song and jokingly regarded by many as the true Aussie ‘anthem’.
She performed her hits Teenage Dreams, Firework and California Gurls and sang I Kissed A Girl with Tina Arena, but notably missed Hot n Cold, even though it was widely expected to perform.
While fans praised her vocal talents, many viewers were also completely baffled by an unusual detail during the performance, which they claimed had no place in an AFL Grand Final.
Christine (pictured), 54, and her daughter Zipporah, 22, wowed 100,000 fans at the MCG as they performed a breathtaking rendition of the singer’s 1995 ode to life in Australia
Impressed fans wondered why the talented duo weren’t headlining instead of Katy Perry, as they criticized AFL bosses for not using a local lead artist.
Viewers quickly took to social media to praise the incredible performance – and wonder why the talented duo weren’t the headline act
Viewers at home took to social media to mercilessly mock her choice to accompany her real-life performance and dance moves with a range of ‘bizarre’ CGI effects.
Fans watched as huge futuristic effects appeared above the stadium grounds, including bizarre golden love hearts and a galaxy-style black hole, with many poking fun at the video game look of early 2000s CGI.
On X – formerly known as Twitter – someone joked: ‘AFL preshow brought to you by Fortnite with all this CGI.’
Another said: ‘What the hell was @channel7 thinking with those $5 CGI effects,’ while a third wrote: ‘Petition to only allow CGI during the #AFLGF practical effects.’
A fourth tweeted: ‘What is the CGI about? This is awful,” and a fifth joked: “I hope the crowd at the MCG enjoy the CGI.”
“How much is AFL paying for this?” another added.
However, other fans were quick to defend Perry as they praised her vocal talents and upbeat performance, despite the funny CGI blunder.
One wrote: ‘If you say Katy Perry was bad you are 100% a choice for me and I have no time for you.’
“I know Katy Perry is cringing but that performance was surprisingly good,” shared another, while a third added: “Katy Perry killed it.”
Their performance took place just before Katy Perry, 39, took the stage for the main pregame headliner entertainment slot
At the start of the show, Perry made quite a daring entrance to the arena as she rode atop a futuristic silver vehicle and walked to the stage while belting out the lyrics to Roar.
A fourth said: ‘Ready for the #AFLGF All entertainment done and now for battle. But @katyperry was good.”
A fifth commented: ‘Personal. Loved @katyperry at the #AFLGF!! She was a lot of fun!’
Before she even took the stage, local Australian musicians were furious when they discovered the American pop star was paid millions for her AFL Grand Final performance.
As the live music scene Down Under buckles under the cost of living, the hitmaker reportedly earned $5 million for her 20-minute set.
A Melbourne artist took to Facebook on Thursday to criticize the AFL for dumping millions on international talent while local musicians struggle to get gigs.
“Just heard on the radio Katy Perry gets 5 million for 5 songs on tomorrow’s AFL GF,” the local singer wrote in a post he shared with his followers.
It comes after local Australian musicians were left furious when they discovered US pop star Katy Perry (pictured) had allegedly paid millions for the AFL Grand Final.
‘Certainly given the state of the music industry in this country, that money could have been better spent.
Followers flocked to the musician’s comments to agree, with some saying hiring the international pop star for the AFL Grand Final was ‘not great value for money’.
The US pop star will be paid the huge sum to perform five songs in front of a cheering crowd of 100,000 at the MCG before Sydney takes on Brisbane, the Herald Sun reported.
The huge sum is said to come with a few strings attached: that she perform a selection of older well-known hits, rather than songs from her new 143 LP.