Dean Geyer was a favorite of the judges in the 2006 season of Australian Idol who was nevertheless voted off of the show by viewers, placing third overall. After leaving the show he was offered a recording contract by SonyBMG, as was Jessica Mauboy, that year's eventual winner. Born in South Africa on March 20, 1986, Geyer moved to Melbourne with his immediate family when he was 15. His first song was written shortly afterwards; called "Change," it dealt with the upheaval of moving away from most of his relatives. Geyer dabbled in modeling and playing guitar in a covers band after high school before auditioning for Australian Idol 2006 by performing Marc Cohn's song "Walking in Memphis" followed by one of his own compositions, "Nice to Meet You." After being voted out on the November 13 episode that year, he began work on his debut album, Rush. It was released in 2007. ~ Jody Macgregor