Anthony Cosmo Callea (born 13 December 1982) is an Australian
singer-songwriter and
stage actor of Italian and Maltese descent who rose to prominence after being the runner-up in the 2004 season of
Australian Idol. He was signed to
Sony Music Australia until 2009 and is now an independent artist. Callea's debut single "
The Prayer" is the fastest-selling single by an Australian artist, held the No.1 spot on the
ARIA Singles Chart for five weeks, a record for the debut single of an
Australian Idol contestant, and was the second-highest selling Australian single of the last decade.