Singer Samantha Jade's parents were both migrants to Australia and each instilled in her the belief their adopted country was a land of opportunity.
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"We were brought up to believe we live in a very beautiful country and there's no limits and no boundaries," she said.
Her father is Anglo-Indian and migrated to Australia from Bombay, her late mother was from Scotland and migrated from Glasgow.
Her parents met in Perth where Samantha grew up and from where she was plucked from obscurity after winning The X Factor Australia in 2012.
But in reality she had been working hard for at least a decade prior to that to break into the music industry and never gave up her dream to perform.
She'll be taking to the stage in front of thousands on Monday to perform at the free Australian Day Eve concert on the lawns in front of Parliament House in Canberra. The bill also includes Aussie icon Jimmy Barnes, as well as Nathaniel and Cyrus. The event will also see the announcement of the Australian of the Year.
"I can't wait," she said. "I performed at the Australian of the Year awards a few years ago and I saw the concert happening and I thought, 'One day I want to perform there'. So it's pretty exciting."
Samantha will be performing songs from her new album Nine, as well as " few covers".
"We're going to put on a really great show," she said.
"We're doing a medley we haven't done before. We just want to get everyone in a good mood and the Australian spirit."
Samantha said since winning The X Factor she had worked every Australia Day.
"Which is great because it's so fun to do that," she said.
"Before the show, I'd usually go down to the foreshore in Perth and watch the fireworks with my family and have a little picnic."
Samantha said her dad's family were drawn to the beauty of Australia, while her mum's father was an engineer who moved out here for work.
"I was brought up to think, 'Do whatever you want'. And that's why shows like The X Factor are so great because that was the Australian way and dream," she said.
"You get knocked back down and you get up and try again. That's always been instilled in me and that's why I have kept working."
The 28-year-old singer has just finished filming a guest role on Home and Away, which will appear on screens from next month.
"It was so fun," she said. "It was really tiring. You have to really focus and acting is a bit different for me, it's not my initial thing. I'm not a trained actress, it's not what I've always done.
"But it was just so fun. The crew and cast are just so nice. They're like a big family. I had such a great time and I learnt a lot."
She promises to be wearing something patriotic at the concert.
"I think we'll try to do the colours," she said, with a laugh.
* The Australia Day Eve concert and Australian of the Year Awards are on Monday in front of Parliament House. It is a free concert. Gates open at 5pm.More details at http://www.australiaday.org.au/australia-day/ausoftheyear-concert/
