Delta Goodrem Mistaken Identity

On 8 July 2003, Australian singer-songwriter Delta Goodrem was diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma, a form of cancer that affects the lymphatic system. Only 18 at the time, and with her debut album Innocent Eyes in the midst of a months-long stint at the top of the Australian charts, Goodrem turned to songwriting as a source of both comfort and release as she underwent chemotherapy. Collaborating with songwriters such as Guy Chambers (Robbie Williams) and Cathy Dennis (Kylie Minogue), Mistaken Identity is, not surprisingly, a darker affair than Innocent Eyes, rich in drama-laced piano balladry that at times veers into Tori Amos territory (“Electric Storm, “Mistaken Identity”). References to her cancer struggle are threaded throughout tracks such as “Extraordinary Day” (“I know, I can’t change fate of that July the 8th”) and “Mistaken Identity” (“Erase and rewind, leave that sick girl behind”), though there is also strength and resilience in the uplifting “Be Strong”, and gratitude for the support around her in “You Are My Rock”. While swooning opener “Out of the Blue” is a call back to the love-struck commercial pop that made Innocent Eyes such a success, Mistaken Identity will forever be the work of an artist staring down her mortality.