page_title: Stan Walker
section_title: 1990–2009: Early life
hierarchical_section_title: Stan Walker / Life and career / 1990–2009: Early life
caption_attribution_description: English: Stan Walker at the Natasha Bedingfield Attends the 2013 Australian Hair Fashion Awards.
context_page_description: Stan Walker is an Australian-born New Zealand recording artist, actor, and television personality. In 2009, Walker was the winner of the seventh and last season of Australian Idol. He subsequently signed a recording contract with Sony Music Australia. In December 2009, Walker released his debut studio album, Introducing Stan Walker, which included the hit single, "Black Box". The album debuted at number three on the Australian ARIA Albums Chart and was certified platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association. It also appeared on the New Zealand Albums Chart at number two and was certified triple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand.
  In 2010, Walker released his second studio album, From the Inside Out, which spawned the hit singles, "Unbroken" and "Choose You". The album debuted at number one on the New Zealand Albums Chart and number two on the ARIA Albums Chart. In November 2011, Walker released his third studio album, Let the Music Play, which debuted at number 18 on the ARIA Albums Chart and number 12 in New Zealand, and spawned the hit single "Loud".
context_section_description: Stan Walker was born on 23 October 1990 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia to parents Ross and April Walker. He is Māori and is from the Tūhoe and Ngāti Tūwharetoa tribes in New Zealand. Walker grew up on a marae in Mount Maunganui, New Zealand. In New Zealand, he attended Fairfield Intermediate and Hamilton Boys' High School in Hamilton, and boarded at New Plymouth Boys' High School. Walker has compared his early life to that portrayed in the 1994 New Zealand film, Once Were Warriors, which tells the story of an urban Māori family and their problems with poverty, alcoholism and domestic violence. His father was repeatedly jailed for beating his wife, April, and five children, including Walker. This led to Walker smoking marijuana and thieving. Walker was also sexually abused by a relative over a nine-month period. His parents were drug dealers and both have spent time in jail for drug offences.
  At the age of 15, Walker started going to church, after hearing a testimony of a girl who had a similar family background to his. Walker says his passion for music and church made him a "good boy" again. After several violent episodes, Walker and his family moved back to Australia and settled in Coolangatta, Queensland.  In 2009, Walker lost a daughter when his then-girlfriend suffered a miscarriage. He had planned to call his baby, Ataahua, which is Māori for "beautiful", and wears her name as a tattoo on his neck. Before Walker had entered Australian Idol, he was a shop assistant at a menswear shop in Coolangatta.
  Walker says that moving to Australia helped him get over the 'shame buzz' and pursue a career in entertainment.
caption: Walker in 2013
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