Anyone who knows Perth man Terence Belletty knows he is most at home inside his special Kylie Minogue room filled with $250,000 worth of albums, merchandise and mementos he has collected over the years as a super fan.
For Mr Belletty, the iconic Aussie pop star is more than a famous singer. She represents a symbol of resilience and inspiration, something he had a chance to tell Kylie face-to-face when they met in 2019.
Born in Australia to parents from Mauritius and India, Mr Belletty was often bullied by his siblings growing up who “made fun” of his Kylie obsession.
He wasn’t super sporty or academic and felt like he didn’t fit in with his family, who he’s no longer in touch with, but Kylie was his safe space.
“I could just close the doors, turn off the lights, and put Kylie on,” Mr Belletty said, who will also appear on SBS Insight’s Super Fans episode on Tuesday.
“I have got to the age now where I don’t care anymore, I’m not hurting anybody and this world we’re living in, if you can find joy in whatever you do, just get on with it and enjoy yourself.
Mr Belletty got to tell Kylie how much she meant to him when the pair met before her Perth concert in 2019.
“I always imagined the moment I met her I would faint or cry, I did have the giggles but she reassured me and hugged me,” he said.
“We spent about 15 min together, I told her how much meant to me and she gave me some pointers about how everybody goes through their own struggles and how it’s great we find solace in music.”
Kylie was “impressed” with his collection and even signed his arm.
Mr Belletty became besotted with Kylie as a child, watching her on Young Talent Time and Neighbours and has followed her throughout her entire music career.
“It was like a schoolboy crush but over time that didn’t seem as important as much as what she represents as a person,” he said.
“(For me) she represents resilience, everything she’s gone through, she’s not scared to try new things and if somebody on that scale is doing it little old me can do it.”
He’s a big-time collector and has spent more than $250,000 on concert tickets and official merch which he keeps in his Kylie room.
“I’m quickly running out of room, there is no more wall space,” he said.
With three sides of the room taken up by cabinets dedicated to different eras and album releases, Mr Belletty guarantees to have all of Kylie’s official merch from dolls to perfume, glasses and wine.
The star, who was recently named one of TIME Magazine’s most influential people of 2024, also handed him a feather that fell from a dancer’s fan at a concert he was at, which he has framed.
Meanwhile, Mr Belletty’s wife isn’t a Kylie fan and doesn’t like to listen to her music at home but there is not a day that goes by that her husband doesn’t listen to a Kylie song.
So off to the Kylie room he goes.
Insight’s Super Fans episode will air on Tuesday at 8:30pm and will be available to stream on SBS On Demand.