Latest news with #NIMAs
Sydney Morning Herald
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Sydney Morning Herald
Jess Mauboy honoured at Indigenous Music Awards
The Darwin Amphitheatre was brimming with talent on Saturday for an awards night showcasing some of Australia's brightest First Nations artists. Under a full moon and with dry season in full swing, the 21st National Indigenous Music Awards (NIMAs) attracted a large crowd. Part of the wider Darwin Festival, the awards night is among dozens of artistic events in Australia's top end in August. Early in the evening, Emily Wurramara said it was special to receive her first NIMA, collecting the award for film clip of the year for her track Lordy Lordy. But the Warnindhilyagwa singer-songwriter soon claimed her second trophy, besting a talented nomination pool that included Jessica Mauboy and King Stingray to be being crowned artist of the year. 'I've been doing this since I was 14 years old, and I've had a lot of people tell me that I can't do what I've done. And I went and did it,' Wurramara said. 'We are out here in spaces, killing it. We're smashing it in the industry.' Wurramara released her sophomore record Nara in 2024, which picked up an ARIA award for best adult contemporary album. Wearing an outfit stitched with slogans promoting climate action on Saturday, she said that she was proud to represent her community through music. 'I just came back from touring Canada, and I played shows among people who were incredible and amazing. But there's nothing like coming back home and being here and playing for mob, playing for the people,' she said. Eight-piece funk group Andrew Gurruwiwi Band, the other multiple award winner of the night, picked up trophies for best new talent and song of the year. The band's frontman and namesake Gurruwiwi is a Yolngu elder, and they sing in his native Yolngu Matha language.
The Age
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Age
Jess Mauboy honoured at Indigenous Music Awards
The Darwin Amphitheatre was brimming with talent on Saturday for an awards night showcasing some of Australia's brightest First Nations artists. Under a full moon and with dry season in full swing, the 21st National Indigenous Music Awards (NIMAs) attracted a large crowd. Part of the wider Darwin Festival, the awards night is among dozens of artistic events in Australia's top end in August. Early in the evening, Emily Wurramara said it was special to receive her first NIMA, collecting the award for film clip of the year for her track Lordy Lordy. But the Warnindhilyagwa singer-songwriter soon claimed her second trophy, besting a talented nomination pool that included Jessica Mauboy and King Stingray to be being crowned artist of the year. 'I've been doing this since I was 14 years old, and I've had a lot of people tell me that I can't do what I've done. And I went and did it,' Wurramara said. 'We are out here in spaces, killing it. We're smashing it in the industry.' Wurramara released her sophomore record Nara in 2024, which picked up an ARIA award for best adult contemporary album. Wearing an outfit stitched with slogans promoting climate action on Saturday, she said that she was proud to represent her community through music. 'I just came back from touring Canada, and I played shows among people who were incredible and amazing. But there's nothing like coming back home and being here and playing for mob, playing for the people,' she said. Eight-piece funk group Andrew Gurruwiwi Band, the other multiple award winner of the night, picked up trophies for best new talent and song of the year. The band's frontman and namesake Gurruwiwi is a Yolngu elder, and they sing in his native Yolngu Matha language.
ABC News
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- ABC News
Emily Wurramara wins Artist of the Year at 2025 National Indigenous Music Awards
Warnindhilyagwa singer-songwriter Emily Wurramara has taken out Artist of the Year at the 2025 National Indigenous Music Awards (NIMAs). Jessica Mauboy and Troy Cassar-Daley led a star-studded line-up of performers, as the country's top First Nations musical acts were recognised by their peers on Larrakia country in Darwin. Mauboy was also inducted into the NIMAs Hall of Fame during the ceremony, joining the likes of Australian musical legends from Yothu Yindi to Ruby Hunter. Wurramara also won the Music Clip of the Year Award for her sultry, hypnotic track Lordy Lordy featuring Tasman Keith, shot on Larrakia country and Gadigal country. The track, which she wrote in the wake of the 2023 Voice referendum, features Red Flag dancers from Numbulwar, NT. It's been a huge year for the artist, who released her second studio album NARA in August and became the first Indigenous woman to win Best Contemporary Album at the 2024 ARIAs. Eight-piece Yolŋu funk outfit, Andrew Gurruwiwi Band — named for its Galpu clan lead singer — was also amongst the night's big winners, taking out Best New Talent and Song of the Year for Once Upon a Time. Gurruwiwi, aged in his 50s, turned to music after losing his sight in an accident in 1998, and now mentors young Yolŋu musicians in the region. Last year's Artist of the Year winner, Malyangapa and Barkindji hip hop talent BARKAA took out Album of the Year for her second album Big Tidda, which celebrates her resilience and determination triumphing over an ice addiction and jail time. Just days ago, BARKAA's mother Cleonie Quayle won a National Indigenous Fashion Award in Darwin for a dress she made for BARKAA's We Up music video, which symbolised her recovery journey. The Bulman School and surrounding community, which were nominated for three songs in the category of Community Clip of the Year, won for their track Crocodile Style. It's the second year in a row the Northern Territory community has taken out the award.
The Guardian
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
National Indigenous Music awards 2025: Emily Wurramara wins artist of the year
Emily Wurramara has won artist of the year at the 21st National Indigenous Music awards (Nimas), held in Garramilla/Darwin on Saturday night. The Darwin-born Warnindhilyagwa woman was nominated alongside rap collective 3%, Yolŋu surf rockers King Stingray, duo Birdz and Fred Leone, and singers Jessica Mauboy, Emma Donovan and Radical Son. Wurramara also picked up film clip of the year for Lordy Lordy, shot on Larrakia country, directed by Claudia Sangiorgi Dalimore and featuring the Northern Territory's Red Flag Dancers and members of Wurramara's family. Sign up for the fun stuff with our rundown of must-reads, pop culture and tips for the weekend, every Saturday morning Malyangapa Barkindji rapper Barkaa, who won artist of the year at the 2024 Nimas, won album of the year for Big Tidda, her second EP, edging out fellow nominees Wurramara, 3%, King Stingray and Yolŋu funk outfit Andrew Gurruwiwi Band. Andrew Gurruwiwi Band, hailing from Yirrkala in north-east Arnhem Land, won best new talent and song of the year for their reggae-inflected protest song Once Upon A Time, addressing colonisation, the frontier wars and the Yolŋu fight for land rights. For the second year in a row, the community clip of the year, recognising young talent, was awarded to Bulman school and community in the NT, for their video Crocodile Style, in which local kids rap in English and Dalabon about the story of Korlomomo (crocodile) and Berrerdberred (rainbow bee eater) and how humans came to have fire. Mauboy, the Garramilla/Darwin-born, Kuku Yalanji and Wakaman singer and actor, was inducted into the Nimas hall of fame as part of this year's ceremony, joining the likes of Warumpi Band's Sammy Butcher, Yothu Yindi and the late Gurrumul. The award recognises Mauboy's success as a recording artist and her impact on Australian music. From her breakthrough on Australian Idol in 2006, she has blazed a trail with six Top 10 albums, 16 Top 20 singles – including chart-topping hits Burn and Little Things – and 31 Aria nominations. Sign up to Saved for Later Catch up on the fun stuff with Guardian Australia's culture and lifestyle rundown of pop culture, trends and tips after newsletter promotion Last week she launched her new single, While I Got Time, co-written with PJ Harding – the first release on her independent imprint Jamally, following her exit from Warner Music Australia. Mauboy took to the stage to perform the new song, joining a lineup that included Barkaa, rapper Kobie Dee, country star Troy Cassar-Daley, Donovan, psych-rockers Velvet Trip, gospel and blues vocalist Kankawa Nagarra, Eleanor Jawurlngali & Mick Turner, and best new talent nominees Miss Kaninna and Drifting Clouds.
Sydney Morning Herald
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Sydney Morning Herald
‘I will never get over being an artist': Jessica Mauboy joins Indigenous Hall of Fame
You learn to expect the unexpected as a journalist. But receiving a personal serenade from the voice of Jessica Mauboy when you pop into an afternoon Zoom call isn't on the list of likely scenarios. First shock. Then appreciation. Then you just sit back and enjoy the ride. Much like her effortless vocal riffs, Mauboy is a joy to behold. Even through a screen, she radiates kindness and warmth. The musician credits her upbringing in the Northern Territory as one of the reasons she's remained so grounded, even after a music career that's spanned more than 20 years. Mauboy is the newest inductee into the National Indigenous Music Awards Hall of Fame, a place reserved for First Nations artists who have had a longstanding and significant impact on the industry. The annual NIMA ceremony has been a celebration of First Nations music in Australia for more than two decades. Award recipients in 2024 included Malyangapa Barkindji rapper Barkaa and hip-hop collective 3%. Other recent winners include Baker Boy, Thelma Plum and King Stingray. Mauboy speaks fondly of the event, held in her hometown of Darwin. She remembers being in the mosh pit as a 10-year-old, dancing to the music of Yothu Yindi. Looking back as an adult, she says she is grateful that she experienced culture, community and advocacy through song. 'The NIMAs, and what it holds in that space, opens doors and paves pathways … It's more than an award show. For me, it's a space where community, culture and creativity comes together,' Mauboy says. 'It's such a melting pot of diversity … All the performers and all the different First Nations people coming from community and from their language groups. And it's such a space of recognition and acknowledgment.' Mauboy's induction means that she stands among superstars such as Archie Roach, Kev Carmody and her own childhood favourite, Yothu Yindi. But fame doesn't come from nowhere. In her own words, Mauboy started 'way from the bottom'. The musician cut her teeth busking at the Arcade Mall in Darwin and sang with a local choir during childhood. She even had a brush with the professional industry as a teenager, winning a Telstra-sponsored 'Road to Tamworth' competition in 2004 and releasing a country-inspired version of Girls Just Wanna Have Fun. 'You've just got to start somewhere,' she says. 'It doesn't always have to be the big stage. There are different places and different spaces … every stage is going to be different. Every audience is going to give something to you that is completely different.' That's the advice she would give to up-and-coming Indigenous artists in Australia. And her message to the industry? To support and book the young musicians who are embarking upon such a time-consuming career. 'Allow them to be part of your space … it's about collaborative spaces. And I think that's why I love music so much … we allow artists to collaborate, and we make amazing stuff. And then it's about people giving us the space to go out and perform.' Now 36, Mauboy started her career in 2006, when she was a runner-up in the fourth season of Australian Idol. A year later she joined the Y oung Divas alongside Paulini, Kate DeAraugo and Emily Williams. The pop group gained recognition for their noughties-style covers of hits from Diana Ross and Patti LaBelle among others. Career milestones have been plentiful since. Mauboy starred in 2012 film The Sapphires (winning an AACTA award for best supporting actress). She represented Australia on the Eurovision stage in 2018, making the finals and placing 20th. She even returned to her competition TV roots, this time as a judge on The Voice Australia. But accolades aside, 2025 has been a year of firsts. In January, she gave birth to her first child, Mia. In August, she released While I Got Time, the first single under her own independent label. The track's stripped-back production creates a raw and intimate atmosphere for listeners. Mauboy says it was an intentional decision to bring attention to what the song is really about – her loved ones. 'The deep reflection and focus on what truly matters in life is our family … I obviously miss my family and have been living away from them for a long time,' she says. 'Particularly being a new mum ... we really drew from those emotions. The impact of people coming into your life, and people going. And also just letting go of the past, moving on with grace and just embracing a new future,' she says. As a girl growing up in the country's Top End, Mauboy learnt that music was a way of expressing community and connection. This is a relationship that she's maintained with her craft. 'I will never get over being an artist, and how amazing it makes me feel to make music and be creative,' she says. 'Everything I know I've learnt from growing up in Darwin. The way, the culture, the body language and communication, the smell of the place … 'It taught me so much about never forgetting where I come from … I think it's really shaped me into being respectful, being connected.'
