Golden Guitar winning singer-songwriter Luke O’Shea has always felt a responsibility to educate as well entertain – and his latest single, Happy Australia Day, links both his passions and is bound to get people talking.
Happy Australia Day, released today, August 19, attempts to link both Australia’s Indigenous and European histories by highlighting 9 significant indigenous activists and simply telling an old story from a fresh perspective.
Luke collaborated with fellow award-winning artist, Kevin Bennett, a proud Kamilaroi man, on this new single, which they hope will strike a raw nerve and inspire fellow Australians to learn more about our tumultuous past, it’s remarkable people and just why January 26 can be seen as such a divisive day.
“It’s pretty well known that for the last 30 years I have danced between two careers – one a touring singer-songwriter and the second – a high school teacher,” he said.
“The subjects I teach, music, art, religion, history and geography have always influenced and inspired me and my music – and the opportunity to share that passion and the insights gained to students and audiences around Australia – has truly given me a blessed life.”
A major health scare and opening up about sexual assault as a teenager makes for a moving album for singer-songwriter and guitar shredder Lindsay Ell.
You would be hard-pressed to find a more personal, heart-wrenching, and inspiring album than Heart Theory, released today, August 14.
Working through the seven stages of grief, this is a concept album best consumed from start to finish, rather than in bites.
“I was about halfway through writing this record when I realised I was writing these songs in the order of how I was feeling them,” Lindsay said.
“As human beings on the planet we go through transformation in our lives and I thought how cool would it be to write a record in order of the seven stages of grief.”
The singer-songwriter who knows how to shred a guitar with the best of them, works through grief from shock to denial and all the way down to acceptance, and opens up to her listeners as they travel the journey with her.
“I want to inspire them to go through this with me because I feel like the past three years, and particularly the last year, has been transformative for me,” Lindsay said.
“I had a massive health scare and finally wanting to talk about my story as a little girl, I’ve gotten to know myself – we always think we do, but we get to know ourselves deeper and deeper as we get older and there is such a beautiful quality in that.”
The Canadian artist, who now calls Nashville home, opened up about her rape at 13 years old, while visiting Youth For Tomorrow to launch their music program.
“I sat down with 12 other little girls and I told them my story and I heard them tell their stories,” she said.
“These are stories that are so horrific. This happens far more in our society than we want to realise and by not talking about it, we are allowing that shame and guilt to continue, but we can help each other heal and become strong through talking about it.”
Music can be a calling and a healer for many, as is the case for Queensland’s Amanda Heartsong who is now spreading the word on the power of music, while penning songs inspired by dodgy footwear.
Amanda is a graduate of the 2020 CMAA Academy where she had multi-award-winning artist Catherine Britt as her group leader.
The experience is life-changing for every student and staff member.
“The Academy changed my life massively,” she said.
“It gave me the confidence to have my own voice and I learned to play guitar from Roger. Through that, my whole creativity opened up and helped me with writing songs and feeling confident as a musician.
“The Academy helped me find that tribe and that stops the loneliness because I’ve made connections.”
If, like many of us, you’ve followed or been part of Adam Brand’s career over the past 20-odd years, you’ll know he’s always true to himself as an artist, and his latest album, Speed of Life, takes this even further.
This down-to-earth approach has won over thousands of supporters and this week Speed of Life sits at No. 1 on the ARIA Country Albums Chart and No. 6 on the ARIA Albums Chart.
Luke O’Shea could add to his
collection of nine Golden Guitars, after snagging three spots at today’s
finalist announcement event in Sydney.
O’Shea released Sing Me A Story,
a duet with Lyn Bowtell, in late September, his first release in three years
and it is a finalist in APRA AMCOS Song of the Year, Heritage Song of the Year
and Vocal Collaboration of the Year. He already has five Heritage Song of the
Year Golden Guitars to his name.
The multi-Golden Guitar winner said he was grateful
Sing Me A Story has connected so strongly with industry personnel and his
country music peers.
“Lyn Bowtell and myself are so
very grateful and super appreciative of the support our duet, Sing Me A Story,
has received from all aspects of the Australian country music industry,”
he said.
“It’s been a long time between drinks for me, personally, and
the fact the leading single from my upcoming album has been able to connect
with peers and audiences to this extent is very humbling and deeply satisfying.”
O’Shea wrote the song with Felicity Urquhart in front of other
songwriters at The DAG Songwriter’s Retreat outside of Nundle and the single
heralds a new album for the Sutherland Shire artist.
“A special thanks goes out to the wonderful Felicity Urquhart who I wrote this song with, out at the magnificent DAG Sheep Station Songwriters Retreat and also Sean Rudd who has worked tirelessly on it through it’s many ebbs and flows,” he said.
“It certainly inspires me to keep on keeping on with my aim of singing up this incredible country of ours and I cannot wait to share my upcoming album, There In The Ochre, with you all come the 2020 Tamworth Country Music Festival.”
Luke O’Shea at the announcement of the 2020 Golden Guitar finalists. Photo: Lisa Williams
“This is a voice that is up there with the very best of
them, including the US greats. It aches of life and love, history and memory”
– Mike Brady AM.
Rory Ellis unleashes his Inner Outlaw on Friday, October 18 with
the release of his ninth studio album.
Inner Outlaw is a collection of 12 tracks of pure Americana, with a touch of Waylonesque attitude that will make your heart sing and your mind wander. It’s dry, minimalist, sometimes appears to fall apart at the seams, but will leave you haunted with a resonance rarely found in modern production.
Singer-songwriter Kim Wright is Livin’ The Dream with his debut EP hitting the top of the charts on release.
Released on July 22, Wright’s EP Livin’ The Dream, charted at No. 2 on the iTunes Country Albums Chart and No. 28 on the iTunes All Genres Album Charts and is the realisation of a 20-year goal that began when he started writing songs in his early teens.
The title,
Livin’ The Dream, is a motto Wright lives by and is more often than not what
will come out of his mouth when you ask how he’s going.
“Every day above ground’s a good one
and I believe you should live each day to its fullest,” he said.
“The
collection of songs represents that theme in my world.”
AARON Jurd and The Banned have new songs to share with music lovers and they’re bringing them to Nambucca Heads on June 1.
This will be the
first show on the North Coast for Jurd, who hails from Lake Macquarie and the
bowls club audience is in for a treat.
“I’m so excited
to play at Nambucca Heads Bowling Club with The Banned,” he said.
“I’ve just released
my second single and I can’t wait to play it, my other originals and lots of
people’s favourites at the show.”
Jurd’s single, Hard To Breathe, debuted in the top 20 iTunes
Country Songs Chart on release day, April 12, and his debut single, Set me On
Fire, charted at No. 5 on release in September last year. He will be performing
these among his originals and everyone’s favourite country, rock and pop songs
with musicians Carmel Smith and Ric Durand of The Banned.
As well as performing regularly in the Central Coast and Hunter Valley area, Jurd completed a short tour of the Riverina area in April, and is working hard to get his songs in front of new audiences. Aaron Jurd and The Banned have performed at the Tamworth Country Music Festival, country races and have just been announced for performances at the Deni Ute Muster, Bluewater Country Music Festival in Port Stephens and Hats off to Country in Tamworth coming up.
It’s not all about
music for the singer-songwriter on this trip, as he plans to explore and
embrace as much of the local area as he can on this visit.
“I haven’t been to
Nambucca Heads before, but I’ve heard a lot about the area and how beautiful it
is, so we will try to do some sightseeing while we are there,” Jurd said.
“I’m really looking
forward meeting the locals and playing some songs for them.”
With a voice that leaves audiences raving about his performances and songs that make you want to get up and dance, you won’t want to miss this show at Nambucca Heads Bowling Club on Saturday, June 1.
Keep up-to-date with all of Aaron’s news on Facebook.
Beautiful Destruction is
music to the ears of The Viper Creek Band’s fans after waiting
nearly three years for the new album.
Released today, March 1, Beautiful Destruction debuted
at No. 1 on the iTunes Country Albums Charts and No. 13 on the All Genre Albums
Chart and sees the Newcastle outfit stretch their musical wings with
songs that encompass their ever-growing influences, but still identifiable
as The Viper Creek Band’s work.
“I’m just so excited to get it out because I can’t wait
for people to hear it,” front man Damien Baguley said.
“It’s feels like forever since the last album (Just
Press Play). The songs show off our different influences, but I still think
it’s got The Viper Creek Band stamp on it and people are still
going to dig it.”
The two singles from the album, Green Light and Australian
Girls, have both charted in the top 5 on the iTunes Country Songs Chart and
enjoyed extensive airplay with Green Light racking up 500,000
streams on Spotify.
Green Light has
an infectious lyric with the premise being a guy asking a girl to take their
relationship to the next level, while Australian Girls is an
upbeat tribute to strong Australian women and the roles they play in life. With
International Women’s Day just around the corner on March 8, Australian Girls
is the perfect country music accompaniment.
Other highlights include Tired from the
pens of Damien, Brennin Hunt and Skip Black, who also wrote Green Light.
Tired has a John Mayer feel to it, while the Shane McAnally-penned Blue
Jean Jacket is about lost love and reminiscing about a former flame.
Beautiful Destruction contains
some slower ballads and songs reminiscent of not only John Mayer, but also The
Eagles and touches of pop music.
Damien co-wrote four songs of the ten songs with Nashville
writers as well as Australian artists including Travis Collins and Matt
Scullion.
“I just hope listeners don’t want to skip any songs,” he
said.
“I think every song has its place and that they want to
listen to the whole thing because, as an album, there are a lot of different
flavours.”
The singer-songwriter and lead singer is now looking
forward to releasing Beautiful Destruction out into the world
and hitting the road.
“We have revamped the live show around the album,” Damien
said.
The Viper Creek Band will
launch the album with a weekend packed with gigs starting in Muswellbrook RSL
on Friday night, March 1, the Sydney launch at Rooty Hill RSL on Saturday,
March 2 before playing for their hometown audience at
Edgeworth Bowling Club on Sunday, March 3.
Australia’s iconic Deni Ute Muster turns 21 next year and organisers are thrilled to announce that international country superstar, Tim McGraw, will headline the event to be held on 4 and 5 October 2019.
Tim McGraw has sold more than 50 million records and dominated the charts with 43 worldwide #1 singles. He’s won 3 Grammy Awards, 16 Academy of Country Music Awards, 14 Country Music Association Awards, 11 American Music Awards, 3 People’s Choice Awards and numerous other honours. He also starred in and narrated the hit movie “The Shack” as well as roles in “Friday Night Lights” and “The Blind Side.”
Bec Gracie Publicity 