It’s an epic name for a festival but that’s exactly what Great Southern Nights promises to be over the course of its 2025 return.
It’s quality and quantity all the way as the annual festival brings a diverse program of Australian music acts, both emerging and iconic, across 300-plus shows throughout New South Wales from Friday, March 21st, to Sunday, April 6th.
Last month a new slew of artists was unveiled showcasing a huge range of styles. Here’s a taster of some of those who were recently announced…
A proud Coodjinburra man from the Bundjalung nation, Budjerah won ARIA Awards for Breakthrough Artist in 2021 and Best Soul/R&B Release in 2022 and hasn’t looked back since, being nominated for 13 more ARIAs. He also took out Best New Artist at the 2023 Shure Rolling Stone Australia Awards as well as Artist of the Year at the National Indigenous Music Awards. He supported Ed Sheeran on his huge arena tour of Australia, with the pair subsequently releasing a collaborative single, “2step”.
Budjerah’s most recent single, “Is It Ever Gonna Make Sense”, was co-written by G Flip and Aidan Hogg and topped off by his biggest road adventure yet, the ‘Therapy Sessions Tour’.
Great Southern Nights kicks off his 2025 live performance calendar in what looks to again be a golden year ahead. Catch him on February 28th at The Factory Theatre, Marrickville.
Fresh from performing at the ABC’s New Year celebrations on Sydney Harbour, Fanning Dempsey National Park have their ‘Deluge Regional Tour’ ahead in April and May, but will precede that with a special Great Southern Nights performance.
Love Live Music?
Get the latest Live Music news, features, updates and giveaways straight to your inbox Learn more
Even though they’re old mates, it was a pleasant surprise when it was announced in mid-2024 that Aussie rock icons Bernard Fanning and Paul Dempsey were coming together for a special collaboration. Trading a few song ideas back and forth quickly led to the decision to make a full album.
“At that point it had started to get a sound of its own as well, because once there were a few ideas in the can, then it was kind of like, ‘OK, what do we want this to be? We’d like it to be different ‘cause it’ll be more fun if it’s different,'” Dempsey explained to Rolling Stone AU/NZ last September.
“We started screwing around with synthesisers and sequencers and stuff that wasn’t really in our wheelhouse. That kept on going and it opened up this whole world of sound and toys. I love toys — I’m a gear head. So any excuse to go right down a gear rabbit hole and learn about synths or whatever. It’s like discovering the guitar all over again. I’ve literally been selling guitars to buy synths.
“To put that in context, he’s been selling some of his collection of, like, 30 guitars,” added Fanning. “It’s not like he’s getting low on guitars or anything.”
Fanning Dempsey National Park perform at the Beach Hotel, Byron Bay, on April 3rd.
Offbeat Collective is a multi-studio artist development facility based in Marrickville that focuses on “supporting the artists who create the fabric of our cultural identity.” In keeping with this ethos, they’re launching a new label in partnership with Xelon Digital (DEVAURA, Sachém, ANESU, Malaika Mfalme, Emerald, and Jannah Beth)
“Offbeat Collective has always been about artists creating space for other artists,” co-founder Jannah Beth explained recently to The Music Network. “Evolving into an artist-run label feels like the natural next step, an inevitable extension of what we’ve been building. It’s about putting the power back into the hands of creatives and fostering a community where collaboration, independence, and sustainability are at the forefront.”
View this post on Instagram
The label will be launched at a secret location in Marrickville on March 29th with performances from Jamaica Moana, Jannah Beth, Emerald, Malaika Mfalme, ANESU, Sachém, Ruu., Chelle Tamika, Jeauneil, Akala Newman, G Rebel, and more.
Grace Shaw, aka Mallrat, also kicks off her 2025 touring schedule at Great Southern Nights prior to embarking on a US tour.
Her second album, light hit my face like a straight right, will be released on February 14tth and was recorded prior to the tragic passing of her younger sister, Olivia, in May last year.
Mallrat stated that releasing new music didn’t have much appeal to her, but the fan reaction to her belatedly released single, “Horses”, helped her find her way back to the enjoyment of releasing and performing music.
“I forgot that … an important and beautiful part of (making music) is not just making it and keeping it to yourself, but sharing it,” she told The Guardian last month. “It’s been a very weird year, but it’s beautiful that it’s being rounded off with this connection through this song. I feel very, very, very, very happy that I seem to have captured something magic.”
Mallrat performs on April 3rd at the Enmore Theatre with support from daine, Denim, and Prophecy Girl.
2025 is a milestone year for beloved Australian rockers You Am I, as they celebrate 30 years of their breakthrough second album, Hi Fi Way. A vinyl reissue is in the works plus a run of shows around the country to mark this auspicious Australian music anniversary.
In the meantime, you can listen to Richard Kingsmill’s Hi Fi Way: The Making of You Am I podcast here, as well as check out the newly established You Am I Archive.
You Am I perform on April 4th at the Enmore Theatre.
Check out the 300+ gigs happening all over New South Wales at greatsouthernnights.com.au.
