Six Local Artists to Ausify Your Summer Playlists

Created in Partnership with Ausify

It’s been a good few years for Australian music: Troye Sivan’s masterful pop album Something to Give Each Other won multiple ARIA awards, broke in the US, and took over our TikTok FYPs. Amyl and the Sniffers embarked on a world tour, exporting Melbourne’s punk rock around the globe. The band sold out their own headline tours in the US, UK and Europe, including three consecutive nights at the Roundhouse in London.

Meanwhile, Triple J addressed the criticism that the Hottest 100 was too globally minded and created the triple j Hottest 100 of Australian Songs, reminding us all of the talent and cultural impact that Australian musicians have had over the decades.

Despite this stellar new era, it’s no secret that the Australian music industry is fighting hard to keep the lights on. From the cost-of-living crisis making it harder for artists to live off their work (and for punters to afford to attend gigs), the tyranny of streaming services pushing global-minded algorithms, festival cancellations, and artists being pressured to make it on TikTok just to get a look in, it’s never been more important to support local Australian artists through your listening habits.

With summer around the corner, we’re “ausifying” your playlists and highlighting six Australian artists that should be added to your music rotation.

Miss Kaninna

Raised on the shores of Bruny Island, Tasmania, Miss Kaninna (Kaninna Langford) is a proud Yort Orta, Dja Dja Wurrung, Kalkadoon, and Yirendali woman based in Naarm/Melbourne.

Coming up through Tasmania’s festival scene, the singer released her self-titled debut EP in September 2024, has toured as a national support act with Amyl and the Sniffers and is soon to be joining Irish rap group, Kneecap, on their UK tour. Miss Kaninna is also the first independent Aboriginal woman to be nominated for a debut single at the ARIA Awards, making her one to keep on your radar.

Her infectiously punchy tracks, including “Pinnacle Bitch” and “Blak Britney,” blend EDM production with catchy rap lyrics, creating songs that will hype you up all summer long. Don’t miss her set at Beyond the Valley 2025 on Monday, December 29th.

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The Rions

What’s summer without a bit of indie rock? The Rions are a four-piece band hailing from Sydney’s Northern Beaches. After forming during high school, the band won Triple J’s Unearthed High Competition in 2021 with their track “Night Light”. Just a couple of years on and The Rions have finished a headline tour for their first album, Everything Every Single Day, which debuted at number one on the ARIA Australian Albums Chart, second on the Vinyls Chart, and number five on the ARIA Albums Chart.

“All our triumphs, our regrets, our shortcomings, our philosophies, our hopes, and our dreams on a 13-track silver platter,” the band told Rolling Stone AU/NZ of the album earlier this year. Now, The Rions are touring the UK (with one show in Amsterdam), and are spreading Australian indie rock abroad. Ensure Everything Every Single Day is added to your listening rotation this summer, and catch the boys at Spilt Milk festival.

Stella Donnelly

Three years after her second album, Flood, was released, and after a period of quiet reflection, Melbourne-based singer-songwriter, Stella Donnelly, is back with new music — and just in time for summer.

Donnelly’s third album, Love and Fortune, released in November, is described as a “deeply personal” body of work that depicts Stella returning to herself after a period of change. The single, “Year of Trouble”, captures a friendship breakup with painful accuracy. At the same time, “Baths” showcases Stella’s ethereal voice (complete with Australian lilts) and captures the tender moments of pause in life before embarking on massive change. With a national tour kicking off in February and March 2026 (followed by a UK and European tour), Donnelly should be added to your playlists as soon as possible.

Daine

Emerging from Melbourne’s underground hardcore and emo scenes, daine has carved out their own particular Australian music niche. Described as a “soundtrack for the disillusioned generation,” daine’s music is a blend of midwestern emo, hyperpop, and indie sleaze-era trap sounds.

Daine describes Charli XCX as a mentor and has worked with hyperpop’s current visionaries, including Danny L. Harle, Hannah Diamond, and 100 Gecs’ Dylan Brady. In their high-octane party anthem, “SHADES ON”, daine collaborated with US rapper and icon of 2010s indie sleaze, Kreayshawn.

Their 2025 EP, I Want the Light to Swallow Me Whole, drifts between genres, including pop, metal, and punk, seamlessly, cementing daine as a visionary artist to watch (and support in your playlists).

Thelma Plum

Thelma Plum has grown into one of the country’s most compelling and important voices. Her 2019 debut album, Better in Blak, garnered seven ARIA Award nominations and over 200 million global streams. The title track also landed in the top 10 of the 2019 Triple J Hottest 100, earning Thelma the highest-ever result for an Indigenous artist at the time.

The Gamilaraay musician is renowned for her intimate lyricism, smooth voice, and storytelling skills, which reveal the Aboriginal experience. Plum’s album I’m Sorry, Now Say It Back was released in 2024 to high acclaim. The album has been nominated for Album of the Year at the ARIA awards, and her song “Freckles” won the award for Best Single at the Rolling Stone Australia Awards. Plum offers listeners a reminder that Australian pop can carry soul and emotional complexity, while still offering sun-drenched melodies for your summer listening pleasure.

SPEED

This Sydney five-piece hardcore band are taking over global playlists and festival lineups. SPEED’s 2024 album Only One Mode won an ARIA Award for Best Hard Rock/ Heavy Metal, confirming that their raw and visceral sound has broken through from the underground scene to the mainstream.

The band are playing at Sick New World Las Vegas as well as the inaugural Sick New World Texas, standing shoulder-to-shoulder with international hardcore acts including AFI, System of a Down, and Mastodon. Through their emotional intensity and full-throttle energy, SPEED are putting Australian hardcore music on the map.

With a new EP, All My Angels, out in late spring, plus an ARIA Award nomination for Best Live Act under their belt, SPEED are the hardcore band to support and add to your streaming rotation.