If you’re lying comatose on Australia Day (otherwise known as Survival Day) why not get your posterior off the couch and head on down to Treasury Gardens. Why? So you can enjoy the free Share The Spirit Festival which is presented by Songlines Aboriginal Music Corporation and the City of Melbourne.
If you’re lying comatose on Australia Day (otherwise known as Survival Day) why not get your posterior off the couch and head on down to Treasury Gardens. Why? So you can enjoy the free Share The Spirit Festival which is presented by Songlines Aboriginal Music Corporation and the City of Melbourne. Over the years this festival has boasted such musical luminaries as Archie Roach, Ruby Hunter and powerhouse country soul rock ‘n’ roll hip-shaker Dan Sultan. This year’s line-up sizzles with acts such as Dave Arden, Lady Lash, Zennith, OKA, Maza Sisters, Wurunjeri Dancers, Songlines Youth Choir, Songlines Hip Hop Dance Group, The Brolga Boys, Jake And The Cowboys and MC Sherilee Hood. In addition to soaking up the sonic delights of non-stop music, there’s also community market stalls, the ability to get your smiling face painted, check out circus activities and perhaps even engage in a spot of wild and memorable dancing.
Jessie Lloyd, an award-winning musician, who works with Songlines spoke about this exciting event and explained the important role that she sees music playing within Australian society. “With music being a universal language, people can come together,” she says,. “It creates great opportunities for reconciliation in Australia, especially on an important day like Australia Day.” According to Jessie, the healing power of music results from the community being able to “self-express through music and enjoy music through looking at the past, singing about the future and how we live together today. The artist’s daily experience is always inspiring.”
As Songlines are dedicated to providing performance opportunities for Aboriginal artists, it’s asked of Jessie about the challenges that face indigenous musicians in getting their music heard. She replies that “One of the biggest challenges in the mainstream music industry is that the majority of people seem to assume that Aboriginal music needs to be traditional, or in language, while the majority of our artists are contemporary commercial artists who perform in reggae or folk or hip hop or rock… the people who do get the gigs are the more world music style with more of a traditional cultural flair…”
On a positive note, however, Jessie suggests that “there are great opportunities for people who are active and keen and look for opportunities wherever they may arise… Songlines represents Aboriginal music to the wider community and shows what Aboriginal artists are performing and shows that Aboriginal artists don’t only sing traditionally, or perform traditionally. Every year we try to present that… and give the wider community and the media a true representation of what our artists are performing and who they are and what sorts of styles they are doing.”
Although the festival plays an important role in disseminating indigenous music in this way, Jessie isn’t keen for Share The Spirit to turn into a monolithic event. “I’d like to keep it as a nice community event for the local community in Melbourne to come down, feel comfortable and feel at home. I really wouldn’t want to see it get too big and to attract festival crowds because it’s different to any other Australia Day concert… I want to make sure it remains an Aboriginal community gig and not turn into another gig on the festival circuit.”
When asked about the musical highlights awaiting attendees at this year’s festival Jessie enthuses, “we have our headline act Zennith, from Kuranda in Queensland, who are an excellent reggae band and have just released their new album. They are one of the key names in national indigenous music. We have OKA from Brisbane who play dance, lounge, trance, electronic music with didge, so there’s quite a contrast between the two bands! We also have our local artists that are a nice mix as well. There’s going to a good broad range of musical styles this year.”
If you like to slip on your dancing shoes, make a beeline for the popular and legendary hip hop dance workshops. According to Jessie, “We get a whole lot of dancers to come from around the country and do an hour of workshops, showing everyone what they do and how they do it. They then do an hour later of ‘battle’. They get young people in little groups and teach them how to challenge each other as teams. It’s always really exciting… some of the groups get to go on the main stage and do the big grand final battle dance-off in front of the whole festival…
“I remember last year I didn’t even get to see it as everybody swarmed right to the front as everyone was really eager to see these young people get into dancing. So this is definitely one of the highlights of the festival!”
With dance battles, eclectic music and a warm and robust sense of community, Share The Spirit sounds like the place to be this Australia Day!
SHARE THE SPIRIT FESTIVAL takes place in the Treasury Gardens today, Wednesday January 26 – Survival Day. It’s a free community event.
