The musical collaboration between Briggs and Trials, known as A.B. Original, made Aus music history last night when the duo took out the $30,000 Australian Music Prize.
It is the first time an Indigenous artist has won the prize.
#The12thAMP @ABOriginalBAM wins for Reclaim Australia pic.twitter.com/UEDXJ1ATTj
— PPCA (@ppca) March 9, 2017
Touted as “one of the boldest debut albums of 2016,” Reclaim Australia gave the boys the upper hand over the likes of Camp Cope, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, The Avalanches and previous winners Big Scary.
The 16-strong AMP judging panel listened to a whopping 364 Aussie albums released in 2016 and Hoodoo Gurus‘ Dave Faulkner, who chairs the panel, praised Reclaim Australia as a “cultural landmark.”
“It’s an angry, funny, heartfelt, slamming hip hop album that takes its inspiration from ’90s gangsta rap, and filters it through a modern Aboriginal perspective. It hits hard politically, musically and emotionally and the stories A.B. Original are telling are ones we all need to hear right now,” he said.
The duo was awarded the giant novelty $30k cheque in a ceremony at Melbourne’s The Toff In Town.
Watch A.B. Original‘s first single from Reclaim Australia – January 26 – featuring Dan Sultan below:
The 12th Annual AMP shortlist:
WINNER: A.B. Original – Reclaim Australia
The Avalanches – Wildflower
Big Scary – Animal
Camp Cope – Camp Cope
D.D Dumbo – Utopia Defeated
King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard – Nonagon Infinity
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds – Skeleton Tree
Olympia – Self Talk
The Peep Tempel – Joy
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