As I sit in a hotel room less than three kilometres from The Star in Sydney where, later today, the biggest night on Australia’s music industry calendar will be held for the 33rd year (which, I suspect, will be dominated by Tones & I, which is why she’s the featured pic for this story) I have been scouring the official ARIA YouTube channel and uncovered some gems from the event’s previous 32 events.
Indulge me, if you will, and join me on this little walk down memory lane with five of my fave ARIAs moments…
Last year…
Kasey Chambers was inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame by Paul Kelly and delivered what I believe was the best bloody speech spoken on an Aussie stage in years.
“The two main things I’ve learnt about how to survive in the music business is to always be true to yourself and to find your tribe,” she said from the speech, which she pulled from her boot as she had, ‘nowhere else to put it.’
“I have had the most amazing tribe in the world – my mum and dad.
“[My mum’s] the most inspiring woman I know… Over the years, she’s taught me that being a bitch doesn’t make you strong, and to be strong doesn’t make you a bitch.”
“The best advice by dad ever gave me was, ‘just don’t be a dickhead’ – I know it doesn’t sound very profound, but it’s been the best advice to follow,” she said.
“Seriously, you don’t need to be a dickhead to get ahead in this business, you really don’t. You don’t have to drag other people down to get to the top…
“I don’t believe I’m up here because I’m a strong woman. I think I’m standing up here because I’m just myself, and that’s all any of us ever need to be.”
Watch: Kasey Chambers (Ft. Kate Miller-Heidke, Amy Sheppard, Missy Higgins) ‘Not Pretty Enough/Ain’t No Little Girl’ –
In 2017…
Paul Kelly and Gang of Youths dominated the ARIAs, but it was Kelly’s performance of Life is Fine and Dumb Things with A.B. Original and Dan Sultan that really took the cake.
Kelly had won Best Cover Art and Best Engineer for his album Life is Fine before the main ceremony, but he also took out Best Adult Contemporary Album and Best Male Artist on the night.
Watch: Paul Kelly (Ft. A.B. Original, Dan Sultan) ‘Life is Fine/Dumb Things’ –
Let’s skip way back to 1992…
This is one of the earlier years I remember watching the ARIAs. This was the year the Baby Animals won Album of the Year – beating Jimmy Barnes, Deborah Conway, Crowded House and Died Pretty – with their self-titled debut record.
Barnesy won Highest Selling Album and Best Male Artist with Soul Deep that year, but Baby Animals marched in with their Breakthrough Artist Album and Single awards and took home Album of the Year as well.
Watch: Baby Animals win Best Album –
1995…
Was the year of Silverchair. They took home five awards, including Single of the Year, Highest Selling Single, Best New Talent, Breakthrough Artist – Album, Breakthrough Artist – Single. They missed out on four others, including Album of the Year (won by Tina Arena).
They did, however, do a killer cover of Radio Birdman‘s New Race with Tim Rogers from You Am I.
Watch: Silverchair (Ft. Tim Rogers) ‘New Race’ –
1987…
Was the very first ARIA Awards. It was held in Sydney (it did move to Melbourne for a little while in the ’90s) and was hosted by Sir Elton John. Yep – the Sir Elton. It wasn’t televised – in fact, John is quoted as saying it should never be televised “if you want to keep these awards fun.”
The ARIAs was entirely peer-voted, and eligibility was determined from material released the previous calendar year with the final five nominees determined by independent auditors.
John Farnham was the man of the night, with his album Whispering Jack winning six of the awards. He basically took home every award except Best Group, Best Female Artist, Best New Talent, Best Indigenous Release and Best Comedy Release.
Luckily for us, ARIA did film the event and put a copy online for us all to enjoy.
Watch: The 1987 ARIA Awards –
The 2019 ARIA Awards will be held at The Star in Sydney tonight, with a broadcast on the Nine Network across Australia from 7.30pm.
2019 ARIA nominees (and previously announced winners) :
Album Of The Year
Dean Lewis – A Place We Knew
Hilltop Hoods – The Great Expanse
RÜFÜS DU SOL – Solace
The Teskey Brothers – Run Home Slow
Thelma Plum – Better In Blak
Best Male Artist
Dean Lewis – A Place We Knew
Guy Sebastian – Choir
Hayden James – Between Us
Matt Corby – Rainbow Valley
Paul Kelly – Nature
Best Female Artist
Amy Shark – Mess Her Up
Jessica Mauboy – Little Things
Julia Jacklin – Crushing
Thelma Plum – Better In Blak
Tones And I – Dance Monkey
Best Dance Release
Dom Dolla – Take It
FISHER – You Little Beauty
Peking Duk & Jack River – Sugar
PNAU – Solid Gold
RÜFÜS DU SOL – Solace
Best Group
5 Seconds Of Summer – Easier
Birds Of Tokyo – Good Lord
Hilltop Hoods – The Great Expanse
RÜFÜS DU SOL – Solace
The Teskey Brothers – Run Home Slow
Breakthrough Artist
G Flip – About Us
Stella Donnelly – Beware Of The Dogs
The Teskey Brothers – Run Home Slow
Thelma Plum – Better In Blak
Tones And I – Dance Monkey
Best Pop Release
Amy Shark – Mess Her Up
Dean Lewis – A Place We Knew
Guy Sebastian – Choir
Thelma Plum – Better In Blak
Tones And I – Dance Monkey
Best Hip Hop Release
Baker Boy – Cool As Hell
Hilltop Hoods – The Great Expanse
Illy – Then What
Sampa The Great – Final Form
Tkay Maidza – Awake feat. JPEGMAFIA
Best Soul/R&B Release
Kaiit – Miss Shiney
Matt Corby – Rainbow Valley
Adrian Eagle – AOK
Genesis Owusu – WUTD + Vultures
Tash Sultana – Can’t Buy Happiness
Best Independent Release
Angie McMahon – Salt
G Flip – About Us
Julia Jacklin – Crushing
The Teskey Brothers – Run Home Slow
Tones And I – The Kids Are Coming
Best Rock Album
Amyl and The Sniffers – Amyl and The Sniffers
Holy Holy – My Own Pool Of Light
Jimmy Barnes – My Criminal Record
Midnight Oil – Armistice Day: Live at The Domain, Sydney
Skegss – My Own Mess
Best Adult Contemporary Album
Julia Jacklin – Crushing
Paul Kelly – Nature
Samantha Jade – The Magic of Christmas
Seeker Lover Keeper – Wild Seeds
The Paper Kites – On The Corner Where You Live
Best Country Album
Charlie Collins – Snowpine
Felicity Urquhart – Frozen Rabbit
Lee Kernaghan – Backroad Nation
Morgan Evans – Things We Drink To
Sara Storer – Raindance
Best Hard Rock/Heavy Metal Album
Clowns – Nature/Nurture
Dead Letter Circus – Dead Letter Circus
DZ Deathrays – Positive Rising: Part 1
King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard – Infest The Rats’ Nest
Northlane – Alien
Best Blues & Roots Album
Dan Sultan – Aviary Takes
John Butler Trio – HOME
King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard – Fishing For Fishies
Paul Kelly – Live At Sydney Opera House
The Teskey Brothers – Run Home Slow
Best Children’s Album
Dan Sultan – Nali & Friends
Kamil Ellis and Ensemble Offspring – Classic Kids: Music For The Dreaming
Regurgitator’s Pogogo Show – The Really Really Really Really Boring Album
The Beanies – Imagination Station
The Wiggles – Party Time!
PUBLIC VOTED AWARDS
Best Video presented by YouTube Music
Baker Boy – Cool As Hell
Briggs – Life Is Incredible feat. Greg Holden
G Flip – Drink Too Much
Guy Sebastian – Choir
Hilltop Hoods – Exit Sign feat. Illy & Ecca Vandal
Jessica Mauboy – Little Things
PNAU – Solid Gold
Sampa The Great – Final Form
Thelma Plum – Better In Blak
Tones And I – Dance Monkey
Best Australian Live Act
Amy Shark – Amy Shark Australian Tour
Baker Boy – Cool As Hell Tour
Electric Fields – 2000 And Whatever Tour
Gang Of Youths – Say Yes To Life Tour
Hilltop Hoods – The Great Expanse World Tour
Keith Urban – Graffiti U Tour 2019
King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard – King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard Australian Tour 2019
Midnight Oil – Midnight Oil
Peking Duk – Peking Duk’s Biggest Tour Ever… So Far
The Teskey Brothers – The Teskey Brothers – Intimate Venue Tour
Song Of The Year presented by YouTube Music
5 Seconds Of Summer – Easier
Amy Shark – Mess Her Up
Birds Of Tokyo – Good Lord
Dean Lewis – 7 Minutes
Guy Sebastian – Choir
Hilltop Hoods – Leave Me Lonely
Kian – Waiting
Morgan Evans – Day Drunk
Ocean Alley – Confidence
Tones and I – Dance Monkey
Best International Artist
Ariana Grande – Thank U, Next
Billie Eilish – When We All Fall Asleep Where Do We Go
Ed Sheeran – No.6 Collaborations Project
George Ezra – Staying At Tamara’s
Khalid – Free Spirit
P!nk – Hurts 2B Human
Post Malone – Hollywood’s Bleeding
Shawn Mendes – Shawn Mendes
Taylor Swift – Lover
Travis Scott – Astroworld
Telstra ARIA Music Teacher of the Year
Antonio Chiappetta (St Andrews College, Marayong, NSW)
Bel Skinner (North Regional TAFE, WA)
Julie Rennick (Gunnedah Conservatorium, NSW)
Lee Strickland (Narbethong State Special School, QLD)
Best Comedy Release
Arj Barker – Organic
Carl Barron – Drinking With A Fork
Chris Lilley – Lunatics (Official Soundtrack)
Sammy J – Symphony In J Minor
Veronica & Lewis – Sex Flex: A Rap Guide To Fornication
ARTISAN AWARDS
Best Cover Art
WINNER: Emilie Pfitzner for Thelma Plum – Better in Blak
Ben Jones for Amyl and The Sniffers – Amyl and The Sniffers
Jonathan Zawada for Flume – Hi This is Flume (Mixtape)
Nick Mckk for Julia Jacklin – Crushing
Lucy Dyson for Paul Kelly – Nature
Emilie Pfitzner for Thelma Plum – Better In Blak
Engineer Of The Year
WINNER: Sam Teskey for The Teskey Brothers – Run Home Slow
Hilltop Hoods – The Great Expanse
Burke Reid for Julia Jacklin – Crushing
Kevin Parker for Tame Impala – Patience
Sam Teskey for The Teskey Brothers – Run Home Slow
Konstantin Kersting for Tones And I – Dance Monkey
Producer Of The Year
WINNER: Dann Hume for Matt Corby – Rainbow Valley
Dann Hume for Matt Corby – Rainbow Valley
Kevin Parker for Tame Impala – Patience
Burke Reid for Julia Jacklin – Crushing
Paul Kelly and Steven Schram for Paul Kelly – Nature
Konstantin Kersting for Tones And I – Dance Monkey
FINE ARTS AWARDS
Best Classical Album
WINNER: Paul Kelly, James Ledger – Thirteen Ways To Look At Birds
Diana Doherty, Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Nigel Westlake, David Robertson, Synergy Vocals – Nigel Westlake: Spirit of the Wild / Steve Reich: The Desert Music
Genevieve Lacey – Soliloquy: Telemann Solo Fantasias
Grigoryan Brothers, Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, Benjamin Northey – Bach Concertos
Nicole Car, Australian Chamber Orchestra, Richard Tognetti – Heroines
Paul Kelly, James Ledger – Thirteen Ways To Look At Birds
Best Jazz Album
WINNER: Kate Ceberano and Paul Grabowsky – TRYST
Andrea Keller – Transients Vol.1
Angela Davis – Little Did They Know
Barney McAll – Zephyrix
Kate Ceberano and Paul Grabowsky – TRYST
Phil Slater – The Dark Pattern
Best Original Soundtrack or Musical Theatre Cast Album
WINNER: Various Artists – The Recording Studio (Music From The TV Series)
Burkhard Dallwitz – LOCUSTS: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Gang Of Youths – MTV Unplugged (Live in Melbourne)
Luke Howard – The Sand That Ate The Sea
Trials – Cargo
Various Artists – The Recording Studio (Music From The TV Series)
Best World Music Album
WINNER: Melbourne Ska Orchestra – One Year Of Ska
Chaika – Arrow
Joseph Tawadros – Betrayal of a Sacred Sunflower
Melbourne Ska Orchestra – One Year Of Ska
Tara Tiba – Omid
Zela Margossian Quintet – Transition
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