Indigenous rapper and performer Baker Boy is itching to be back on tour.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
Working in the studio non-stop on his second album, he said he longed to return to the stage.
"I miss performing and interacting with the crowd," he said.
Speaking ahead of his performance at 2024 Play on the Plains, Baker Boy said he hadn't yet been to Deniliquin.
"I've heard such good things about it and I'm super pumped," Baker Boy said.
Proud Yolngu man, artist and 2019 Young Australian of the Year, Danzal Baker OAM - known as Baker Boy - hailed from Milingimbi and Maningrida in North-East Arnhem Land.
On his debut in 2017 with the instant classic Cloud 9, Baker Boy struck the Australian music industry with his unashamed optimism and love for music, dance and connection to his culture.
Now he was a five-time ARIA award winner, including Album of the Year and Best Solo Artist in 2022, amassing more than 60 million streams globally.
Born in Darwin and raised in the remote NT communities of Yurrwi, Baker Boy raps in his native language, Yolngu Matha, to represent his culture, heritage and beliefs.
At just 21, the Dhuwa artist was the first Aboriginal rapper singing in language to break into the mainstream.
"No one was rapping in language so I thought I'd try [to] make history to be the first ... and it happened, which is crazy, it's so insane!" Baker Boy said.
"My family are huge supporters and they've helped me to get where I am."
In 2021 Baker Boy gained an Order Of Australia (OAM) medal, and later that year released his debut album Gela - a chronicle of identity and personal growth - led by the ARIA Gold-certified jam Cool As Hell.
Following a popular slot at the 2021 AFL Grand Final in Perth in front of 60,000 people, Baker Boy embarked on his biggest national tour in early 2022.
Later he set out on his inaugural US tour, with dates in Los Angeles, New York's Central Park and Toronto.
"Central Park was so sick," he said.
"You always see Central Park in movies when you're growing up so it was very exciting to be there.
"I rapped in language and then they all freaked out when I got out the didgeridoo.
"It was so much fun; I can't wait to show Indigenous culture in the US again."
Now based in Bendigo with his partner and their British bulldog, Baker Boy said he tried to stay connected with family up north.
"It's not easy living in the city and not on country," he said.
"I try to stay connected with family and culture.
"They make me jealous when they're out catching mud crabs; I can't catch anything in Victoria!"
The event will be cashless with Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) wristbands and top-up stations on site. Attendees can retrieve their unused funds online after the festival.
Gates to the camp site open at noon and festival arena gates open at 1pm.
Tickets are on sale now from Oztix.
