It’s been a rough couple of years for music festivals.
But Australia’s love of country music is helping buck the trend (no pun intended) with the announcement of brand new country music festival Strummingbird, featuring an impressive roster of exciting international and local talent.
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It’s been long rumoured, but prolific genre-bending country star Jelly Roll has finally locked in his first Australian tour, headlining the first instalment of Strummingbird, which hits the Sunshine Coast, Newcastle and Perth in October and November.
Even if you don’t know songs such as ‘Liar’, ‘Need A Favour’ and ‘Son Of A Sinner’ by name, they have been so enormous and omnipresent that you’ll certainly know his voice when you hear it. His enormous raspy croon imbues every song with a hard-worn sense of soul that is clearly a result of a hell of a life lived so far.
The Tennessee singer is in the final stages of playing enormous venues in the US as part of Post Malone’s Big Ass Stadium tour, so you can bet he’ll be in excellent touch when he makes it to Australia for the very first time in October.
Most of us first heard Shaboozey when he popped up on Beyoncé’s 2024 album Cowboy Carter. It wasn’t long before he made a massive splash on his own though, with his irresistible hip-hop-tinged take on country exploding worldwide via the irresistible ‘A Bar Song (Tipsy)’.
In terms of sales, that song was the biggest of 2024 in the US, and second biggest in Australia, and while he hasn’t exactly set the charts alight with any other tracks since, his third album Where I’ve Been, Isn’t Where I’m Going proved that this man is no flash in the pan.
The record is a beautiful display of where country is going, pulling in sounds from various other styles of music to culminate in a truly
We don’t want to jump to any conclusions, but given the two headliners have worked together in the past, we can’t help but wonder if we’ll get to see them team up at these shows …
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There’s plenty of gold beyond those headliners too.
Texan country rockers Treaty Oak Revival make their Australian debut as part of the festival and their gritty take on country will go down a treat.
In keeping with the musical diversity of the headliners, their most recent show was part of the punk-filled Vans Warped Tour line up in California, which should give you a sense that they are another act rewriting the rules on what country can be.
Fans will also catch world-class talent like James Johnston, Kaylee Bell, Wade Forster, Julia Cole, The Dreggs and more — scroll down for the full line-up.
As well as a striking list of international and local country stars, the festival promises all the trimmings country fans will want, including linedancing, barbecue, a mechanical bull and more.
Adding to the congested end of year
Australian music fans are in for a fruitful end of the year, with an endless parade of acclaimed musicians all set to hit our shores in coming months.
Before the year is through, we’ll see AC/DC, Metallica, Oasis, Kendrick Lamar, Mariah Carey, Tyler, The Creator, Pixies, Crowded House and many more on our shores. Not to mention the other music festivals yet to release their line-ups for late 2025 and early 2026.
A busy touring calendar can be a double-edged sword for music fans. While we’ve rarely had this many opportunities to see so much esteemed talent in such a short space of time, it can weight heavily on the wallets of gig-goers who are financially bound to pick and choose the events and artists they will support.
Strummingbird remains an unknown proposition, but given its focus on areas outside of major cities and a specific form of music, as well as their decision to include massively popular artists who have never played in Australia before, there is reason to have hope that this type of curated event will find its audience. Time will tell.
Australia loves country music
There has long been healthy support for country music in Australia, but the love for the genre has exploded in recent years.
Strummingbird is just the latest in a long line of country music events that have taken over the Australian festival calendar in recent years. Alongside well-loved properties like CMC Rocks, Gympie Muster, Tamworth Country Music Festival and the likes, newer events like Ridin’ Hearts, Savannah in the Round, Groundwater and Dashville have all come into the market to satisfy a certain
This event does position itself a little differently to the others, with an unashamed focus on younger country music audiences who aren’t afraid of artists who stray well away from the traditions of the form.
While country music is definitely in vogue right now, there’s no reason to expect that this is a fad that will fade away. This style of music has endured for longer than most, and with acts like those on the Strummingbird line-up reshaping what the genre can sound like, there’s no end to the possibilities of its growth.
Here’s the full line-up for the Strummingbird festival:
Shaboozey, Jelly Roll, Treaty Oak Revival (not playing Perth), James Johnston, Kaylee Bell, Matt Hansen, Drew Baldridge, Julia Cole, The Jack Wharff Band (not playing Sunshine Coast), The Dreggs, Wade Forster, Zac & George, Rachael Fahim, Denvah, Late Night Riot With Hot Dub Time Machine (Sunshine Coast), Y.O.G.A (Newcastle)
Here’s where it’s happening:
Saturday 25 October — Kawana Sports Precinct, Kabi Kabi Land, Sunshine Coast
Saturday 1 November — Newcastle Foreshore, Awabakal Land, Newcastle
Sunday 2 November — Claremont Showground, Whadjuk Noongar Land, Perth
Tickets are on sale from Friday 8 August.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.abc.net.au ’
