King Stingray is an

Australian rock Rock music in Australia, also known as Oz rock, Australian rock, and Aussie rock, has a rich history, rooted in an appreciation of various rock genres originating in the United States and Britain, and to a lesser extent, in continental Europe an ...

band from Northeast Arnhem Land in the

Northern Territory The Northern Territory (abbreviated as NT; known formally as the Northern Territory of Australia and informally as the Territory) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian internal territory in the central and central-northern regi ...

. With a sound self-described as "Yolŋu

surf rock Surf music (also known as surf rock, surf pop, or surf guitar) is a genre of rock music associated with surf culture, particularly as found in Southern California. It was especially popular from 1958 to 1964 in two major forms. The first is inst ...

", the band perform songs with lyrics in both English and

Yolŋu Matha The Yolngu or Yolŋu ( or ) are an aggregation of Aboriginal Australian people inhabiting north-eastern Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory of Australia. ''Yolngu'' means "person" in the Yolŋu languages. The terms Murngin, Wulamba, Yalnumat ...

. King Stingray released their debut single, " Hey Wanhaka", in October 2020, and their

self-titled An eponym is a noun after which or for which someone or something is, or is believed to be, named. Adjectives derived from the word ''eponym'' include ''eponymous'' and ''eponymic''. Eponyms are commonly used for time periods, places, innovati ...

debut album on 5 August 2022.

Career

Two of the band's founding members have known one another since childhood – lead vocalist Yirrŋa Yunupiŋu is the nephew of Dr M. Yunupiŋu, and guitarist Roy Kellaway is the son of Stuart Kellaway, who were both founding members of

Yothu Yindi Yothu Yindi (Yolŋu Matha, Yolngu for "child and mother", pronounced , natively ) are an Australian musical group with Australian Aboriginal, Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal members, formed in 1986 as a merger of two bands formed in 1985 – a wh ...

. The pair grew up together in Yolngu country, in the community of

Yirrkala Yirrkala is a small community in East Arnhem Region, Northern Territory, Australia, southeast of the large mining town of Nhulunbuy, on the Gove Peninsula in Arnhem Land. Its population comprises predominantly Aboriginal Australians of th ...

. They were joined by guitarist/didgeridoo player Dimathaya Burarrwanga and bassist Campbell Messer to form King Stingray in 2020. They signed to

The Chats The Chats are an Australian punk rock band that formed in 2016 in the Sunshine Coast, Queensland. They describe their sound as "shed rock". The current band lineup is composed of guitarist Josh Hardy, drummer Matt Boggis, and bassist and vocali ...

' Bargain Bin Records in 2020. King Stingray's debut single, " Hey Wanhaka", written by Yirrnga Yunupiŋu and Roy Kellaway, was released in October 2020. In January 2021, King Stingray released " Get Me Out"; a song described by Double J as "a tribute to the importance of home". According to a press statement, the song was written following a family member of the band getting lost in

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

when they were on tour with Yothu Yindi. The band said: "She had no phone, ndYolŋu style, she navigated her way back to us miraculously and we now laugh about it." Dan Condon from the ''ABC'' said "It's as catchy as it is stirring and will no doubt help this new band continue to win the hearts of a broad range of music lovers." Lewis Stiles joined on drums in early 2021. In August 2021, King Stingray signed with

Cooking Vinyl Australia Civilians is an independent record label based in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 2013 by co-managing directors Leigh Grupetta and Stu Harvey in partnership with Martin Goldschmidt, Civilians was originally known as Cooking Vinyl Australia. A ...

(a partner of

Sony Music Sony Music Entertainment (SME), commonly known as Sony Music, is an American multinational music company owned by Japanese conglomerate Sony Group Corporation. It is the recording division of Sony Music Group, with the other half being the ...

) and released " Milkumana"; a song described by

triple j Triple J is an Australian government-funded national radio station founded in 1975 as a division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). It aims to appeal to young listeners of alternative music, and plays far more Australian conten ...

as being "about the power of passing on knowledge". The music video was filmed in the band's hometown of Yirrkala, and features tribal elders Mangatjay Yunupingu and Malŋay Yunupingu. In January 2022, both "Milkumana" and "Get Me Out" charted in the

triple j Hottest 100 The Triple J Hottest 100 is an annual music poll presented by the publicly-funded Australian youth radio station Triple J. Members of the public are invited to vote for their favourite Music of Australia, Australian and alternative music of th ...

at number 56 and 46, respectively. In March 2022, King Stingray released " Camp Dog". The title refers to the dogs that wander the streets of Yirrkala. The following month, the band supported

Midnight Oil Midnight Oil (known informally as "The Oils") are an Australian rock band composed of Peter Garrett (vocals, harmonica), Rob Hirst (drums), Jim Moginie (guitar, keyboard) and Martin Rotsey (guitar). The group was formed in Sydney in 1972 by H ...

at the latter's final headlining show in Sydney on their ''Resist'' tour. In May 2022, King Stingray released the single " Let's Go" and announced their debut self-titled album. The album was released on 5 August 2022. In July 2022, King Stingray were featured on the cover of

NME Australia ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a " rock inkie", the ''NME'' would become a maga ...

for an in-depth interview feature about their debut album, conducted by Torres Strait Islander freelance journalist

Rhianna Patrick Rhianna Patrick (born 1977) is a Torres Strait Islander radio personality who was born in Brisbane and lived in Weipa as a child, moving to Brisbane aged 10. She has a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Queensland in 1999 with a double major ...

. In the same month, they did a

Like a Version ''Like a Version'' is a long-running weekly segment on Australian youth radio station Triple J. It involves musicians playing two songs live in the Triple J studio, one of their own songs and then a cover version. The series was created by pres ...

cover of

Coldplay Coldplay are a British Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1997. They consist of vocalist and pianist Chris Martin, guitarist Jonny Buckland, bassist Guy Berryman, drummer and percussionist Will Champion, and manager Phil Harvey (band m ...

's "

Yellow Yellow is the color between green and orange on the spectrum of light. It is evoked by light with a dominant wavelength of roughly 575585 nm. It is a primary color in subtractive color systems, used in painting or color printing. In t ...

" using a combination of the original English lyrics as well as

. In October 2022, King Stingray released a cover of

Men at Work Men at Work are an Australian rock band that was formed in Melbourne, 1979. They were best known for breakthrough hits such as " Down Under", " Who Can It Be Now?", " Be Good Johnny", " Overkill", and " It's a Mistake". Its founding member and ...

's " Down Under" as part of a new campaign for

Tourism Australia Tourism Australia is the Australian Government agency responsible for promoting Australian locations as business and leisure travel destinations. The agency is a corporate portfolio agency of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, and ...

. In June 2023, King Stingray released " Lookin' Out". August 2023 saw King Stingray win three

AIR Awards The Australian Independent Record Awards (commonly known as AIR Awards) is an annual awards night to recognise, promote and celebrate the success of Australia's Independent Music sector. History The inaugural 2006 awards were held at Blacket Hot ...

: Best Independent Rock Album or EP, Independent Album of the Year, and Breakthrough Artist of the Year. They were also winners at the 2023 National Indigenous Music Awards and along with Wildfire Manwurrk were the only groups to win more than one. King Stingray picked up the Film Clip of the Year and Song of the Year awards for "Lets Go". In December 2023 they performed at the ABC New Year's Eve concert at

Sydney Harbour Port Jackson, commonly known as Sydney Harbour, is a ria, natural harbour on the east coast of Australia, around which Sydney was built. It consists of the waters of Sydney Harbour, Middle Harbour, North Harbour and the Lane Cove River, Lane ...

. The group's second studio album, '' For the Dreams'', was released in November 2024. On March 19th 2025, the band announced that founding member Yirrŋa Yunupiŋu was no longer part of the band, with Yolŋu man Ngalakan Wanambi stepping in as the new lead singer. From late March to early April 2025, the band held a tour for their recent album For the Dreams at various major cities across the country. This followed a successful tour the previous year in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, where they supported fellow Australian rock band

King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard (KGLW) are an Australian rock band formed in 2010 in Melbourne, Victoria. The band's current lineup consists of Stu Mackenzie (vocals, guitar), Ambrose Kenny-Smith (vocals, harmonica, keyboards), Cook Craig ( ...

Band members

;Current members * Roy Kellaway – guitar, backing vocals (2020–present) * Dimathaya Burarrwanga – guitar, backing vocals,

yiḏaki The didgeridoo (;()), also spelt didjeridu, among other variants, is a wind instrument, played with vibrating lips to produce a continuous drone while using a special breathing technique called circular breathing. The didgeridoo was developed ...

(2020–present), lead vocals (2024–present) * Lewis Stiles – drums, backing vocals (2020–present) * Campbell Messer – bass, banjo, backing vocals (2020–present) * Yimila Gurruwiwi – yiḏaki, backing vocals (2022–present) * Ngalakan Wanambi – lead vocals (2025–present) ;Former members * Yirrŋa Yunupiŋu – lead vocals,

clapsticks Clapsticks, also spelt clap sticks and also known as , , clappers, musicstick or just stick, are a traditional Australian Aboriginal instrument. They serve to maintain rhythm in voice chants, often as part of an Aboriginal ceremony. They ar ...

(2020–2025; inactive 2024–2025)

Discography

Studio albums

Singles

Awards and nominations

AIR Awards

The Australian Independent Record Awards (commonly known informally as

) is an annual awards night to recognise, promote and celebrate the success of Australia's Independent Music sector. ! , - ,

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

, "Get Me Out" , Independent Song of the Year , , , - , rowspan="4",

2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...

, rowspan="2", ''King Stingray'' , Independent Album of the Year , , rowspan="4", , - , Best Independent Rock Album or EP , , - , "Camp Dog" , Independent Song of the Year , , - , King Stingray , Breakthrough Independent Artist of the Year , , - , rowspan="2",

2025 So far, the year has seen the continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudanese civil war, and the Gaza war. Internal crises in Bangladesh post-resignation v ...

, rowspan="2", ''For the Dreams'' , Independent Album of the Year , , rowspan="2", , - , Best Independent Rock Album or EP , , -

APRA Awards

The APRA Awards are presented annually from 1982 by the

Australasian Performing Right Association APRA AMCOS consists of Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) and Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (AMCOS), both copyright management organisations or copyright collectives which jointly represent over 100,000 songwri ...

(APRA), "honouring composers and songwriters". They commenced in 1982. ! , - , rowspan="2",

, "Get Me Out" (Roy Kellaway & Yirrŋa Yunupiŋu) , rowspan="2", Song of the Year , , rowspan="2", , - , "Milkumana" (Roy Kellaway & Yirrŋa Yunupiŋu) , , - , rowspan="3",

, "Lupa" (Roy Kellaway & Yirrŋa Yunupiŋu) , Song of the Year , , rowspan="3", , - , "Milkumana" (Roy Kellaway & Yirrŋa Yunupiŋu) , Most Performed Rock Work of the Year , , - , Roy Kellaway & Yirrŋa Yunupiŋu , Breakthrough Songwriter of the Year , , - , scope="row" rowspan="2",

2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...

, rowspan="2", "Lookin' Out" (King Stingray) , Song of the Year , , , - , Most Performed Rock Work , , , - , scope="row" rowspan="2",

, rowspan="2", "Through the Trees" (King Stingray) , Song of the Year , , rowspan="2", , - , Most Performed Rock Work , , -

ARIA Music Awards

The

ARIA Music Awards The Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (commonly known informally as ARIA Music Awards, ARIA Awards, or simply the ARIAs) is an annual series of awards nights celebrating the Australian music industry, put on by the Austr ...

is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of

Australian music The music of Australia has an extensive history made of music societies. Indigenous Australian music forms a significant part of the unique heritage of a 40,000- to 60,000-year history which produced the iconic didgeridoo. Contemporary fusions o ...

. ! , - , rowspan="5",

, rowspan="4", ''King Stingray'' , Album of the Year , , rowspan="5", , - , Best Group , , - , Michael Gudinski Breakthrough Artist , , - ,

Best Rock Album The Grammy Award for Best Rock Album is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality albums in the rock music genre. Honors in sever ...

, , - , Kayla Flett, Gabi Coulthurst & Dimathaya Burarrwanga for King Stingray – ''King Stingray'' , Best Cover Art , , - , rowspan="4",

, Tourism Australia: Come and Say G'day (M&C Saatchi Sydney) , Best Use of an Australian Recording in an Advertisement (duration of 2 minutes or less) , , rowspan="4", , - , Tourism Australia: G'day Short Film (M&C Saatchi Sydney) , Best Use of an Australian Recording in an Advertisement (over 2 minutes duration) , , - , Sam Brumby for King Stingray – "Lookin' Out" , Best Video , , - , That's Where I Wanna Be Tour , Best Australian Live Act , , - ,

, King Stingray - Regional Run 2024 ,

ARIA Award for Best Australian Live Act The ARIA Music Award for Best Australian Live Act, is a popular-voted award presented at the annual ARIA Music Awards, which recognises live performers. It replaces the previous category, ARIA Music Award for Most Popular Australian Live Artist ...

, ,

Australian Music Prize

The

Australian Music Prize The Australian Music Prize (often shortened to the AMP) is an annual award of $50,000 ($30,000 from 2005 to 2023) given to an Australian band or solo artist in recognition of the merit of an album released during the year of award. The award was ...

(the AMP) is an annual award of $30,000 given to an Australian band or solo artist in recognition of the merit of an album released during the year of award. It exists to discover, reward and promote new Australian music of excellence. ! , - , 2022 , ''King Stingray'' , Australian Music Prize , , , -

Environmental Music Prize

The

Environmental Music Prize The Environmental Music Prize is a prize launched in partnership with Green Music Australia. It aims to celebrate and amplify powerful music videos that inspire action for climate and conservation. It was launched during the United Nations C ...

is a quest to find a theme song to inspire action on climate and conservation. It commenced in 2022. ! , - , 2022 , "Hey Wanhaka" , rowspan="2", Environmental Music Prize , , , - , 2023 , "Milkumana" , , , -

J Awards

The

J Awards The J Awards are an annual series of Australian music awards, established by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's youth-focused radio station Triple J, and which also extend to sister stations, Triple J Unearthed and Double J. The awar ...

are an annual series of Australian music awards that were established by the

Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is Australia’s principal public service broadcaster. It is funded primarily by grants from the federal government and is administered by a government-appointed board of directors. The ABC is ...

's youth-focused radio station

Triple J Triple J is an Australian government-funded national radio station founded in 1975 as a division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). It aims to appeal to young listeners of alternative music, and plays far more Australian conten ...

. The J Awards commenced in 2005. ! , - , rowspan="2",

2021 Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...

, "Milkumana" (directed by King Stingray and Sam Brumby) , Australian Video of the Year , , rowspan="2", , - , King Stingray , Unearthed Artist of the Year , , - , rowspan="2",

, ''King Stingray'' , Australian Album of the Year , , rowspan="2", , - , King Stingray , Double J Artist of the Year , , - ,

, King Stingray , Australian Live Act of the Year , ,

National Indigenous Music Awards

The

National Indigenous Music Awards The National Indigenous Music Awards (NIMA), also known as the NT Indigenous Music Awards from 2004 to 2008, are music awards presented to recognise excellence, innovation and leadership among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander musicians in ...

recognise excellence, innovation and leadership among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander musicians from throughout Australia. They commenced in 2004. ! , - ! scope="row" rowspan="1",

, rowspan="2", King Stingray , New Artist of the Year , , , - ! scope="row" rowspan="2",

, Artist of the Year , , rowspan="2", , - , "Milkumana" , rowspan="2", Song of the Year , , - ! scope="row" rowspan="2",

, rowspan="2", "Let's Go" , , rowspan="2", , - , Film Clip of the Year , , - , rowspan="1",

, King Stingray , Artist of the Year , , rowspan="1", , -

National Live Music Awards

The

National Live Music Awards The National Live Music Awards (NLMAs) are annual Australian music awards, established by Heath Media in 2016. They were preceded by the AU Live Music Awards in the previous two years. The awards are given in categories that recognise the best ...

(NLMAs) commenced in 2016 to recognise contributions to the live music industry in Australia. ! , - ! scope="row" rowspan="6",

, rowspan="2", King Stingray , Best Live Act , , rowspan="6", , - , Best Live Act in the NT , , - , Yirrŋa Yunupiŋu (King Stingray) , Best Live Voice , , - , Yirrŋa Yunupiŋu (King Stingray) , Best Live Voice in the NT , , - , Lewis Stiles (King Stingray) , Best Live Drummer , , - , Roy Kellaway (King Stingray) , Best Live Guitarist ,

Rolling Stone Australia Awards

The

Rolling Stone Australia Awards The ''Rolling Stone Australia'' Awards are awarded annually in January or February by the Australian edition of ''Rolling Stone'' magazine for outstanding contributions to popular culture in the previous year. The awards initially commenced i ...

are awarded annually in January or February by the Australian edition of ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' magazine for outstanding contributions to popular culture in the previous year. ! , - , 2022 , King Stingray , Best New Artist , , , -

Vanda & Young Global Songwriting Competition

The

Vanda & Young Global Songwriting Competition The Vanda & Young Global Songwriting Competition is an annual competition that "acknowledges great songwriting whilst supporting and raising money for Nordoff-Robbins" and is coordinated by Albert Music and APRA AMCOS. The competition awards a ...

is an annual competition that "acknowledges great songwriting whilst supporting and raising money for Nordoff-Robbins" and is coordinated by

Albert Music Albert Group Services Pty Ltd, known as Alberts, formerly Albert Music and J Albert and Son, is an Australian music company. The company has major interests in music publishing and production and it earns significant royalties through its subsi ...

and

APRA AMCOS APRA AMCOS consists of Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) and Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (AMCOS), both copyright management organisations or copyright collectives which jointly represent over 100,000 songwri ...

. It commenced in 2009. ! , - , rowspan="2", 2022 , "Milkumana" , rowspan="2", Vanda & Young Global Songwriting Competition , style="background:gold;", 1st , rowspan="2", , - , "Camp Dog" , style="background:tan;", 3rd

References

{{Authority control 2020 establishments in Australia APRA Award winners ARIA Award winners Australian surf rock groups Indigenous Australian musical groups Musical groups established in 2020 Northern Territory musical groups Yolngu