Mitch Tambo is an

Aboriginal Australian Aboriginal Australians are the various indigenous peoples of the Australian mainland and many of its islands, excluding the ethnically distinct people of the Torres Strait Islands. Humans first migrated to Australia 50,000 to 65,000 year ...

singer, songwriter and political activist, who self-released his debut EP in 2016. In 2019, he reached the final of the ninth series of ''

Australia's Got Talent ''Australia's Got Talent'' is an Australian reality television talent show. The show is based on the '' Got Talent'' series format that originated in the United Kingdom with Simon Cowell. The first six seasons aired on the Seven Network, from ...

'' and garnered national attention for his

bilingual Multilingualism is the use of more than one language, either by an individual speaker or by a group of speakers. When the languages are just two, it is usually called bilingualism. It is believed that multilingual speakers outnumber monolin ...

version of "

You're the Voice "You're the Voice" is a song recorded by Australian singer John Farnham released in 1986. It became an immediate hit in Australia as well as several European countries including the United Kingdom and Ireland. It was released as a single in Sept ...

", in

Gamilaraay The Gamilaroi, also known as Gomeroi, Kamilaroi, Kamillaroi and other variations, are an Aboriginal Australian people whose lands extend from New South Wales to southern Queensland. They form one of the four largest Indigenous nations in Austr ...

and English. In November 2019, Tambo was signed to

Sony Music Australia Sony Music Entertainment Australia is the predominant record label operated by American parent company Sony Music Entertainment in Australia. Prior to 1995, SMEA published and distributed video games in Australia & New Zealand on behalf of So ...

, but left the label in 2024. In July 2024, he released the instrumental album ''Tambo Jamz Vol.1''.

Early life

Mitch Tambo was born in

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

and moved to Tamworth when he was 18 months old. He says his mother, Roz Parker, empowered him to embrace his

culture and

identity Identity may refer to: * Identity document * Identity (philosophy) * Identity (social science) * Identity (mathematics) Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Identity'' (1987 film), an Iranian film * ''Identity'' (2003 film), an ...

, while his Aunty Bernadette Duncan helped him revive his language. In 2010, Tambo travelled to

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

for the

canonisation Canonization is the declaration of a deceased person as an officially recognized saint, specifically, the official act of a Christian communion declaring a person worthy of public veneration and entering their name in the canon catalogue of sai ...

Mary MacKillop Mary Helen MacKillop RSJ ( in religion Mary of the Cross; 15 January 1842 – 8 August 1909) was an Australian religious sister. She was born in Melbourne but is best known for her activities in South Australia. Together with Fr Julian Teniso ...

Music career

In 2016, Tambo self-released his debut extended play titled ''Guurrama-Li''. It was re-released on Songbird Records in July 2018. In 2019, he auditioned for the ninth series of ''

'', where he performed his single "Walanbaa". He progressed to the semi-final after receiving the golden buzzer from judge and former

Pussycat Dolls The Pussycat Dolls were an American girl group and dance ensemble, founded in Los Angeles, California, by choreographer Robin Antin in 1995 as a neo-burlesque troupe. At the suggestion of Jimmy Iovine, Antin decided to take the troupe mainst ...

lead singer

Nicole Scherzinger Nicole Prascovia Elikolani Scherzinger ( ; ; born June 29, 1978) is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, actress, and television personality. She was a member of the girl group and dance ensemble the Pussycat Dolls between 2003 and 2010. With ...

. In the semi-final, he received another golden buzzer from judge

Natalie Bassingthwaighte Natalie Bassingthwaighte (; born 1 September 1975) is an Australian singer, actress and television personality. Born and raised in Wollongong, New South Wales, she began her career in musical theatre. She later pursued an acting career in 1998 ...

after performing a

version of "

" (in

and English) wearing the Dhinawan and Murray crest and feathers. He progressed to the final in September 2019, where his placing was undisclosed. Following his appearance on the show', Tambo's EP began charting on

iTunes iTunes is a media player, media library, and mobile device management (MDM) utility developed by Apple. It is used to purchase, play, download and organize digital multimedia on personal computers running the macOS and Windows operating s ...

charts across the world, and a fan Twitter campaign was launched to have him represent

Australia in the Eurovision Song Contest Australia has been represented at the Eurovision Song Contest ten times since its debut in . The Australian participating broadcaster in the contest is the Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) who received special approval from the European Broadc ...

. In November 2019, Tambo signed a record deal with

. On 19 November 2019, Tambo was announced as a participant in ''

Eurovision - Australia Decides The Eurovision Song Contest (), often known simply as Eurovision, is an international song competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) among its members since 1956. Each participating broadcaster submits an origina ...

''; in an attempt to represent Australia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 with the song "Together". In the Eurovision - Australia Decides final, "Together" placed 5th in a field of 10. During the campaign for the Eurovision Song Contest, Tambo experienced toxic

cyberbullying Cyberbullying (cyberharassment or online bullying) is a form of bullying or harassment using electronic means. Since the 2000s, it has become increasingly common, especially among teenagers and adolescents, due to young people's increased u ...

, which impacted his mental health. In December 2019, and after performing it in the semi-final of ''Australia's Got Talent'', Tambo released the bilingual version of "

" in English and

. He performed the song at the

NITV National Indigenous Television (NITV) is an Australian free-to-air television channel that broadcasts programming produced and presented largely by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. It includes the six-day-a-week ''NITV News Updat ...

sunrise ceremony for

Australia Day Australia Day is the official national day of Australia. Observed annually on 26 January, it marks the 1788 landing of the First Fleet and raising of the Flag of Great Britain, Union Flag of Great Britain by Arthur Phillip at Sydney Cove, a ...

on 26 January, and later with

John Farnham John Peter Farnham (born 1 July 1949) is a British-born Australian singer. Farnham was a teen pop idol from 1967 until the mid-1970s, billed as Johnny Farnham. He has since forged a career as an adult contemporary singer.McFarlane (1999). Enc ...

as the finale of the Fire Fight Australia concert in February 2020. On 15 May 2020, Tambo released "Love". In a statement, Tambo said "'Love' is a reminder to reach deep down within, heal and set our spirits free with love, healing and hope for a better tomorrow." In September 2022, Tambo released "Come Together" with

Lee Kernaghan Lee Kernaghan OAM (born 15 April 1964) is an Australian country music singer, songwriter and guitarist. Kernaghan has won four ARIA Awards and three APRA Awards, and has sold over two million albums, and as of 2021, has won 38 Golden Guitars ...

and Isaiah Firebrace. In May 2023, he released "Yugal Yulu-gi", which means "song and dance". The song was used during the

NRL The National Rugby League (also known as the NRL Telstra Premiership for sponsorship reasons) is a professional rugby league competition in Oceania which contains clubs from New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria (state), Victoria, the Austral ...

Indigenous Round on

Fox Sports Fox Sports is the brand name for a number of sports channels, broadcast divisions, programming, and other media around the world. The name originates from Fox Broadcasting Company in the United States, which in turn derives its name from Fox Fi ...

. On 3 September 2023, Tambo performed his bilingual version of "You're The Voice", standing in for John Farnham at a concert which was part of the "Yes" campaign in the

2023 Australian Indigenous Voice referendum The 2023 Australian Indigenous Voice referendum was a Referendums in Australia, constitutional referendum held on 14October 2023 in which the proposed Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice was rejected. Voters were asked to approve an Co ...

, a vote to change the Australian Constitution to enshrine a

Voice to Parliament The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice, also known as the Indigenous Voice to Parliament, the First Nations Voice or simply the Voice, was a proposed Australian federal advisory body to comprise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island ...

for

Indigenous Australians Indigenous Australians are people with familial heritage from, or recognised membership of, the various ethnic groups living within the territory of contemporary Australia prior to History of Australia (1788–1850), British colonisation. The ...

. The song played as a soundtrack for a video ad directed by filmmaker

Warwick Thornton Warwick Thornton is an Australian film director, screenwriter, and cinematographer. His debut feature film '' Samson and Delilah'' won the Caméra d'Or at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival and the award for Best Film at the Asia Pacific Screen Awar ...

, which was rolled out on social and other digital media and television. In 2024, Tambo left Sony Music. In July 2024, he released the instrumental album, ''Tambo Jamz Vol.1''.

Musical styles

Tambo's music covers several genres, including

dance Dance is an The arts, art form, consisting of sequences of body movements with aesthetic and often Symbol, symbolic value, either improvised or purposefully selected. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...

electronic Electronic may refer to: *Electronics, the science of how to control electric energy in semiconductors * ''Electronics'' (magazine), a defunct American trade journal *Electronic storage, the storage of data using an electronic device *Electronic c ...

hip-hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hi ...

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop! (British group), a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Album ...

, and instrumental.

Other activities

In 2013, Tambo hosted children's TV series ''Muso Magic Outback Tracks'', a production which showcases and highlights positive stories in remote Aboriginal communities. In 2015, he started ''True Culture'', a program that empowers young people to explore their identity through cultural performance, mentor workshops,

bush tucker Bush tucker, also called bush food, is any food native to Australia and historically eaten by Indigenous Australians and Torres Strait Islander peoples, but it can also describe any native flora, fauna, or fungi used for culinary or medicinal ...

, and art experiences and to empower disengaged kids, those in foster care or on the brink of

juvenile justice Juvenile court, also known as young offender's court or children's court, is a tribunal having special authority to pass judgements for crimes committed by children who have not attained the age of majority. In most modern legal systems, chi ...

Personal life

Tambo is a

and

Birri Gubba The Birri Gubba people, formerly known as Biria, are an Aboriginal Australian people of the state of Queensland. Language The Birri Gubba people spoke a number of languages in the Biri language group. Country The Biria held sway over some , ...

man and was living 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 ...

in 2019. Tambo was expecting his first child with his wife Lele in November 2021.

Discography

Albums

Extended plays

Singles

Awards and nominations

Country Music Awards of Australia

The

Country Music Awards of Australia The Country Music Awards of Australia also known as the Golden Guitar Awards (originally named Australasian Country Music Awards) is an annual awards night held in January during the Tamworth Country Music Festival, in Tamworth, New South Wale ...

is an annual awards night held in January during the

Tamworth Country Music Festival The Tamworth Country Music Festival is an annual Australian music festival held for 10 days from Friday to Sunday in mid to late January each year, sometimes including Australia Day, in Tamworth, New South Wales, Tamworth, New South Wales. The f ...

. Celebrating recording excellence in the

Australian country music Australian country music is a part of the music of Australia. There is a broad range of styles, from bluegrass, to yodeling to folk to the more popular. The genre has been influenced by Celtic and English folk music, the Australian bush balla ...

industry. They commenced in 1973. ! , - , rowspan="2", 2023 , , rowspan="2", "Come Together" (with Lee Kernaghan and Isaiah Firebrace) , , Vocal Collaboration of the Year , , , , rowspan="2", , - , Heritage Song of the Year , , , -

Music Victoria Awards

The

Music Victoria Awards The Music Victoria Awards (previously known as The Age EG Awards and The Age Music Victoria Awards) are an annual awards night celebrating music from the Australian state of Victoria. They commenced in 2006 and are awarded in Melbourne Music W ...

are an annual awards night recognising Victorian music. They commenced in 2006. ! , - , rowspan="2",

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 ...

, Mitch Tambo , Best Pop Work , , rowspan="2", , - , Mitch Tambo , MAV Diasporas Award ,

NIMA

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 ...

is an annual awards ceremony that recognises the achievements of Indigenous Australians in music. The award ceremony commenced in 2004. ! , - , 2020 , Mitch Tambo , New Talent of the Year , ,

References

External links

electricfmusic Twitter account

mitchtambo Facebook account
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tambo, Mitch Australian male singers Australian male songwriters Indigenous Australian musicians Gamilaraay Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Australia's Got Talent contestants