Stella Donnelly (born 10 April 1992) is a Welsh-Australian

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom, United States and New Zealand in the early to mid-1980s. Although the term was originally used to describe rock music released through independent reco ...

singer-songwriter and guitarist. After the success of her debut EP '' Thrush Metal'' in 2017, she signed with Secretly Canadian in 2018. She released her debut studio album '' Beware of the Dogs'' to critical acclaim in March 2019, peaking at number 15 on the ARIA Album Charts, and winning Independent Album of the Year at the

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 ...

. Her second studio album, ''

Flood A flood is an overflow of water (list of non-water floods, or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are of significant con ...

'', was released in August 2022, debuting at number 29 on the ARIA Charts.

Early life

Born in

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

to a Welsh mother, she spent some childhood years in

Morriston Morriston (; ) is a Community (Wales), community in the City and County of Swansea, Wales, and falls within the Morriston (electoral ward), Morriston ward. It is the largest community in the Swansea county. Morriston is sometimes referred to ...

, Wales before moving to

Perth Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...

, Australia with her family. Donnelly first started singing when she joined a rock band in high school (Irene McCormack Catholic College), that performed

Green Day Green Day is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Rodeo, California, in 1987 by lead vocalist and guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong and bassist and backing vocalist Mike Dirnt, with drummer Tré Cool joining in 1990. In 1994, their majo ...

covers. After high school, Donnelly studied contemporary and

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

music at the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA). Donnelly was a part of the bands Boat Show and Bell Rapids before leaving them to pursue her solo career.

Career

2017–2021: ''Thrush Metal'' and ''Beware of the Dogs''

In 2017, while working two hospitality jobs and playing in a band, Donnelly released a collection of five demo tracks which formed her debut

extended play An extended play (EP) is a Sound recording and reproduction, musical recording that contains more tracks than a Single (music), single but fewer than an album. Contemporary EPs generally contain up to eight tracks and have a playing time of 1 ...

(EP), '' Thrush Metal.'' It was released digitally and on cassette via Melbourne label Healthy Tapes. In 2018, the EP was reissued in the United States by the American label Secretly Canadian. Donnelly released her debut studio album, '' Beware of the Dogs'', on 8 March 2019 via Secretly Canadian. It received widespread acclaim from critics, including

Robert Christgau Robert Thomas Christgau ( ; born April 18, 1942) is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and later became a ...

, who praised it as a "musical encyclopedia of aleassholes". At the

ARIA Music Awards of 2019 The ARIA Music Awards of 2019 are the 33rd Annual Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (generally known as ARIA Music Awards or simply The ARIAs) and consist of a series of awards, including the 2019 ARIA Artisan Awards, ARI ...

, ''Beware of the Dogs'' was nominated for Breakthrough Artist. In October 2019, Donnelly was placed at number six in ''Happy Mag''s list of the 15 Australian female artists "changing the game".

2022–present: ''Flood''

In January 2022, Donnelly provided vocals for "Proof", a single from Methyl Ethel's fourth studio album ''Are You Haunted?'' She also featured on '' ReWiggled'', a 2022 tribute album to Australian

children's music Children's music or kids' music is music composed and performed for children. In European-influenced contexts this means music, usually songs, written specifically for a juvenile audience. The composers are usually adults. Children's music has hi ...

group

the Wiggles The Wiggles are an Australian children's music group formed in Sydney in 1991. As of 2022, the group members are Anthony Field, Lachlan Gillespie, Simon Pryce, Tsehay Hawkins, Evie Ferris, John Pearce (entertainer), John Pearce, Caterina Mete ...

, covering their song "Ba Ba Da Bicycle Ride". On 10 May, Donnelly premiered the song "Lungs" live on

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 ...

, and announced her forthcoming second studio album, ''

''. A music video for the song was also released, directed by herself and Duncan Wright. Two more singles – "Lungs" and "How Was Your Day?", were released to promote the album before it was released on 26 August 2022. Following the release of the album, Donnelly embarked on an international tour around the United Kingdom, Europe and North America that began in September.

Personal life

For recreation, Donnelly enjoys playing squash, swimming at beaches, birdwatching, gardening, completing cryptic crosswords, cooking, rock climbing with her partner, and playing board games with friends. In an interview with ''

The Line of Best Fit ''The Line of Best Fit'' is an independent online magazine based in London, concentrating on new music. It publishes independent music reviews, features, interview, and media. Founded by Richard Thane in February 2007 and currently edited by P ...

'' she said, "My version of taking a break rom recording and touringis filling up my day with as many activities as possible." Donnelly describes

Billy Bragg Stephen William Bragg (born 20 December 1957) is an English singer, songwriter, musician, author and political activist. His music blends elements of folk music, punk rock and protest songs, with lyrics that mostly span political or romantic th ...

and Courtney Barnett as musical influences.

Political views and activism

Donnelly is a supporter of various social and political causes. Her 2017 debut single "Boys Will Be Boys", written about societal attitudes towards women and her friend's experience of

sexual assault Sexual assault is an act of sexual abuse in which one intentionally Physical intimacy, sexually touches another person without that person's consent, or Coercion, coerces or physically forces a person to engage in a sexual act against their w ...

, was dubbed a " #MeToo anthem". Donnelly is opposed to the celebration of

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 ...

. In a 2019 interview with ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' she said, "It's a really nationalist, white pride day... and it's actually a very historic day 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 ...

– an invasion day, and a day of mourning." Donnelly supports

same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same legal Legal sex and gender, sex. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 38 countries, with a total population of 1.5 ...

, and was "relieved", when it was legalised in Australia in 2017. Donnelly is

pro-choice Abortion-rights movements, also self-styled as pro-choice movements, are movements that advocate for legal access to induced abortion services, including elective abortion. They seek to represent and support women who wish to terminate their ...

Discography

Studio albums

EPs

Singles

Notes

Other contributions

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.

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".

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

. They commenced in 2005.

National Live Music Awards

The National Live Music Awards (NLMAs) are a broad recognition of Australia's diverse live industry, celebrating the success of the Australian live scene. The awards commenced in 2016.

WAM Song of the Year

The WAM Song of the Year was formed by the Western Australian Rock Music Industry Association Inc. (WARMIA) in 1985, with its main aim to develop and run annual awards recognising achievements within the music industry in Western Australia.

West Australian Music Industry Awards

The Western Australian Music Industry Awards (commonly known as WAMis) are annual awards presented to the local contemporary music industry, put on by the Western Australian Music Industry Association Inc. (WAM).

Other awards

Nominated

* Australian Women in Music Awards 2018 – Breakthrough Artist – Herself

References

External links

* *
Stella Donnelly
at

Bandcamp Bandcamp is an American online music distribution platform founded in 2008 by Oddpost co-founder Ethan Diamond and programmers Shawn Grunberger, Joe Holt and Neal Tucker, with an office and record store in Oakland, California. Acquired by Epic ...

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Donnelly, Stella 21st-century Welsh women singers Singers from Cardiff Musicians from Perth, Western Australia Living people 1992 births 21st-century Australian women musicians Secretly Canadian artists