MC Baker Boy named artist of the year

The past two years has been a whirlwind of success for 22-year-old indigenous hip-hop sensation Danzal Baker.

MC Baker Boy won artist of the year at the NIMAs. Picture: Glenn Campbell

In Darwin on Saturday night, hip-hop artist MC Baker Boy continued his run of accolades by being named artist of the year at the National Indigenous Music Awards.

Having released five songs since his debut single in late 2017, he has made a remarkable impression on popular music in a relatively short time. Born Danzal Baker, the 22-year-old rapper and dancer also was named Young Australian of the Year in January.

“He’s just phenomenal,” singer-songwriter Archie Roach tells The Australian. “I love what he does — he represents his culture but does it through his music, his dancing and rapping.”

The other big winner at the NIMAs, held at the Darwin Amphitheatre, was Melbourne R&B artist Mojo Juju, who received song of the year and album of the year for Native Tongue.

Speaking last year about its artistic intent, Juju said: “To me, the album is about three main things: my relationship to elders and ancestry; my ­experience as a queer person of colour growing up in Australia; and where I belong in terms of the current landscape — socially, politically and all of that.”

New talent of the year went to Melbourne R&B artist Kaiit, whose debut EP Live From Her Room has attracted plaudits from prominent US soul performers such as Jill Scott and Erykah Badu. During her acceptance speech, she said: “I felt lost for a long time but I’m viewing this reward as a reminder, a confirmation that I’m on the right path.”

Other nominees in the new talent categories were Dallas Woods, Kobie Dee, Mambali Band and Tasman Keith.

Hip-hop artist Briggs won film clip of the year for Life is Incredible, a video set in “Whitehaven Retirement Home”, which provides a sharp social commentary on the stark differences in lifestyles and life expectancy experienced by indigenous and non-indigenous Australians.

Folk trio Tiddas — comprising Amy Saunders, Lou Bennett and Sally Dastey — was inducted into the NIMA Hall of Fame, as was pioneering Cairns jazz singer Wilma Reading.

Mambali was the inaugural winner of the Archie Roach Foundation award, with the Numbulwar rock band receiving $2000 and mentoring from industry professionals to develop its career.

For Roach, who has been recording and performing for decades, the cross-cultural shift — driven by artists such as Baker Boy, who raps in English and Yolngu Matha — is pleasing to see.

“It’s crossing over to the mainstream,” he says.

“The Australian music scene is so broad now; it’s not just seen as Australiana, or indigenous music, or world music — it’s just good Australian music. It’s good to see that. I like the way it’s going.”

At the Darwin award ceremony on Saturday night, Roach sang his song We Won’t Cry with a guest appearance from actor Jack Charles, a board member of the Archie Roach Foundation, while other performers included pop singer Jessica Mauboy, singer-songwriter Dan Sultan, electronic music duo Electric Fields and choir collective Spinifex Gum.