Emily Wurramara wins ARIA Award for Best Adult Contemporary Album

Five years ago, Emily Wurramara moved to Tasmania after her belongings were destroyed in a fire in her Brisbane home. Now, she can add ARIA Award winner to her CV.

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA – NOVEMBER 20: Emily Wurramara accepts the award for Best Adult Contemporary Album during the 2024 ARIA Awards at Hordern Pavilion on November 20, 2024 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Nina Franova/Getty Images)

An Indigenous musician who has adopted Tasmania as her new home has taken home a gong at Australia’s premier music ceremony.

Emily Wurramara’s second record, Nara, was released in August 2024 and has won an ARIA Award for Best Adult Contemporary Album.

She started her acceptance speech by joking that she “can’t swear aye,” which caused the audience to laugh.

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA – NOVEMBER 20: Emily Wurramara poses with the ARIA award for Best Adult Contemporary Album during the 2024 ARIA Awards at Hordern Pavilion on November 20, 2024 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Brendon Thorne/Getty Images)

“Wow, thank you so much. This is my first ever ARIA,” Wurramara said.

“I’d just like to thank my management, Catherine Haridy and her team; my label ABC music, Mushroom Publishing – love you fella’s – James Mangohig, who I co-produced this album with.

“This goes to all the Warnumamalya people back home and in my community. And all the mob in the room – your ancestors are watching, and they’re so proud.”

Wurramara moved to Tasmania in 2019 after a fire destroyed her belongings at her previous home in Brisbane.

She described her new home to the Mercury as a peaceful sanctuary compared to the densely populated city she used to live in.

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA – NOVEMBER 20: Emily Wurramara is seen backstage during the 2024 ARIA Awards at Hordern Pavilion on November 20, 2024 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Hanna Lassen/Getty Images)

“I’m obviously on a big island, but it makes me feel like I’m separated from all of the industry,” Wurramara said.

“I get to just be a plant mum and garden and go for kayaks, and it’s just so peaceful.

“I feel like as an artist, I need that separation to help me kind of get through things and to be able to come home and just be at peace and to be with my family and have family time – I feel very lucky.”

Wurramara is in the midst of a national tour, having played in Launceston at The Royal Oak last week.