King Street in Bowen Hills, Brisbane, will come alive with the sounds of some of the best Indigenous music in the country when Blak Day Out returns as part of Open Season.
With a stellar line-up including Emma Donovan, 3% (feat. Nooky, Dallas Wood, and Angus Field), BADASSMUTHA, and The Ancient Bloods, the free event will shine bright as part of Open Season's stacked live music programme."It will be a really lovely day celebrating Indigenous music," event curator, Alethea Beetson of Blak Social says. "We want to throw a big party for our community and celebrate all of the deadly artists that have always been here, and some of the new ones coming through.
"A lot of my work, whether it's as an artist or a programmer, reclaims popular culture. So, going to festivals is a part of my upbringing and I always like putting representation where I didn't get to see it as strongly as I would have liked to."
Previous years line-ups have included top-drawer talent including Barkaa, Birdz, and Alice Skye, so the bar was set high for this year. "It was really exciting putting together the line-up," Beetson says.
"It's always really important to have artists that are local, so being able to have BADASSMUTHA and The Ancient Bloods, which is the third iteration of that band, on the line-up is a really important thing in terms of supporting the local scene.
"Emma Donovan's new album, and the work she continues to do, is just so loved by community; and I'm excited to see 3% up here doing a gig and sharing their new thing and their new music with the Brisbane Blacks."
Everyone can enjoy and benefit from events featuring all-Indigenous talent becoming more common and increasingly more celebrated than ever before, says Beetson.
"It's high on the agenda that it's a safe space for mob to come and celebrate Indigenous music. Alongside that, it's very much open to the wider community. These artists deserve to be celebrated by everyone; their music is some of the best on the continent and it's a great experience to come and see this number of Blackfellas do their thing on a stage.
"I want the wider community to be supporting those artists. I would love to see large crowds supporting Indigenous music and supporting line-ups of just Blackfellas.
"I think of something like the Dreaming Festival, as that's an event that's happened in and around this place. It has happened before and does happen, and I would love the event to become that."
While there is so much to enjoy on the Open Season programme this year, including Explosions In The Sky, Sky Ferreira, Marlon Williams, and an Elefant Traks finale show, among many more, Blak Day Out is an essential part of the festival. It's also free to enter and all-ages.
"This one is going to be wider in its reach in terms of audience," Beetson says. "It's on King Street; that creates a really large space to be filled with lots of folks; the Brisbane black community but also the wider community. We'll definitely have more announcements, so keep an eye out for that.
"It's embedded so beautifully in the Open Season programme, where there are so many great things to see and do. At the end of the day, this is just about celebrating Indigenous music, and that's what's at its heart."
Blak Day Out will also launch King Street's Open Season Food Fiesta, showcasing local Indigenous retailers and diverse food offerings. So gather, feast and dance as King Street comes alive with a string of pop-up bars, food stalls, outdoor music stages and roving entertainment.
Blak Day Out takes place at King Street (Brisbane) 1 June as part of Open Season, running from 3.30-9.30pm.
Blak Day Out 2024 Line-up
Emma Donovan3% (Dallas Woods, Nooky & Angus Field)
BADASSMUTHA
The Ancient Bloods
