Wuigada is a dedicated space where First Nations musicians can share and celebrate music made by other First Nations musicians with PBS audiences.
Wuigada was named and developed by the highly acclaimed indigenous singer songwriter, Kutcha Edwards. Wuigada in Mutti Mutti means 'to sing'.
In this edition of Wuigada we hear from Warrigo Tyrrell Jr from the neo-soul band, Izy (pronounced eye-zee). Izy have recently relocated from Far North Queensland to Naarm (Melbourne) where they have quickly found their feet. Warrigo Tyrrell Jr is a Kalkadoon and Waanyi man from Cloncurry, in the dry country south of the gulf. He is a wizard of bass guitar with the voice of an angel, who was brought up on Gospel, Blak protest music and The Shadows.
Warrigo joined us to talk about what drives Izy, and the opportunities that have arisen since their first album Irene.
"This year started off very wholesomely for us as we released our debut album, Irene back in March, along with a couple of singles prior. After working on the album for two years and delaying the release a year due to COVID-19, we finally had the chance to launch at three major cities so far; Naarm (Melbourne), Meanjin (Brisbane) and our home base, Gimuy (Cairns). After the release explosion, the energy exchange was high and had us deeply connected with one another, which we forever cherish. We are currently taking that energy and putting it into our creative space at home. Especially being in our 6th lockdown, it is rewarding and really gives us the time and opportunity to create momentum again. After gaining love and support from the release of our album, we feel heard and more proud of being ourselves. In the meantime, with the newfound energy from earlier this year, we feel as though our purpose is to bring people together and connect through what we have to say, and this is our intention every time we create."
A few weeks ago we featured the incredible Emma Donovan in Wuigada, and when we asked Warrigo to highlight a song that he has a particular connection to, he chose ‘Warrell Creek Song’ from the album Crossover.
"Of course there are many, but one song in particular is ‘Warrell Creek Song’ written by Emma Donovan & The Putbacks. Although we do not know the language Emma is singing in, it is exactly that which hits. Emma holds such a beautiful and powerful contour when it comes to hearing her voice. A strong woman who stands her ground to teach each of us about her culture and her life through her ways of storytelling. Most of Emma’s shows leave us full of emotion and inspiration.
We have also had the honour of playing with Emma, learning her sound, and sharing the stage with her which has connected us even more deeply and made us appreciate her more, not just for the music but as a human being, a mother, an aunty, and a leader."
Warrigo Tyrrell Jr of Izy's top 10 songs for Wuigada are:
Water Streets - 'Blvck'
Dancing Water - ‘White Noise’
Coloured Stone - ‘Kapi Pulka’
Kee’ahn - ‘Better Things’
Emma Donovan - ‘Warrell Creek Song’
Deline Brisco - ‘Tree’
Bart Willoughby - ‘We Have Survived’
Drmngnow - ‘Australia Does Not Exist’
Baarka - ‘King Brown’
Bumpy - ‘Falling’
Listen to the Wuigada playlist in full via YouTube now.
Visit all the Wuigada stories, or check out: Alice Skye, Radical Son, Black Rock Band, Allara, Emma Donovan, Marlene Cummins, Benny Walker, Stiff Gins, Ripple Effect Band, Waveney Yasso, Sue Ray, Troy Jungaji Brady, Dave Arden, Shellie Morris, Deline Briscoe, LJ Hill, Selwyn Burns, Roger Knox and Kutcha Edwards.
Artwork by Dixon Patten.