The 2020 ARIA Awards has revealed the big-name artists who will perform at the ceremony, which will be broadcast across Channel 9 and YouTube on November 25.
The first act announced is the band leading the ARIA-nominations count, Lime Cordiale. The band is up for eight awards (Album of the Year, Best Group, Best Pop Release, Best Independent Release, Best Cover Art, Best Video and Song of the Year).
New Music: Xylo Aria – My Bandage Londoner Xylo Aria describes herself as a ‘plastic bag hating, keep cup loving, menstrual cup wearing individual who is gearing up to bring about change.’ She’s aiming to do the latter by using her music as a medium with which to share her ideas and feelings. ARIA PALEA was a band that rode the wave of the prog revival of the 90s which spawned all kinds of interesting new bands that have paved the way for the ensuing decades to come and with the advent of the internet, bands from far flung places could now participate in the resurgence of interest that peaked in the 70s and then took a brief snooze.
The band’s second studio album 14 Steps to a Better You achieved the highest first-week album sales in 2020, followed by a sell-out run of 32 shows across Brisbane, Adelaide, Newcastle and Sydney.
The band is also confirmed for Splendour in the Grass next year, and the Great Southern Nights program this month.
Also taking the stage is Tame Impala, up for seven ARIA Awards in 2020. The band, which boasts the highest-selling Australian album in 2020 so far for The Slow Rush, is up for Album of the Year, Best Group, Best Pop Release, Best Rock Album, Engineer of the Year, Producer of the Year and Best Video.
In addition, Sampa The Great, up for Album of the Year, Best Female Artist, Best Hip Hop Release, Best Video, Best Independent Release and Best Australian Live Act, will perform.
Last year, Sampa won Best Hip Hop release, but was snubbed during the live television broadcast, despite delivering a speech about diversity and inclusivity.
The award had just been rebranded from Best Urban Release, and CEO of ARIA Dan Rosen has since said the organisation should have given the moment more significance.
“We should have handled it better last year in acknowledging the important reforms we made to change that award and, in particular, acknowledge the historic wins by Sampa and Kaiit,” he told The Music Network last month.
“I regret we didn’t take the opportunity to provide the national platform that those wins warranted and I apologise for that. We need to do better this year and will continue to improve as an organisation and how we best represent the diversity of our artists and our industry.
“We know we need to continue to get better and to improve, and we’ll do that this year.”
And Amy Shark, up for Best Pop Release, Best Female Artist and Best Australian Live Act, will also perform.
Shark has already won multiple ARIA Awards across 2017 and 2018.
She also performed at the recent NRL Grand Final, and will take the stage as part of Great Southern Nights this month.
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This far into the global pandemic we’re pretty used to televised award ceremonies looking a little different.
But for the Australian music industry’s biggest night, this evening’s Aria awards, there’s one silver lining: the ceremony has attracted perhaps its biggest lineup ever, with superstars Billie Eilish, Sia and Sam Smith all performing – pre-recorded – from across closed borders around the world.
Broadcast from 7.30pm on Nine on Wednesday, there will be no industry cocktail event or red carpet welcome with screaming fans jostling for signatures. The ceremony will still take place at the Arias’ regular venue, Sydney’s Star Casino, but the awards will be presented to an empty room, with most artists accepting their trophies via Zoom.
Related: Aria awards 2020: Lime Cordiale, Tame Impala and Sampa the Great lead nominations
Only technical crew, a small contingent of performers and host Delta Goodrem will be at The Star.
Lime Cordiale leads nominations
It will be a strange experience for Lime Cordiale, the Sydney pop-rock duo who are gearing up for their first Arias. The band, made up of brothers Oli and Louis Leimbach, picked up eight nominations this year, the most of any act. The nominations cap off a hugely successful year for the pair, whose second album, 14 Steps To A Better You, hit #1 on the Aria album charts, and saw them play 27 Covidsafe sit-down concerts around the country.
The record competes with The Glow by DMAs, Hilda by Jessica Mauboy, The Return by Sampa The Great, and The Slow Rush by Tame Impala for the night’s biggest award, album of the year.
Other artists leading the tally of nominations include Tame Impala (seven for new album The Slow Rush) and Sampa The Great, who was nominated for six.
It’s the second year the Botswana-raised, Melbourne-based rapper has had a big presence at the Arias: last year Sampa became the first woman of colour to win in the hip hop category with her track Final Form. “It’s really bittersweet,” she said in her acceptance speech, which didn’t make it to air. “I really hope I’m not the last … I hope the Australian music industry starts to reflect what our community looks like.”
Related: Sampa the Great: 'I went back to Zambia and people said, you’re different'
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Anangu/Torres Strait Islander woman Miiesha has five nominations for her debut album, Nyaaringu. She competes with Amy Shark, Sampa The Great, Sia and Tones and I for best female artist.
Sydney rock group DMA’s also picked up five nominations, while Queensland group Violent Soho and pop act Ruel collected four each. Ruel competes with Archie Roach, Guy Sebastian, The Kid Laroi and Troye Sivan for best male artist.
A star-studded broadcast
Related: Billie Eilish to headline Aria awards ceremony
The ARIA awards usually host performances from one or two international acts, but are restricted to the artists who make it to – or are already touring – Australia. This year, with geography no issue, we have ourselves a show.
© Provided by The Guardian Billie Eilish performs on Sunday 22 November at the American Music awards. Photograph: ABC/Getty ImagesAlong with headline performances from Sia, Eilish and Smith, an ensemble of 27 Australian musicians will perform I Am Woman in a tribute to Helen Reddy who died earlier this year. Ten of the performers – including Christine Anu, Tones And I, Jessica Mauboy and Kate Ceberano – will be on stage at The Star; 17 others will join a chorus via Zoom.
Amy Shark and Lime Cordiale will also perform at The Star; Tame Impala, aka multi-instrumentalist Kevin Parker, will share a pre-recorded performance shot from his home in Perth. Sampa The Great’s set was filmed in Botswana, where she’s living.
Kylie Minogue, Robbie Williams and Mick Fleetwood of Fleetwood Mac will present awards via live stream.
Aria Band New Song 2020
Archie Roach inducted into the Hall of Fame
Related: Archie Roach’s Took the Children Away: how one heartbreaking song galvanised a nation
Tomorrow night will also see Indigenous Australian musician Archie Roach finally inducted into the Aria Hall of Fame. 2020 marks the 30th anniversary of his album Charcoal Lane, which included the song Took the Children Away, written about his experience of being forcibly removed from his family and which introduced mainstream Australia to the plight of the stolen generations.
Roach is a five-time Aria winner, and was the first songwriter to take home a Human Rights achievement award. In 2015 he was made a Member of the Order of Australia.
Aria Band New Song
In a statement distributed by the Arias, Roach said making music, and touring it “has helped me to heal and connect to audiences around the country. To be inducted into the Aria Hall of Fame is validation that no matter where you have come from and the struggles that you had to overcome through the years, that you can achieve great things if you set your mind and heart to it.”
Aria Band New Songs
• The 2020 Aria awards will be broadcast live on Nine and 9Now from 7.30pm on Wednesday 25 November