November is Ausmusic Month, which means its time to celebrate the very best in Australian music!
Now in its 17th year, the J Awards celebrate originality, creativity, technical excellence and the Australian music that blew our minds and ears throughout 2021.
There's 30 nominees spread across five categories: Australian Album of The Year, Unearthed Artist of The Year, Australian Music Video of The Year, Double J Artist of The Year and the Done Good Award.
There's a number of dual nominees this year, including Genesis Owusu, The Avalanches, Amyl and The Sniffers, and King Stingray. But there's a tonne of first-time nominees in the mix too, including Unearthed hotshots and Double J favourites, while dynamic debt albums from Baker Boy, Gretta Ray, Ruby Fields and Tones And I serve to remind us how impactful Australian music can be.
You might recognise two previous J Award winners. Middle Kids are up for Australian Album of the Year, the category they won in 2018 with their debut Lost Friends, and Sanjay De Silva - the director behind Sampa The Great's 2019 J Award winning 'Final Form' video' - is nominated again the Music Video pool for the Jerome Farah clip 'Concrete Jungle Fever'.
Back for a third year, the Done Good Award recognises the individuals and initiatives that have brought about meaningful change, innovation, or lifted spirits in the wider music community during another challenging year.
Going over the full list really reminds you of all the incredible work the Australian music scene has achieved despite a truly horrific 18 moths for the industry.
Pop the confetti and take in the full list of J Award nominees below! Join us when the winners will be announced on Thursday 18 November.
triple j Australian Album of the Year
- Amyl and The Sniffers – Comfort To Me
- The Avalanches – We Will Always Love You
- Baker Boy - Gela
- Genesis Owusu – Smiling With No Teeth
- Gretta Ray – Begin To Look Around
- Holy Holy – Hello My Beautiful World
- Middle Kids – Today We’re The Greatest
- Ruby Fields – Been Doin’ It For A Bit
- RÜFÜS DU SOL - Surrender
- Tones And I – Welcome To The Madhouse
Refresh yourself on these incredible records here.
Unearthed Artist of the Year
- 1300
- Blanke
- Hope D
- King Stingray
- Teenage Joans
Get to know these Unearthed hotshots here.
Double J Australian Artist of the Year
- Amyl and The Sniffers
- The Avalanches
- Emma Donovan & The Putbacks
- Hiatus Kaiyote
- Ngaiire
Have a suss of these incredible homegrown talents here.
triple j and RAGE Australian Music Video of the Year
- Genesis Owusu – ‘The Other Black Dog’ Dir. Riley Blakeway
- Jerome Farah – ‘Concrete Jungle Fever’ Dir. Sanjay De Silva
- King Stingray – ‘Milkumana’ Dir. King Stingray & Sam Brumby
- Triple One – ‘BLOOD RAVE’ Dir. Serwah Attafuah
- Ziggy Ramo – ‘Little Things [Ft. Paul Kelly]’ Dir. Ziggy Ramo
Watch these clips and find out why they stood out here.
Done Good Award
- Concrete Surfers
- Digi Youth Arts
- Jack River
- Jaguar Jonze
- Support Act
Find out more about the good work these legends have done in 2021 here.
The J Awards kicked off in 2005 with one single category: Australian Album of the Year. In 2008, it expanded with the addition of Unearthed Artist of the Year and Australian Music Video of the Year. Double J Artist of the Year was added in 2014 around the station's launch, while Done Good was introduced in 2019.
In the past 17 years, the J Awards have become a special part of triple j's (and wider Australian music industry) calendar. It's a time where we get to really acknowledge the work of artists from across a wide array of fields, creating art and special work that has both stamps of longevity and A-grade quality all over it.