Creative Australia’s $16.4million investment has strong outcomes for youth arts and music  

Creative Australia has announced the outcomes of its latest $16.4million round of investment, with strong outcomes for youth arts and music among the highlights.

The investment, covering arts projects, the Contemporary Music Touring Program and Contemporary Touring Initiative, will fuel at least 380 creative projects across Australia’s cities and regions.

This includes a $450,000 boost from the Federal Minister for the Arts, aimed at increasing youth participation in performing arts and theatre, in line with the Australian Government’s National Cultural Policy Revive.

There is also welcome news for the music sector, with a $777,000 boost from Music Australia supporting various music projects. More good news is expected later this week, with the first round of announcements from the Music Export Development Fund.

Executive Director of Arts Investment Alice Nash noted “This significant investment will fuel creativity and connect communities across the country. We’re proud to back these incredible projects and can’t wait to see the impact they will have in Australia and globally.”

Investment highlights include:

• Archie Roach Foundation’s Singing Our Futures: Support for the foundation’s mentoring program for emerging First Nation’s songwriters, honouring Uncle Archie’s vision and legacy of nurturing young talent.

• grentperez at Lollapalooza: Western Sydney singer-songwriter grentperez will continue to build on his international rise, taking the stage at Lollapalooza, one of the world’s premier music festivals.

• Women in Music Tech Summit: Music Production for women will pre-sent the Women in Music Tech Summit, offering free workshops to empower women in music production and mixing

• Contemporary music touring program: Investment will support 23 tours and feature First Nations artists such as Wanjoo, Tura New Music, Russell Smith, Jindahood / Emma Donovan and Downsyde.

• Auslan Story Time Series: Story Box Library will create 40 Auslan-interpretations of children’s books, accessible for free via public libraries and classrooms across Australia.

• Stompin Youth Dance Company: Australia’s longest running youth dance company, Stompin, based in Launceston, will complete a major work that centers on the creative input of young people based in region-al Australia.

• Regional Youth Theatre Collaboration Just Us Ensemble (JUTE) will collaborate with Overall Arts Youth Theatre Company, both based in Far North Queensland, to develop, co-produce and tour a new work led by emerging playwright and director Amber Grossmann.

• Heaps Decent Youth Arts Program:  supporting access to art making for underrepresented and marginalised youth across New South Wales.

• Jabalbina Yalanji Aboriginal Corporation’s Creative Recovery Pro-gram:  Supporting Kuku Bakal Kaykayanda (Giving Words to all the Children) promoting participation for children & young people from dis-aster effected regions across Northern Queensland.

• Art Monthly’s Indigenous Voices Program: Supporting Art Monthly’s initiative to increase representation of First Nations writers, editors, and mentors.  

A full list of recipients can be found on the Creative Australia website.