Desert blues singer Kankawa Nagarra performs live, accompanied by Darren Hanlon, at the Folklore Rooms.
Kankawa Nagarra plays The Folklore Rooms on Monday 10 August, as part of her UK tour. She's an 80-year-old Walmatjarri elder from the Kimberley region of North West Australia, and she's touring with Australian performer Darren Hanlon, who recorded and released her award-winning album.
That album, Wirlmarni, won the 20th Australian Music Prize in 2024 when she was 78, beating out Nick Cave and Amyl and the Sniffers. It was recorded outside on her own Country, and you can hear it in the soundscape that runs through the record: the buzz of night insects, bird calls, and the rustle of tin foil. The songs themselves pull from different parts of her life, blending tribal songs from her childhood, gospel songs from the mission where she grew up, and the country and rock ’n’ roll she picked up working on a pastoral lease. She didn't even own her own guitar until she was 40.
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On the night, Hanlon does more than just open. He'll perform a support set and lead a Q&A session, so you'll get to hear about the record and the music from the person who helped bring it together. Tickets are £16, and the gig is at The Folklore Rooms on North Street.
