"Homecoming Queen" | ||||
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Single by Thelma Plum | ||||
from the album Better in Blak | ||||
Released | 12 July 2019 [1] | |||
Length | 3:51 | |||
Label | Mosy Recordings, Sony Music Australia | |||
Songwriter(s) |
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Producer(s) | ||||
Thelma Plum singles chronology | ||||
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"Homecoming Queen" is a song by Australian singer/songwriter Thelma Plum, and was sent to radio on 12 July 2019 as the fourth and final single from her debut studio album Better in Blak .
Plum told Triple J that the song "speaks to growing up as an Aboriginal girl in rural Australia", saying, "watching videos on the TV and looking through magazines, but I never saw anyone who looked like me. There was absolutely no representation in mainstream media. That really does something, really skews your idea of beauty. I had to teach myself how to love myself, that I was beautiful and good enough." [2]
There is a refence in the song to the 1967 Australian referendum, which asked Australians whether Indigenous Australians should be included in official population counts for constitutional purposes. [3]
The song polled at number 67 in the Triple J Hottest 100, 2019. [4]
At the National Indigenous Music Awards 2020, the song was nominated for Song of the Year. [5]
An Alice Ivy remix was released on the Anniversary Edition of the album in 2020.
Plum performed the song on The Sound on 15 November 2020. [6] [7]
A strings version was released in October 2021. [8]
Cool Accidents said "'Homecoming Queen' is ultimately an anthem of self-love - one that embraces differences and celebrates individuality." [9]
Dani Maher from Harper's Bazaar said "'Homecoming Queen', like all of her releases, is a lyrical delight pinning her heart resolutely to her sleeve in its vulnerability". [10]
Nathan Jolly from The Guardian called it the "standout track" from the album said "Feeling unseen as a young Indigenous Australian must be a crushing and damaging experience, and Plum chronicles this experience and her own hard-fought rise to self-respect in a wonderfully moving way." [11]
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Australia (ARIA) [12] | Platinum | 70,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. |
"These Days" is a 1999 song by Australian alternative rock band Powderfinger, later included on their fourth studio album, Odyssey Number Five.
Thelma Amelina Plumbe, known professionally as Thelma Plum, is an Aboriginal Australian singer, songwriter, guitarist and musician from Delungra, New South Wales. Her father is lore-man Paul Winanga-li Gii Spearim. Her debut album, Better in Blak, was released on 30 July 2019 and peaked at number 4 on the ARIA Albums Chart.
A Homecoming Queen is a ceremonial role in student homecoming rallies.
Thomas George Stell, known professionally as Golden Features, is an Australian deep house / dance DJ and producer currently signed to Warner Bros. Records. Three singles, "Tell Me" featuring Nicole Millar, "No One" featuring Thelma Plum, and "Wolfie" featuring Julia Stone; received listener's votes for the Triple J Hottest 100. They were listed, successively, at No. 101 in 2014, No. 92 in 2015, and No. 70 in 2016. Golden Features performed at the Hard festival in 2016. His debut album, Sect, reached No. 11 on the ARIA Albums Chart.
Amy Louise Billings, known professionally as Amy Shark, is an Australian indie pop singer-songwriter-guitarist and producer from the Gold Coast, Queensland. During 2008 to 2012, her early solo material was released and performed under the name Amy Cushway. Her 2016 single "Adore" peaked at number 3 on the ARIA Singles Chart and was also listed at number 2 on the Triple J Hottest 100, 2016. Her album Love Monster debuted at number 1 on the ARIA Albums Chart. Shark has won 8 ARIA Music Awards from 29 nominations, including winning Best Pop Release three times: in 2017 for her extended play, Night Thinker, 2018 for Love Monster and 2020 for "Everybody Rise".
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Alexander Burnett is a London-based singer, songwriter and music producer known for collaborations with major artists including DJ Snake, Hayden James, Thelma Plum, Flight Facilities, Elderbrook,Alison Wonderland, Mansionair, Japanese Wallpaper, Hudson Taylor, and for fronting the band Sparkadia and being part of the London collective KOMMUNION.
"Clumsy Love" is a song by Australian singer/songwriter Thelma Plum, released on 13 July 2018 as the lead single from Plum's debut studio album Better in Blak (2019). In Triple J's Hottest 100 of 2018, the song was voted in at number 79. The song was certified platinum in Australia in 2020.
Annika Schmarsel known by her stage name Alice Ivy, is an Australian electronic musician and producer. Alice Ivy was the winner of the 2016 Triple J Unearthed Listen Out competition. She has released two studio albums: I'm Dreaming (2018), and Don't Sleep (2020), which reached No. 77 on the ARIA Albums Chart.
Better in Blak is the debut studio album by Australian singer-songwriter Thelma Plum, released on 12 July 2019 through Warner Music Australia.
The 2019 Triple J Hottest 100 was announced on 25 January 2020. It is the 27th countdown of the most popular songs of the year, as chosen by listeners of Australian radio station triple j. A record-breaking number of votes were cast by listeners choosing their top ten songs of 2019. This was the first Hottest 100 countdown to reach 3 million votes.
"Better in Blak" is a song by Australian singer/songwriter Thelma Plum, released on 26 April 2019 as the third single from her debut studio album of the same name.
"Clair de Lune" is a song released by the Australian DJ duo Flight Facilities, written by singer-songwriter Christine Hoberg and producers Hugo Gruzman and James Lyell. It features a melodic interpretation of a section of "Clair de Lune" by French composer Claude Debussy. The song was released in October 2012 as the second single from the band's debut studio album, Down to Earth (2014). The song peaked at number 38 on the ARIA charts and was certified gold in 2013. At the APRA Music Awards of 2013, the song was shortlisted for Song of the Year.
"Meditjin" is a song by Indigenous Australian musician Baker Boy featuring New Zealand rapper JessB, released on 21 November 2019 as the second single from his debut album Gela (2021).
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The National Indigenous Music Awards 2012 were the 9th annual National Indigenous Music Awards.
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Meanjin is the third extended play by Australian singer-songwriter Thelma Plum, released on 12 August 2022 through Warner Music Australia. Plum has described the EP as a "love letter" to Brisbane, with Meanjin being the indigenous name for the city.