J-Milla | |
|---|---|
 At the 2021 Adelaide Festival | |
| Born | Jacob Nichaloff Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia |
| Occupation | Rapper |
| Years active | 2018–present |
| Known for | "Ball and Chain" (2022) |
J-Milla, often styled J-MILLA, is an Aboriginal Australian hip hop musician . He was born as Jacob Nichaloff in Darwin in the Northern Territory.
J-Milla was born in Darwin as Jacob Nichaloff, [1] and is of the Marranunggu people of the Litchfield Park area in the Northern Territory (NT). He spent his childhood in Darwin (where he started rapping at the age of 11), [2] but came to Adelaide, South Australia, to attend Scotch College, [3] at the age of 12. [1]
J-Milla started releasing rap videos on social media when he was around 18, which built a large following. [1]
His first single, "My People", was released in 2018. [2] [4]
In 2020, J-Milla pledged to donate the earnings from his single "Unlock the System" to the family of Kumanjayi Walker, an Aboriginal man who was killed during an arrest attempt. The song was strongly supported by the ABC radio station Triple J. [5] In November 2020, he performed at the TREATY festival as part of NAIDOC Week at Tandanya in Adelaide, along with Dem Mob, MLRN x RKM, and shared the MC duties with actor Natasha Wanganeen. [6] J-Milla was selected for TikTok's online music festival that year. [7]
He performed on the closing day of the Adelaide Festival in March 2021, at an event called "Hip Hop Finale", along with Ziggy Ramo, JK-47 and Jimblah. [3] [8]
On Saturday 16 November 2024 J-Milla will be performing at the After Race Concert of the Adelaide 500 motor racing event in Adelaide. It will be the biggest show so far for him, and he intends to showcase unreleased work. Others performing that night are Crowded House and Meg Mac. [9] [1]
Some of his music deals with problems affecting Aboriginal Australians, such as intergenerational trauma and reconciliation. [1]
J-Milla works with Aboriginal children in remote communities, teaching songwriting at schools and helping the children to express their emotions in music. He also does workshops on domestic violence and mental health. [1]
As of October 2024 [update] J-Milla is married with two children and lives in Adelaide. [1]
The National Indigenous Music Awards is an annual awards ceremony that recognises the achievements of Indigenous Australians in music. The award ceremony commenced in 2004.
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | "Ball and Chain" (with Xavier Rudd) | Song of the Year | Nominated | [10] [11] |
| Title | Year | Album |
|---|---|---|
| "My People" [2] | 2018 | Non-album singles |
| "Juice" | 2019 | |
| "No Lie" | ||
| "Lately" | ||
| "Route 66" | ||
| "Unlock the System" | 2020 | |
| "Fresh" | ||
| "60K+" | ||
| "Lit" (with Tha Trigger, Mark Lyrik & Yully) | ||
| "Thang for Me" | 2021 | |
| "Ball and Chain" (with Xavier Rudd) | 2022 | |
| "Nicest" (with Their[13]teen) [12] | 2023 | |
| "On My Soul" [13] | ||
| "Gammon" [14] | ||
| "Boomerang" [15] | 2024 | |
Indigenous music of Australia comprises the music of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples of Australia, intersecting with their cultural and ceremonial observances, through the millennia of their individual and collective histories to the present day. The traditional forms include many aspects of performance and musical instrumentation that are unique to particular regions or Aboriginal Australian groups; and some elements of musical tradition are common or widespread through much of the Australian continent, and even beyond. The music of the Torres Strait Islanders is related to that of adjacent parts of New Guinea. Music is a vital part of Indigenous Australians' cultural maintenance.
The Adelaide 500, since 2023 known as VAILO Adelaide 500 after its chief sponsor, is an annual motor racing event for Supercars held on the streets of the east end of Adelaide, South Australia between 1999 and 2020 and again from 2022. The event uses a shortened form of the Adelaide Street Circuit, the former Australian Grand Prix track. The event is still colloquially known as the Clipsal 500 or simply "Clipsal" after its former longtime sponsor. With attendance at around 250,000 in 2023, the Adelaide 500 is the most attended Supercars Championship race.
NAIDOC Week is an Australian observance lasting from the first Sunday in July until the following Sunday. The acronym NAIDOC stands for National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee. NAIDOC Week has its roots in the 1938 Day of Mourning, becoming a week-long event in 1975.
Henry Gibson Dan, known as Seaman Dan, was a Torres Strait Islander singer-songwriter with a national and international reputation. His first recording, an album called Follow the Sun, was released in 2000, on his 70th birthday.
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The South Australian Music Awards, also known as SA Music Awards, commonly SAM Awards, formerly Fowler's Live Music Awards (FLMA), are annual awards that exist to recognise, promote and celebrate excellence in the South Australian contemporary music industry. They take place in Adelaide, South Australia every November. The venue has varied over the years.
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