A hip hop festival will see some of the country’s best First Nations artists bring their music to the Parramatta stage this February.
Running across three western Sydney sites, the City of Parramatta’s Ngana Birrung (Dharug for ‘black stars’) music event will shine a light on First Nations artists over three massive days.
Predicted to be “bigger than ever,” the Parramatta hip hop festival has expanded to now include Campbelltown and Penrith, following the success of last year’s event.
Ngana Birrung – pronounced Nin-Gahna Bir-Rung – is an initiative of City of Parramatta Council to help elevate First Nations artists and bring together some of the best talent in the country.
“We are so proud of our Ngana Birrung concert series and excited to see it expanded to reach more audiences across western Sydney,” City of Parramatta Lord Mayor Donna Davis said.
“It’s important we provide a platform to nurture, celebrate and highlight our incredibly talented First Nations artists.”
The music event was first launched as part of Parramatta Nights in 2022, as part of a vision to help reinvigorate the city, support local businesses and boost the creative arts industry, following lockdown and the end of COVID restrictions.
The event was then followed by sold out concerts at Bankstown and Blacktown. Artists who have previously graced the stage include Briggs, Miiesha, DOBBY and Denni.
This year, 2020 Triple J Unearthed Artist of the Year and talented Indigenous artist JK-47 will headline all three shows.
Following the successful release of his debut album ‘Made For This’, JK-47 has performed at popular festivals across Australia like Groovin’ The Moo, Splendour In The Grass and BLUESFEST.
JK-47 is also set to be joined by other incredible First Nations artists such as Keely, Prodikal-1, T Breezy and Walker Boy, with special guest A Girl at the Penrith show.
More artists are expected to be announced for the Parramatta show in the lead up to the event.
Ngana Birrung 2023 will run from Wednesday, February 15 to Saturday, February 18.
The one-night only Parramatta event will be held at Rosehill Bowling Club, Rosehill, from 6pm-10pm, with tickets costing $5, including booking fee.
Meanwhile, the Penrith show is taking place on Saturday, February 18 at the Joan Sutherland Performing Arts centre from 6pm-10pm. Tickets are free and the show features JK-47, Keely, Prodikal-1 with special guest A.GIRL
Ngana Birrung is presented by City of Parramatta in association with Penrith City Council and Campbelltown City Council.
The event series is supported by the NSW Government through Create NSW.
The event is open to all ages, with tickets available now.
Ellie Busby is a news reporter for Western Sydney Publishing Group. A graduate of the University of Hertfordshire and Western Sydney University, she is a journalism Major. Ellie has worked with Universal Media, The Cova Project and for a range of other organisations. In 2024, Ellie was named Young Writer of the Year at the Mumbrella Publish Awards.