The

ARIA Music Award The Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (commonly known informally as ARIA Music Awards, ARIA Awards, or simply the ARIAs) is an annual series of awards nights celebrating the Australian music industry, put on by the Austra ...

for Best Urban Album, was an award presented at the annual ARIA Music Awards, which recognises "the many achievements of Aussie artists across all music genres", since 1987. It was handed out by the

Australian Recording Industry Association The Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) is a trade association representing the Australian recording industry which was established in the 1970s by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing th ...

(ARIA), an organisation whose aim is "to advance the interests of the Australian record industry." Best Urban Album was first presented as Best Urban Release in 2004, for an album or single released by a solo artist or group until 2010, where it changed to Best Urban Album. To be eligible, the work must have been within the

RnB Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated in African-American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly ...

, hip-hop,

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...

and

dancehall Dancehall is a genre of Jamaican popular music that originated in the late 1970s. Initially, dancehall was a more sparse version of reggae than the roots style, which had dominated much of the 1970s.Barrow, Steve & Dalton, Peter (2004) "The Rou ...

genres. In the case of a remixed or re-worked album, it was eligible provided that: it was not a final five nominee in any other category; contain 50% new lyrical and musical content; the artist(s) and production team meet the artist eligibility criteria; and the ARIA member entering the album must choose the artist or production team as the recipient of the award. The nominated album must qualify for inclusion in the ARIA Album Chart, and cannot be entered in any other genre categories. The accolade was voted for by a judging school, which comprises between 40 and 100 members of representatives experienced in this genre, and is given to an artist who is either from Australia or an Australian resident. The award for Best Urban Album was first presented as Best Urban Release to

Koolism ''Koolism'' is an Australian hip hop duo originating from Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. The members are lyricist Hau Latukefu (born Langomi-e-Hau Latukefu, 1976, Queanbeyan, Australia) and producer/DJ/musician Danielsan Ichiban (born ...

in 2004, for his album '' Part 3 - Random Thoughts''.

Hilltop Hoods Hilltop Hoods is an Australian hip hop group that formed in 1996 in Blackwood, Adelaide, South Australia. They are regarded as pioneers of the "larrikin-like" style of Australian hip hop. The group was founded by Suffa (Matthew David Lambert) a ...

have received six wins from six nominations, more than any other artist, for ''

The Hard Road ''The Hard Road'' is the fourth studio album by Australian hip hop group Hilltop Hoods. Released on 1 April 2006 by Obese Records, it debuted at number one on the Australia ARIA Albums Chart, and was the first album by Australian artists ...

'' in 2006, '' The Hard Road: Restrung'' in 2007, ''

State of the Art The state of the art (sometimes cutting edge or leading edge) refers to the highest level of general development, as of a device, technique, or scientific field achieved at a particular time. However, in some contexts it can also refer to a level ...

'' in 2009, ''

Drinking from the Sun ''Drinking from the Sun'' is the sixth studio album by Australian hip hop group the Hilltop Hoods. The album was released on 9 March 2012. The album's first single, " I Love It", was released on 25 November 2011, and features vocals from fellow ...

'' in 2012 and ''

Walking Under Stars ''Walking Under Stars'' is the seventh studio album by Australian hip hop group Hilltop Hoods, released on 8 August 2014. At the J Awards of 2014, the album was nominated for Australian Album of the Year. Background Prior to the release of ...

'' in 2014.ARIA Award previous winners. It was last presented in

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

, as Best Urban Release, to Hilltop Hoods featuring

Adrian Eagle Adrian Eagle, born Adrian Naidu, is an Australian singer-songwriter. He is an ARIA Award winner and also a winner of two categories in the SA Music Awards in 2019. Early life He was born in Adelaide to a Maltese mother and a Fiji-Indian fathe ...

for "Clark Griswold". It was replaced by two categories, Best Hip Hop Release and Best Soul/R&B Release in

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

Winners and nominees

In the following table, the winner is highlighted in a separate colour, and in boldface; the nominees are those that are not highlighted or in boldface.

Winners and nominees

Best Urban Release (2004–2009)

Best Urban Album (2010–2017)

Best Urban Release (2018)

References

External links