The Deadly Awards, commonly known simply as The Deadlys, was an annual celebration of

Australian Aboriginal Aboriginal Australians are the various Indigenous peoples of the Australian mainland and many of its islands, such as Tasmania, Fraser Island, Hinchinbrook Island, the Tiwi Islands, and Groote Eylandt, but excluding the Torres Strait Isl ...

and

Torres Strait Islander Torres Strait Islanders () are the Indigenous Melanesian people of the Torres Strait Islands, which are part of the state of Queensland, Australia. Ethnically distinct from the Aboriginal people of the rest of Australia, they are often grou ...

achievement in music, sport, entertainment and community. The event was held from 1995 to 2013.

Description

The Deadlys were an annual celebration of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander achievement in music, sport, entertainment and community. The word " deadly" is a modern colloquialism used by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders to indicate "great or wonderful".

History

The first Deadlys were held in 1995, at the Boomalli Aboriginal Artists Co-op in the Redfern suburb of Sydney. They stemmed from Boomalli's 1993 ''Deadly Sounds'' music and culture radio show, and were driven by Gavin Jones. Over the next few years, their venue shifted through

The Metro Theatre The Metro Theatre (commonly the Metro) is a music venue located on George Street, in the city centre of Sydney, Australia. The venue was redeveloped, from two former cinemas, by property developer Leon Fink. The foyer of the Metro, designed by ...

, the Hard Rock Café,

Home A home, or domicile, is a space used as a permanent or semi-permanent residence for one or many humans, and sometimes various companion animals. It is a fully or semi sheltered space and can have both interior and exterior aspects to it ...

Darling Harbour Darling Harbour is a harbour adjacent to the city centre of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia that is made up of a large recreational and pedestrian precinct that is situated on western outskirts of the Sydney central business district. Orig ...

, Fox Studios and others. Then 2001 began The Deadlys residency at the

Sydney Opera House The Sydney Opera House is a multi-venue performing arts centre in Sydney. Located on the foreshore of Sydney Harbour, it is widely regarded as one of the world's most famous and distinctive buildings and a masterpiece of 20th-century archit ...

, from where the annual gala was broadcast by National Indigenous Television. The Deadly Awards earlier growth continued, along with widening regard as a community and Australian institution. Anchored by their annual event held at the Opera House (hosted by Jones'

Vibe Australia Vibe Australia is an Aboriginal media, communications and events management agency founded by Gavin Jones in 1993. Located in Darlinghurst, Sydney, New South Wales, they work with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people throughout Austra ...

), later years added venues in other states. Expansion also happened beyond their original music focus to include sport, entertainment, the arts, health, education and training in the Indigenous Australian community, and candidates began to be nominated and voted on by the public. The last Deadlys were held in 2013.

Cancellation

In June 2014, the Deadly Awards' funding was cut by the Abbott Government in measures designed to reallocate funding to Indigenous education programs with 2014 Deadly funding phased back to $1 million and no funding provided for future years. On 12 July, Gavin Jones was found dead. Vibe Australia announced on 14 July 2014 that the 20th edition of the event, due to be held at the

on 30 September 2014, would not occur, along with all other Vibe projects, with funds instead "directed to the

Australian Government The Australian Government, also known as the Commonwealth Government, is the national government of Australia, a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy. Like other Westminster-style systems of government, the Australian Government ...

's programs that deliver front line services from 1 July 2014". All Vibe projects concluded on 30 June 2014. After a story was run on

Triple J Triple J (stylised in all lowercase) is a government-funded, national Australian radio station intended to appeal to listeners of alternative music, which began broadcasting in January 1975. The station also places a greater emphasis on broad ...

's Hack program on 15 July 2014, a groundswell of community support for saving the Deadly Awards began. A petition on Change.org attracted over 26,000 signatures"Reinstate the Deadly Awards in memory of Founder Gavin Jones." at Change.org and a

Kickstarter Kickstarter is an American public benefit corporation based in Brooklyn, New York, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative projects to life". As of July 2021, K ...

campaign reached . In November 2017, the National Dreamtime Awards were launched to fill the void in recognising Indigenous achievements as a result of the cessation of the Deadly Awards.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Deadly Awards Indigenous Australian mass media Australian television awards Organisations serving Indigenous Australians Australian music awards 1995 establishments in Australia Awards established in 1995 2013 disestablishments in Australia Awards disestablished in 2013

Description

History

Cancellation

See also

References

External links