Holly Isabella Rankin (born 19 December 1991), who performs as Jack River, is an Australian singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer. Her debut album, '' Sugar Mountain'' (22 June 2018), peaked at No. 11 on the

ARIA Albums Chart The ARIA Charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA became the offici ...

. At the ARIA Music Awards of 2018 she received nominations for Breakthrough Artist, Best Pop Release and Engineer of the Year (the latter shared with

Xavier Dunn Xavier Dunn is an Australian singer-songwriter, musician, and producer based in Sydney. He is known for collaborating and producing with Jack River, including her 2018 debut album '' Sugar Mountain''. Dunn has co-written and produced for ma ...

and John Castle).

Early life

Holly Isabella Rankin was born in 1991, to David and Donna Rankin, Note: For additional work user may have to select 'Search again' and then 'Enter a title:' &/or 'Performer:' and raised in

Forster, New South Wales Forster is a coastal town in the Mid North Coast region of New South Wales, Australia, in the Mid-Coast Council LGA, about 308 km north-north-east of Sydney. It is immediately adjacent to its twin, Tuncurry, which is the smaller of the t ...

. She started writing a diary from the age of five or six, with Rankin stating, "I just had an attraction to writing and also recording things. I've always been fascinated by people and stories and nature."

Career

Rankin initially performed under her given name, before adopting the performance name, Jack River, upon relocating to Sydney. Her eight-track debut extended play, ''On Nature Part One'', was issued in April 2013 via

Waterfront Records Waterfront Records was an independent record label based in Sydney that released recordings by Australian bands during the 1980s and 1990s. History Waterfront records was started in 1982 by Steven Stavrakis who at the time was an employee of ...

and

MGM Distribution MGM Distribution (Metropolitan Groove Merchants) is the largest independent distributor of Australian music and music related merchandise and was established in April 1998 by Sebastian Chase. MGM Distribution was specifically set up as a dist ...

. James Monger of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

described how her, "laid-back, psych-tinged electropop adearned her a loyal local following." River signed with I Oh You / Universal Music Australia, which issued her single, "Talk Like That", in early 2016. ''Happy Mag''s Emerson Noble felt, " thas an incredibly tangible, organic feel that seems to come pretty naturally to

iver Iver is a large civil parish in Buckinghamshire, England. In addition to the central clustered village, the parish includes the residential neighbourhoods of Iver Heath and Richings Park. Geography, transport and economy Part of the 43-square- ...

There is an air of self-produced originality that draws you into this track but it's still so damn hooky that you're going to be singing that sweet synth riff for days." Her seven-track EP, ''Highway Songs No. 2'' (October 2016) peaked at number 19 on the ARIA Hitseekers Albums Chart. It was co-produced by Rankin and

. Laura Polson of ''

The Newcastle Herald The ''Newcastle Herald'' (formerly branded as ''The Herald'') is a local tabloid newspaper published daily, Monday to Saturday, in Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia. It is the only local newspaper that serves the greater Hunter Region and ...

'' observed, "On top of writing the melody and lyrics, Rankin seeks landscape sounds to add to her music... the opening track 'Highway (Intro)' draws together carnival sounds with a western, cowboy twist." River's single, "

Fool's Gold The mineral pyrite (), or iron pyrite, also known as fool's gold, is an iron sulfide with the chemical formula Fe S2 (iron (II) disulfide). Pyrite is the most abundant sulfide mineral. Pyrite's metallic luster and pale brass-yellow hue giv ...

" (June 2017), was accompanied by a music video, which Sosefina Fuamoli of ''The AU Review'' felt was, "dreamy as hell" and "lit up through a beautifully-crafted haze of a narrative, following different couples." In June–July 2017 the singer-songwriter launched a series of concerts, ''Electric Lady'', featuring only female acts:

Ali Barter Alison Barter (born 1986) is an Australian pop rock singer-songwriter. Trained in classical music, Barter began writing and independently releasing pop rock in her mid-twenties. She released an EP, ''Trip'' in 2012 and was the winner of the 20 ...

, Alex Lahey, and

Gretta Ray Gretta Ray (born May 22nd 1998) is an Australian singer-songwriter from Melbourne, Victoria. In 2016, she was the winner of the national Triple J Unearthed radio competition for bands and songwriters, and the 2016 Vanda & Young Global Songwriti ...

. River supported Midnight Oil during that year and undertook her own Fool's Gold Tour. On 22 June 2018, River released her debut album, '' Sugar Mountain'', titled for Neil Young's song of the same name. The album recounts River's painful memories, including her sister's fatal accident. During an interview with

Richard Kingsmill Richard Kingsmill (born 29 January 1954) is an Australian radio announcer, music journalist and currently Group Music Director of triple j, triple j Unearthed, Double J and ABC Local Radio. Career His career at triple j started in 1988 as a p ...

on ''2018'', a program 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 ...

radio, River explained that music was her way of dealing with emotions and also as therapy, calling it her "go to for everything". It peaked at number 11 on the

Albums Chart A record chart, in the music industry, also called a music chart, is a ranking of recorded music according to certain criteria during a given period. Many different criteria are used in worldwide charts, often in combination. These include re ...

and received three nominations at the 2018 ARIA Awards: Breakthrough Artist, Best Pop Release and Engineer of the Year (the latter shared with Dunn and John Castle). In October 2019, she came at no.11 in
Happy Mag
''s list of "The 15 Australian female artists changing the game right now". On 4 October 2019, River released the single "Later Flight" and announced she had an EP due for release on 14 February 2020. In September 2021, River released " We Are the Youth" saying "At the same time as there is widespread climate injustice, there is ongoing abuse of power on many fronts in our society: against First Nations people, in the halls of parliament and in workplaces everywhere. People are tired of it. We want change and action and we are ready to work to build our way out of a broken system." In February 2023, River released "Endless Summer", the title track from her forthcoming second studio album, due for release on 16 June 2023.

Personal life

Rankin's sister, Shannon Rankin (born 1995), died in 2006 in an accident due to a faulty

drain Drain may refer to: Objects and processes * Drain (plumbing), a fixture that provides an exit-point for waste water or for water that is to be re-circulated on the side of a road * Drain (surgery), a tube used to remove pus or other fluids from ...

in a spa.

Political views and activism

On 15 February 2019, Rankin was present at Labor New South Wales' live music policy launch in Sydney and delivered a speech in opposition to the Baird Government and their lockout laws. In her speech, Rankin endorsed Labor for the 2019 election. On 3 December 2020, Rankin held a climate panel entitled New Energy, designed to get politicians together to discuss energy and climate policy. The event saw politicians respond to questions from guests, including Triple J presenters Avani Dias and Lewis Hobba, in addition to rugby union player

David Pocock David Willmer Pocock (born 23 April 1988) is an Australian politician and former professional rugby union player. Raised in Gweru, Zimbabwe, Pocock moved to Australia as a teenager and played for the Australia national rugby team. He played p ...

, motivational speaker

Turia Pitt Turia Pitt (born 24 July 1987) is an Australian mining engineer, athlete, motivational speaker, and author. Accident and later life On 2 September 2011, Pitt was competing in an ultramarathon 100km through Western Australia's Kimberley regi ...

, and Reuben Styles of

electronic music Electronic music is a genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromechanical means ( electroa ...

duo

Peking Duk Peking Duk are an electronic music group made up of disc jockeys and music producers Adam Hyde and Reuben Styles. The pair first garnered attention in 2012 with the release of a Passion Pit bootleg remix. Their biggest hit "High" reached 5 on ...

. On 27 October 2021, Rankin criticised

Scott Morrison Scott John Morrison (; born 13 May 1968) is an Australian politician. He served as the 30th prime minister of Australia and as Leader of the Liberal Party of Australia from 2018 to 2022, and is currently the member of parliament (MP) for th ...

and his Government's plan to reach

net-zero emissions Carbon neutrality is a state of net-zero carbon dioxide emissions. This can be achieved by balancing emissions of carbon dioxide with its removal (often through carbon offsetting) or by eliminating emissions from society (the transition to the "p ...

by 2050, labelling it "gutless" and "paper thin".

Discography

Studio albums

Extended plays

Singles

As lead artist

As featured artist

Awards

AIR Awards

The Australian Independent Record Awards (commonly known informally as

AIR Awards The Australian Independent Record Awards (commonly known informally as AIR Awards) is an annual awards night to recognise, promote and celebrate the success of Australia's Independent Music sector. History The inaugural 2006 awards were held at ...

) is an annual awards night to recognise, promote and celebrate the success of Australia's Independent Music sector. ! , - ! scope="row",

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global social and economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, worldwide lockdowns and the largest economic recession since the Great Depression in t ...

, ''Sugar Mountain'' , Best Independent Pop Album or EP , , , - ! scope="row",

2021 File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October 2021 coup in Sudan; Crowd shortly after t ...

, ''Stranger Heart'' , Best Independent Pop Album or EP , ,

APRA Music Awards

The APRA Music Awards are an annual awards ceremony. Jack River has received two nominations. ! , - ! scope="row",

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 ...

, Herself , Breakthrough Songwriter of the Year , , , - ! scope="row",

, " Sugar" , Most Performed Dance Work of the Year , ,

ARIA Music Awards

The ARIA Music Awards is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of Australian music. Jack River has received 4 nominations overall. , - , rowspan="3",

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 Unit ...

, rowspan="2", ''Sugar Mountain'' , Breakthrough Artist , , - , Best Pop Release , , - , Holly Rankin,

& John Castle for ''Sugar Mountain'' , Engineer of the Year , , - ,

, " Sugar" , Best Dance Release ,

Environmental Music Prize

The

Environmental Music Prize The Environmental Music Prize is a prize launched in partnership with Green Music Australia. It aims to celebrate and amplify powerful music videos that inspire action for climate and conservation. It was launched during the United Nations Cl ...

is a quest to find a theme song to inspire action on climate and conservation. It commenced in 2022. ! , - , 2022 , " We Are the Youth" , Environmental Music Prize , , , -

J Awards

The

J Awards The J Awards are an annual series of Australian music awards that were established by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's youth-focused radio station Triple J and which are judged by the music and on-air teams from radio stations Triple J, ...

are an annual series of Australian music awards that were established by the

Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by direct grants from the Australian Government and is administered by a government-appointed board. The ABC is a publicly-own ...

's youth-focused radio station

. They commenced in 2005. ! , - , J Awards of 2017 , "Fool's Gold" , Australian Video of the Year , , , - ,

J Awards of 2021 The J Awards of 2021 are the seventeenth annual J Awards, established by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's youth-focused radio station Triple J Triple J (stylised in all lowercase) is a government-funded, national Australian radi ...

, Jack River , You Done Good Award , ,

National Live Music Awards

The

National Live Music Awards The National Live Music Awards (NLMAs) are a broad recognition of Australia's diverse and successful live industry, celebrating the diversity and success of the Australian live scene – recognising the best vocal talents and musicians alongside ...

(NLMAs) are a broad recognition of Australia's diverse live industry, celebrating the success of the Australian live scene. The awards commenced in 2016. ! , - ! scope="row" rowspan="2",

, rowspan="2", Herself , Live Pop Act of the Year , , , , - , NSW Live Act of the Year , , ,

Rolling Stone Australia Awards

The Rolling Stone Australia Awards are awarded annually in January or February by the Australian edition of ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

'' magazine for outstanding contributions to popular culture in the previous year. ! , - , 2022 , "We Are the Youth" , Best Single , , , -

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:River, Jack 1991 births Living people Australian musicians Australian women pop singers 21st-century Australian singers 21st-century Australian women singers Nettwerk Music Group artists Universal Music Group artists