Joshua Jon Pyke (born 18 December 1977) is an Australian singer-songwriter, producer, musician and children's book author.

Biography

Josh Pyke is a prolific songwriter, with a successful and critically acclaimed career both domestically and overseas. Josh’s 6 studio albums to date have all debuted in the ARIA Top 10. Amongst numerous other honours, he has received 4 ARIA Awards, 10 ARIA nominations, and gold/ platinum accreditations. Josh is a member of the AGSC, and a respected composer for Film/TV– having received an APRA Award for film composition, Josh has also worked on a slew of recent TV / advertising projects, including popular ABC series The Justine Clarke Show, Miki Vs The World (Season 1&2) and the upcoming dark drama Troppo. Through his work with the

Indigenous Literacy Foundation The Indigenous Literacy Foundation (ILF) is an Australian not-for-profit founded in 2011 that works to address the educational disadvantages faced by Indigenous Australian children and young people by providing access to books and literacy progr ...

, Josh has also run numerous song-writing workshops with Indigenous communities, and raised over $50,000 for the organisation through his Busking For Change events. Josh is a committed member of the music community, and an influential advocate for creators. Josh has been an active APRA Ambassador for 15 years, and has also served as PPCA Board Director (Artist Representative) since 2016. He has represented musicians in national forums such as Parliament House roundtables, Q+A, and The Project, on key issues including copyright reform, Arts funding, and more recently, the impact of COVID-19 on the creative industries. Josh also champions emerging musicians via the JP Partnership, a mentorship program he established with APRA/AMCOS in 2014. Josh Pyke is also an acclaimed children's book author, with 4 titles out, (Lights Out Leonard, A Banana is A Banana, The Incredible Runaway Snot, Chatterpuss,) and 3 more titles to be released in 21/22, (Chatterpuss In Deep Water, A Family Tree, The Bewilderbeast). Pyke released his 7th studio album '' To Find Happiness'' on 18 March 2022.

2003–2004: Early EPs and Night Hour

Josh Pyke was in his first band by age 12 and played his first performance in front of 650 parents and students at his primary school graduation. Playing guitar and initial song writing efforts came aged 14. Despite his aptitude for song writing and performance, he stayed 'under the radar' throughout his high school years at

Fort Street High School Fort Street High School (FSHS) is a Education in Australia#Government schools, government-funded Mixed-sex school, co-educational Selective school (New South Wales), academically selective secondary school, secondary day school, located in Petersh ...

. While part of Sydney band An Empty Flight he successfully applied for a grant from the Music Board of the

Australia Council The Australia Council for the Arts, commonly known as the Australia Council, is the country's official arts council, serving as an arts funding and advisory body for the Government of Australia. The council was announced in 1967 as the Austra ...

under the Buzz Project to remix a number of his own demo recordings to be released as an EP '' Current Works Volume 1'', under the name of Night Hour. The lead track, "Kids Don't Sell Their Hopes So Fast", received wide-ranging radio airplay on national youth broadcaster triple j and on various community radio stations including

3RRR 3RRR (pronounced "Three Triple R", or simply "Triple R") is an Australian community radio station, based in Melbourne. 3RRR first commenced broadcasting in 1976 from the studios of 3ST, the student radio station of the Royal Melbourne Institut ...

in Melbourne and Fbi in Sydney. In 2004 Pyke won the Jaxter Music Award for his single "Kids Don't Sell Their Hopes So Fast". The proceeds went towards a home studio. A second EP titled '' The Doldrums'' was released in November 2004.

2005–2006: Early EPs as Josh Pyke

In 2005, Pyke signed to Australian indie label Ivy League Records and in September 2005 released the EP '' Feeding the Wolves'', the first under his name Josh Pyke. It features the singles "

Middle of the Hill "Middle of the Hill" is a song by Australian singer-songwriter Josh Pyke. It was released in July 2005 as the lead single from Pyke's third extended play, '' Feeding the Wolves'' (2005). The song has become a "fan-favourite" and was polled at numb ...

" and "Private Education" and peaked at number 64 on the ARIA Charts. In January 2006, "Middle of the Hill" was voted at number 19 in the Triple J Hottest 100, 2005. In 2006, Pyke spent a month in New York, writing and performing before touring the UK for the first time in support of ''Feeding the Wolves''. In October 2006, the song " Memories & Dust" was released which peaked at number 39 on the ARIA Charts.

2007–2009: ''Memories & Dust'' & ''Chimney's Afire''

Josh Pyke released his debut studio album, '' Memories & Dust'' on 10 March 2007. It debuted at number 4 on ARIA Charts. Lead singles "Memories & Dust" and "

Lines on Palms "Lines on Palms" is a song by Australian singer-songwriter Josh Pyke. It was released in March 2007 as the second single from Pyke's debut studio album, ''Memories & Dust ''Memories & Dust'' is the debut studio album by Australian singer-son ...

" peaked within the ARIA top 50. At the ARIA Music Awards of 2007, the album was nominated for five awards, winning three. Note: User may be required to access archived information by selecting 'The History', then 'By Award', 'Producer of the Year' and 'Option Show Nominations'. Pyke recorded a cover version of " Wuthering Heights" by Kate Bush for the '' No Man's Woman'' album which was released in 2007. In 2008, Pyke and

Michael Yezerski Michael Yezerski is an Australian composer known for his scores for feature films such as ''The Waiting City'', '' The Black Balloon'' (for which he won an APRA Award and a Screen Music Award), ''Newcastle'', and ''Thursday's Fictions'', as well ...

won the APRA award for Best Original Song Composed for the Screen for "When We Get There", from the film '' The Black Balloon''. In October 2008, Pyke's second studio album ''

Chimney's Afire ''Chimney's Afire'' is the second studio album by Australian singer-songwriter Josh Pyke. It was released in October 2008 and peaked at number 3 on the ARIA Charts and was certified gold. At the ARIA Music Awards of 2009, the album was nominated ...

'' was released. It debuted at number 3 on the ARIA charts, and number 1 on the ARIA Australian Album Chart. In August 2009, he played a series of concerts where The Beatles' White Album was played from start to finish with Tim Rogers,

Chris Cheney Christopher John Cheney (born 2 January 1975) is an Australian rock musician, record producer, and studio owner. He is the founding mainstay guitarist, songwriter, and lead vocalist of the rockabilly band The Living End, which was formed in 19 ...

and Phil Jamieson. The tour was extended due to popular demand. At the ARIA Music Awards of 2009, ''Chimney's Afire'' was nominated for two awards, winning Best Adult Contemporary Album.

2010: Basement Birds

In mid-2009, Pyke form the Australian indie pop rock group,

Basement Birds Basement Birds were an Australian indie pop rock group which formed in mid-2009 and comprised four singer-songwriters, Kevin Mitchell (of Jebediah, aka Bob Evans), Steve Parkin (ex-Vinyl, Autopilot, solo), Josh Pyke (ex-An Empty Flight, solo) ...

with Kevin Mitchell (of Jebediah, aka Bob Evans),

Steve Parkin Stephen John Parkin (born 7 November 1965) is an English former professional footballer and manager, who is assistant manager at Wrexham. He played for Mansfield Town, Stoke City and West Bromwich Albion and has been manager of Barnsley, Mansf ...

(ex-Vinyl, Autopilot, solo) and Kavyen Temperley (of

Eskimo Joe Eskimo Joe are an Australian alternative rock band that was formed in 1997 by Stuart MacLeod, on lead guitar, Joel Quartermain, on drums and guitar, and Kavyen Temperley, on bass guitar and vocals, in East Fremantle, Western Australia, Austral ...

). The group released a self-titled studio album in July 2010, which peaked at number 12 on the ARIA charts.

2011–2012: ''Only Sparrows''

In January 2011 Pyke spent a month in New York to finish writing the album that was to become '' Only Sparrows''. On return he recorded the album with ARIA Award-winning producer

Wayne Connolly Wayne Paul Connolly is an Australian musician, record producer and audio engineer. From 1991 to 1997 Connolly provided lead guitar and vocals in guitar pop group the Welcome Mat, with whom he released two studio albums. In 1994, he formed Kniev ...

and it was released 19 August 2011. The album debuted at number 4 on the ARIA Charts. In October 2011, Pyke toured the UK, this time on a co-headline tour with friend and occasional collaborator Mike Rosenberg AKA

Passenger A passenger (also abbreviated as pax) is a person who travels in a vehicle, but does not bear any responsibility for the tasks required for that vehicle to arrive at its destination or otherwise operate the vehicle, and is not a steward. The ...

. While touring, the pair collaborated on new material, which resulted in Passenger having writing credits on "Leeward Side" and Josh having writing credits on "27". At the ARIA Music Awards of 2011, ''Only Sparrows'' was nominated for three awards. Pyke concluded 2011 playing at the 2011/2012 Falls Festivals in Victoria and Tasmania before heading to Southbound Festival in Western Australia. In February 2012 he performed "Love Lies" and a cover of The Jezabels' "Endless Summer" featuring Elana Stone on triple j's

Like a Version ''Like a Version'' is a weekly segment on Australian youth radio station Triple J. It involves Australian and international artists playing two songs live in the Triple J studio, one of their own songs (an "original") and then a cover version, h ...

. The song was included on the ''Like a Version Volume 8''. In 2012, Pyke joined a cast of Australian musicians to launch a campaign to support peers who have hit hard times. The campaign was called ''Support Act'' for which Pyke became an ambassador, featuring in the TV commercial—"Not everyone in the music industry is able to lead a comfortable life when the music stops playing".

2013–2014: ''The Beginning and the End of Everything''

On 6 July 2013, Pyke released his fourth studio album, ''

The Beginning and the End of Everything ''The Beginning and the End of Everything'' is the fourth studio album by Australian alternative rock musician, Josh Pyke. It was released on 5 July 2013 by Ivy League Records and peaked at number seven on the ARIA albums chart. At the ...

'', which debuted at number 7 on the ARIA Chart. The release was followed by a sold out national tour. At the ARIA Music Awards of 2013, the album was nominated for Best Adult Contemporary Album. Pyke spent much of 2014 travelling Australia for his three Lone Wolf tours (Lone Wolf Tour, Lone Wolf Regional Tour and Last of the Lone Wolf Tour). In July 2014, Pyke joined Phil Jamieson ( Grinspoon),

( The Living End) and Tim Rogers ( You Am I) for the second time to tour Australia on The White Album Concert tour. Both the 2009 and 2014 tours were completely sold out and extended due to popular demand.

2015–2016: ''But for All These Shrinking Hearts'' and ''Live at the Sydney Opera House''

In April 2015, Pyke collaborated with the

Sydney Symphony Orchestra The Sydney Symphony Orchestra (SSO) is an Australian symphony orchestra that was initially formed in 1908. Since its opening in 1973, the Sydney Opera House has been its home concert hall. Simone Young is the orchestra's chief conductor and firs ...

for two specially curated shows at the iconic

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 architec ...

. Pyke spent three months working with ten up-and-coming composers redesigning his songs for the shows. Following the success of these performances, Pyke brought the show to the Perth Concert Hall and performed it with the West Australian Symphony Orchestra in July 2015. On 31 July 2015 Josh Pyke released his fifth studio album, ''

But for All These Shrinking Hearts ''But for All These Shrinking Hearts'' is the fifth studio album by Australian musician, Josh Pyke. It was his first on new label Wonderlick Entertainment and released in July 2015. The album peaked at number 2 on the ARIA Charts. The album's ...

'', which debuted at number 2 on the ARIA charts. It was his first release on new label Wonderlick Entertainment, distributed by Sony. In conjunction with the release, Pyke played four sold out intimate Fans First shows around Australia. He then sold-out shows at Melbourne Zoo and Taronga Zoo in Sydney on his capital city tour. Pyke appeared the 2015 Woodword Folk Festival and the Falls Music & Arts Festival. Pyke's performance at the

in 2015, was released in July 2016 and peaked at number 27. At the

ARIA Music Awards of 2016 The 30th Annual Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (generally known as ARIA Music Awards or simply The ARIAs) are a series of award ceremonies which include the 2016 ARIA Artisan Awards, ARIA Hall of Fame Awards, ARIA Fine ...

, the album won the ARIA Award for Best Original Soundtrack, Cast or Show Album.

2017–2020: ''The Best of Josh Pyke'' & ''Rome''

In May 2017, Pyke announced the release of his first greatest hits album, '' The Best of Josh Pyke'', alongside new single "Into the Wind". The album was released on 30 June 2017. In June 2019, Pyke published the children's book ''Lights Out, Leonard''. In March 2020, Pyke released "I Don't Know", the lead single from his sixth studio album, '' Rome'', which was released on 28 August.

2021: ''To Find Happiness''

On 5 November 2021, Pyke announced the release of his seventh studio album, '' To Find Happiness'', released on 18 March 2022.

Ambassador and Partnerships

Indigenous Literacy Foundation (ILF) and Busking for Change

Pyke is an Indigenous Literacy Foundation (ILF) ambassador and has contributed thousands of dollars towards the fund. In September 2009, Pyke held the event 'Busking for Change' as part of Indigenous Literacy day, with all proceeds going towards the ILF. Pyke performed a solo set to a small audience, along with guest speakers from the ILF discussing the need for change in literacy levels in Indigenous communities. Pyke stated: "Indigenous issues are something I've been interested in for many years, and the concept of words and language and communicating ideas in that way is especially relevant to my own career". Following the success of the 2009 event, events were held annually and in 2012, Pyke confirmed he had raised over $50,000 in total for the ILF.

Josh Pyke Partnership

In conjunction with APRA in early 2013, Busking for Change presented the Josh Pyke Partnership. The partnership offered an unsigned musician the opportunity to receive mentorship and funding to help grow their career. Applicants submit a business plan explaining how they would like to grow their musical career. The prize included an initial meeting with Pyke, Gregg Donovan ( Wonderlick Entertainment) and Stephen Wade (Select Music), a follow-up meeting and $7500 in funding. At the end of 2014, Josh announced the return of the Josh Pyke Partnership, which now runs annually.

Children's books

In 2019 Pyke released his first Childrens picture book
Lights Out Leonard (Penguin)
with renowned illustrator Chris Nixon. The book has gone on to be released in 6 foreign territories and translated into 5 languages. Since then Pyke has released another 6 picture books
A Banana is A Banana (Josh Pyke, Justine Clarke, Heath Mckenzie, Penguin 2020)The Incredible Runaway Snot (Josh Pyke, Heath Mckenzie, Scholastic, 2020)Chatterpuss, (Josh Pyke, Daron Parton, Scholastic, 2021)
Chatterpuss, In Deep Water, (Josh Pyke, Daron Parton, Scholastic, 2021)
Family Tree, (Josh Pyke, Ronojoy Ghosh, Scholastic, 2022)The Bewilderbeast, (Josh Pyke, Binny Talib, Scholastic.)
Notably, Family Tree was the

ALIA Alia or ALIA may refer to: People *Alia (name), a list of people with the surname or given name Places *Alia, Sicily, Italy, a comune * Alia (Phrygia), a town of ancient Phrygia which remains a Roman Catholic titular bishopric *Alía, Spain, a mu ...

National Simultaneous Story time book for 2022, seeing over 2.6 million people reading the book at the same time, and featuring Pyke and Ghosh appearing on a livestream from the National Library of Australia in the record breaking event.

Discography

*'' Memories & Dust'' (2007) *''

'' (2008) *'' Only Sparrows'' (2011) *''

'' (2013) *''

'' (2015) *'' Rome'' (2020) *'' To Find Happiness'' (2022)

Awards

APRA Awards

The

APRA Awards APRA Awards may refer to one of two awards ceremonies: *APRA Awards (Australia) *APRA Awards (New Zealand) The APRA Music Awards are several annual and two-yearly award ceremonies run in New Zealand by Australasian Performing Right Association ...

are held in Australia and New Zealand by the

Australasian Performing Right Association APRA AMCOS consists of Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) and Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (AMCOS), both copyright management organisations or copyright collectives which jointly represent over 100,000 songwr ...

to recognise songwriting skills, sales and airplay performance by its members annually. Pyke has won one award from three nominations. , - , 2007 , "Middle of the Hill" , Most Performed Blues and Roots Work , , - , 2008 , "When We Get There" (with

) , Best Original Song Composed for Screen , , - , 2012 , "Throw It Away" (360 featuring Josh Pyke) , Urban Work of the Year , , - ,

2022 File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; 2022 Sri Lankan protests, Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretari ...

, ''Troppo'' , Best Television Theme , , -

ARIA Music Awards

The

ARIA Music Awards 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 Austr ...

is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of

Australian music The music of Australia has an extensive history made of music societies. Indigenous Australian music forms a significant part of the unique heritage of a 40,000- to 60,000-year history which produced the iconic didgeridoo. Contemporary fusions of ...

. Pyke has won five awards from eighteen nominations. , - ,

2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...

, '' Feeding the Wolves'' , Best Pop Release , , - , rowspan="5",

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...

, rowspan="3", '' Memories & Dust'' , Best Male Artist , , - , Best Adult Contemporary Album , , - , Breakthrough Artist – Album , , - , rowspan="2",

& Josh Pyke for ''Memories & Dust'' ,

Producer of the Year The Grammy Award for Producer of the Year, Non-Classical is an honor presented to record producers for quality non-classical music at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. Honors in ...

, , - , Engineer of the Year , , - , rowspan="2",

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...

, rowspan="2", ''

'' , Best Male Artist , , - , Best Adult Contemporary Album , , - ,

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

, ''The Lighthouse'' , Best Music DVD , , - , rowspan="3",

2011 File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...

, "

No One Wants a Lover "No One Wants a Lover" is a song by Australian singer-songwriter Josh Pyke. It was released in June 2011 as the lead single from Pyke's third studio album, '' Only Sparrows'' (2011). Pyke promoted the song with television and radio appearances. ...

" , Best Male Artist , , - , rowspan="2", Wayne Connolly & Josh Pyke for "No One Wants a Lover" , Producer of the Year , , - , Engineer of the Year , , - , rowspan="2",

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

, '' Only Sparrows'' , Best Adult Contemporary Album , , - , Wayne Connolly & Josh Pyke for ''Only Sparrows'' , Engineer of the Year , , - ,

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...

, ''

'' , Best Adult Contemporary Album , , - ,

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

, John Castle & Josh Pyke for ''The Beginning and the End of Everything'' , Producer of the Year , , - ,

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

, '' Live at the Sydney Opera House'' , Best Original Soundtrack/Cast/Show Album , , - ,

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...

, '' Rome'' , Best Adult Contemporary Album , , -

Country Music Awards of Australia

The Country Music Awards of Australia (CMAA) (also known as the Golden Guitar Awards) is an annual awards night held in January during the Tamworth Country Music Festival, celebrating recording excellence in the Australian country music industry. They have been held annually since 1973. , - , 2017 , "F U Cancer" (with

Catherine Britt Catherine Elisabeth Britt (born 31 December 1984) is an Australian country music artist who has had success in both her native Australia and in the United States. She started her career in Newcastle in 1999, she moved to Nashville from 2002 to ...

) , Vocal Collaboration of the Year ,

J Award

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. They commenced in 2005. , - , J Awards of 2007 , ''Memories & Dust'' , Australian Album of the Year , , - , J Awards of 2008 , "Make You Happy" , Australian Video of the Year ,

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Pyke, Josh 1983 births 21st-century Australian singers ARIA Award winners Australian alternative rock musicians Australian indie pop musicians Australian indie rock musicians Australian singer-songwriters Basement Birds members Living people Musicians from Sydney Sony Music Australia artists