Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu (22 January 1971 – 25 July 2017), commonly known as Gurrumul and also referred to since his death as Dr G. Yunupingu, was an

Aboriginal Australian 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 ...

musician of the

Yolŋu The Yolngu or Yolŋu () are an aggregation of Aboriginal Australian people inhabiting north-eastern Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory of Australia. ''Yolngu'' means "person" in the Yolŋu languages. The terms Murngin, Wulamba, Yalnumata, ...

peoples. A multi-instrumentalist, he played drums, keyboards, guitar (a right-hand-strung guitar played left-handed) and didgeridoo, but it was the clarity of his singing voice that attracted rave reviews. He sang stories of his land both in

Yolŋu languages Yolŋu Matha (), meaning the 'Yolŋu tongue', is a linguistic family that includes the languages of the Yolngu (also known as the Yolŋu and Yuulngu languages), the indigenous people of northeast Arnhem Land in northern Australia. The ''ŋ'' ...

such as Gaalpu, Gumatj or Djambarrpuynu, a dialect related to Gumatj, and in English. Although his solo career brought him wider acclaim, he was also formerly a member of

Yothu Yindi Yothu Yindi ( Yolngu for "child and mother", pronounced ) are an Australian musical group with Aboriginal and '' balanda'' (non-Aboriginal) members, formed in 1986 as a merger of two bands formed in 1985 – a white rock group called the Swam ...

and later of Saltwater Band. He was the most commercially successful Aboriginal Australian musician at the time of his death. As of 2020, it is estimated that Yunupingu has sold half a million records globally.

Life and career

Early life (1971–1989)

The first of four sons born to Ganyinurra (Daisy), of the Gumal clan, and Nyambi "Terry" Yunupingu, a Gumatj clansman, Yunupingu was born blind in Galiwin'ku,

Elcho Island Elcho Island, known to its traditional owners as Galiwin'ku (Galiwinku) is an island off the coast of Arnhem Land, in the Northern Territory of Australia. It is located at the southern end of the Wessel Islands group located in the East Arnhem ...

, in 1971, situated off the coast of Arnhem Land in northern Australia, about east of Darwin. When he was four years old, he taught himself how to play a toy piano and an accordion. A year later he began to play a guitar; despite being a left-hander, he played a right-handed guitar, holding it upside down, which he would continue to do throughout his career. His friend, spokesperson, and collaborator Michael Hohnen described his early musical experiences as follows: "Gurrumul was educated by immersion, cultural immersion—from his aunties, parents and grandmothers, with love and lullabies; from his uncles, fathers and grandfathers through ceremony songs and storytelling, much of it through music. Throughout his childhood, he was built, given or bought tin cans, sticks, toy keyboards, piano accordions, nylon string guitars, and, later, clap sticks (''bilma'') and didgeridoos (''yidaki''). He learned foot stomping calling and whooping, vocalisations of traditional songs and their different sounds, and so much more." He later sang hymns in the mission choir and also enjoyed Western pop music, particularly Dire Straits,

Cliff Richard Sir Cliff Richard (born Harry Rodger Webb; 14 October 1940) is an Indian-born British musican, singer, producer, entrepreneur and philanthropist who holds both British and Barbadian citizenship. He has total sales of over 21.5 million s ...

, and Stevie Wonder. An adventurous child, he was taught how to play basketball and ride a push-bike around his community. He left school at the age of 12, having attended his local school, Shepherdson College, along with a brief stint at an institute in the Victorian city of Geelong for instruction in Braille, which did not interest him.

Career (1989–2017)

Gurrumul Yunupingu @ Fremantle Park (17 4 2011) (5648205981)

In 1989, at the age of 18, Yunupingu joined

as a multi-instrumentalist and backing vocalist, notably contributing to their 1991 album, ''

Tribal Voice ''Tribal Voice'' is the second studio album by Yothu Yindi, released in September 1991 on the Mushroom Records label. The album peaked at number 4 on the ARIA Charts and was certified 2× Platinum. At the 1992 ARIA Awards Yothu Yindi won ARIA ...

''. He left the group in 1995 to live full-time on Elcho Island and later co-founded and co-led the Saltwater Band, which was active from 1999 to 2009. His first solo album, '' Gurrumul'', was released in 2008, debuting at No. 69 on the

ARIA In music, an aria ( Italian: ; plural: ''arie'' , or ''arias'' in common usage, diminutive form arietta , plural ariette, or in English simply air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrumental or orchestral accompa ...

Charts and No. 1 on the independent chart. ''Gurrumul'' peaked at No. 3 on the ARIA Charts. The album was certified triple platinum. Yunupingu's friend Michael Hohnen produced the album and was his translator, collaborator and confidant. Critics heaped praise on the singer, describing his voice as having "transcendental beauty". Elton John, Sting and Björk were among his fans. The money he made was largely shared with his family, following the Aboriginal tradition of sharing wealth. He did not generally give interviews, instead relying on Hohnen to speak for him, following a Yolŋu custom that dictated that Yunupingu's role was only to sing, while his elders spoke publicly. In a 2009 interview with him and Hohnen, Yunupingu said that he was generally shy but more comfortable playing music, and went on to say: "I don't have much to say to people when I talk. That is for other Yolŋu. But I can play and sing and tell people things through my songs. We have an encyclopedia of stories ready to tell people, if they want to listen." In 2008 Yunupingu was nominated for four

ARIA 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 Austra ...

, winning the awards for Best World Music Album and Best Independent Release. He also won three Deadlys, winning for Artist of the Year, Album of the Year for '' Gurrumul'' and Single of the Year for "Gurrumul History (I Was Born Blind)". In November 2009, Yunupingu was named Best New Independent Artist and his album, ''Gurrumul'', Best Independent Release and Best Independent Blues/Roots Release at the Australian Independent Record (AIR) Awards held at Melbourne's

Corner Hotel The Corner Hotel in the Melbourne suburb of Richmond, Victoria, Australia, is a remodelled 19th-century pub which has been a live music venue since the 1940s and, since 1995, a popular rock music venue and rooftop bar.Johnston, Chris. "Corner ...

. In 2009 a portrait of Yunupingu by Guy Maestri won Australia's major art prize, the

Archibald Prize The Archibald Prize is an Australian portraiture art prize for painting, generally seen as the most prestigious portrait prize in Australia. It was first awarded in 1921 after the receipt of a bequest from J. F. Archibald, the editor ...

. He was again awarded the Australian Independent Record (AIR) Award for Best Independent Blues and Roots Album in 2011 for his album ''Rrakala''. At the

ARIA Music Awards of 2011 The 25th Annual Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (generally known as ARIA Music Awards or simply The ARIAs) were a series of award ceremonies which included the 2011 ARIA Artisan Awards, ARIA Hall of Fame Awards, ARIA Fin ...

, he won Best World Music Album and performed "Warwu" featuring Missy Higgins on piano. In 2019, Double J's Dan Condon described it as one of "7 great performances from the history of the ARIA Awards." In 2012, Yunupingu was one of the contributing vocalists on

Gary Barlow Gary Barlow (born 20 January 1971) is an English singer, songwriter, record producer, and television personality. He is the lead singer of the British pop group Take That. Barlow is one of the United Kingdom's most successful songwriters, havi ...

's commemorative single "

Sing Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

" for Queen Elizabeth II's diamond jubilee celebrations, which features artists from across the Commonwealth. He performed "Sing" live at the

Diamond Jubilee Concert The Diamond Jubilee Concert was a British music concert and celebration held outside Buckingham Palace on The Mall in London on 4 June 2012. The concert was organised by Take That singer-songwriter Gary Barlow and was part of Queen Elizabeth ...

on 4 June 2012 together with many of the song's contributing artists. In 2012, Yunupingu was conferred with an Honorary Doctorate of Music by the University of Sydney. In 2013, Yunupingu joined Delta Goodrem for a special performance of " Bayini" on ''

The Voice Australia ''The Voice'' is an Australian singing competition television series. It premiered on the Nine Network on 14 April 2012, before moving to the Seven Network in 2021. Based on the original ''The Voice of Holland'', and part of ''The Voice '' ...

''. In December 2013, Yunupingu released a live album, titled '' His Life and Music'', which was recorded in the Sydney Opera House and released through

ABC Music ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

. It was nominated for Australian Independent Record Labels Association and

ARIA 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 Austra ...

. " Bayini" became the first track by an indigenous musician to reach the top five of the Australian charts. In 2015, Yunupingu toured the US. He released his third studio album, ''

The Gospel Album ''The Gospel Album'' is the third studio album from Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu. It is performed in a mixture of both Yolngu and English. The album was announced in May and is described as 'a uniquely Indigenous approach to gospel songs with an ...

'', on 31 July 2015. It debuted at number 3 on the ARIA Charts. In October 2015, the album won Gurrumul's third

ARIA Award for Best World Music Album The ARIA Music Award for Best World Music Album, is an award presented within the Fine Arts Awards at the annual ARIA Music Awards. It was inaugurated in 1995 as Best Folk/World/Traditional Release. The ARIA Awards recognise "the many achieveme ...

. In July 2016, Yunupingu featured on the A.B. Original track "Take Me Home".

Death (2017)

Yunupingu died at the

Royal Darwin Hospital Royal Darwin Hospital (RDH) is a 360-bed Australian teaching hospital located in Tiwi, Northern Territory, a northern suburb of the Territory capital Darwin. It is part of the Top End Health Service, which covers an area of . RDH is the only ...

, Northern Territory, at about 5:00 pm on 25 July 2017, aged 46. He had lived with liver and kidney damage for many years due to

hepatitis B Hepatitis B is an infectious disease caused by the '' Hepatitis B virus'' (HBV) that affects the liver; it is a type of viral hepatitis. It can cause both acute and chronic infection. Many people have no symptoms during an initial infection. ...

which he had contracted in childhood. On his death he was described as an important figure in fostering racial harmony and as a voice of Indigenous Australians. He received tributes from the Australian prime minister,

Malcolm Turnbull Malcolm Bligh Turnbull (born 24 October 1954) is an Australian former politician and businessman who served as the 29th prime minister of Australia from 2015 to 2018. He held office as leader of the Liberal Party of Australia. Turnbull grad ...

, fellow musician

Peter Garrett Peter Robert Garrett (born 16 April 1953) is an Australian musician, environmentalist, activist and former politician. In 1973, Garrett became the lead singer of the Australian rock band Midnight Oil. As a performer he is known for his signa ...

, and Anna Reid, the dean of the

Sydney Conservatorium of Music The Sydney Conservatorium of Music (formerly the New South Wales State Conservatorium of Music and known by the moniker "The Con") is a heritage-listed music school in Macquarie Street, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is one of the old ...

Posthumous releases and recognition (2018–present)

In April 2018, Yunupingu's fourth studio album, '' Djarimirri (Child of the Rainbow)'', was released. It was an album four years in the making and was completed by producer and arranger Michael Hohnen. A documentary film titled '' Gurrumul'' was also released, which Luke Buckmaster reviewed, stating that "For Gurrumul fans, the film is obviously a must-see. For those unfamiliar, or vaguely familiar with his work, it's an even greater treat: they will be entertained, enthralled, perhaps in some small way changed." The album won four ARIA Music Awards at the 2018 ceremony; his daughter Jasmin accepted the award for Best Male Artist on his behalf. In November 2020, Decca Records announced they had signed to the rights to Yunupingu's catalogue and future recordings, announcing forthcoming releases, including limited-edition vinyls, a box set and collaborations among a slate of projects. In December 2020, Yunupingu was listed at number 33 in ''Rolling Stone Australia''s "50 Greatest Australian Artists of All Time" issue. In September 2021, Yunupingu's first anthology was released, entitled ''

The Gurrumul Story ''The Gurrumul Story'' is the first compilation album from Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu. The album was announced on 6 August 2021 and was released on 10 September 2021 on digital platforms, CD, deluxe CD+DVD and vinyl. The deluxe edition features ...

''. In the same year, a species of

frog A frog is any member of a diverse and largely carnivorous group of short-bodied, tailless amphibians composing the order Anura (ανοὐρά, literally ''without tail'' in Ancient Greek). The oldest fossil "proto-frog" ''Triadobatrachus'' is ...

from the

Wessel Islands The Wessel Islands is a group of uninhabited islands in the Northern Territory of Australia. They extend in a more or less straight line from Buckingham Bay and the Napier Peninsula of Arnhem Land, and Elcho Island, to the northeast. Marchinbar ...

, Northern Territory, was named '' Uperoleia gurrumuli'' (Gurrumul's toadlet) in honour of Yunupingu.

Discography

Studio albums

Live albums

Compilation albums

Awards and nominations

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. , - , rowspan="3" ,

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

, himself , Best New Independent Album , , - , rowspan="2" , ''Gurrumul'' , Best Independent Album , , - , Best Independent Blues and Roots Album , , - , 2011 , ''Rrakala'' , Best Independent Blues and Roots 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 ...

, ''His Life and Music'' , Best Independent Classical Album , , - , 2015 , ''The Gospel Album'' , Best Independent Blues and Roots Album , , - , rowspan="3" ,

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 ...

, rowspan="2" , ''Djarimirri'' , Best Independent Album/EP , , - , Best Independent Classical Album , , - , himself , Best Independent Artist , , -

APRA Awards

The APRA Awards are presented annually from 1982 by the Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA), "honouring composers and songwriters". , - ,

1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phi ...

, , "

Treaty A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between actors in international law. It is usually made by and between sovereign states, but can include international organizations, individuals, business entities, and other legal pe ...

" by

(co-written by Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu) , , Song of the Year , , , - , 2009 , , Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu , , Breakthrough Song Writer , , , - ,

, , "Bayini" by Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu (Rrawun D Maymuru) , , Song 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. Gurrumul has won 9 awards from 21 nominations. , - , rowspan="5",

, rowspan="4", '' Gurrumul'' , Best Independent Release , , - ,

Best World Music Album The Grammy Award for Best Global Music Album is an honor presented to recording artists for influential music from around the globe at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. Honors i ...

, , - , Best Male Artist , , - , Album of the Year , , - , Michael Hohnen and Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu for ''Gurrumul'' ,

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 i ...

, , - , rowspan="6", 2011 , rowspan="5", '' Rrakala'' , Best Independent Release , , - ,

, , - , Best Male Artist , , - , Album of the Year , , - , Best Cover Art , , - , "Gopuru" (directed by Carlo Santone) , Best Video , , - , rowspan="2", ARIA Music Awards of 2014, 2014 , rowspan="2", '' His Life and Music'' (with Sydney Symphony Orchestra) , Best Male Artist , , - , ARIA Award for Best Original Soundtrack, Cast or Show Album, Best Original Soundtrack/Cast/Show Album , , - , rowspan="1", ARIA Music Awards of 2015, 2015 , rowspan="1", ''

'' ,

, , - , rowspan="7", ARIA Music Awards of 2018, 2018 , rowspan="5", '' Djarimirri (Child of the Rainbow)'' , Album of the Year , , - , Best Male Artist , , - , Best Independent Release , , - ,

, , - , Best Cover Art , , - , Michael Hohnen for ''Djarimirri (Child of the Rainbow)'' ,

, , - , Ted Howard, Robin Mai & Matthew Cunliffe for ''Djarimirri (Child of the Rainbow)'' , ARIA Award for Engineer of the Year, Engineer of the Year , , -

Australian Music Prize

The Australian Music Prize (AMP) is an annual award of $30,000 given to an Australian band or solo artist in recognition of the merit of an album released during the year of award. The award commenced in 2005. , - , 2011 , ''Rrakala'' , Australian Music Prize , , - , 2018 , ''Djarimirri'' , Australian Music Prize , , -

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 2018 , himself , Double J Artist of the Year ,

Helpmann Awards

The Helpmann Awards is an awards show, celebrating live entertainment and performing arts in Australia, presented by industry group ''Live Performance Australia'' since 2001. Note: 2020 and 2021 were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. ! , - , 9th Helpmann Awards, 2009 , Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu , Helpmann Award for Best Australian Contemporary Concert , , , -

National Indigenous Music Awards

The National Indigenous Music Awards recognise excellence, innovation and leadership among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander musicians from throughout Australia. It commenced in 2004. , - , NT Indigenous Music Awards 2005, 2005 , himself , Male Artist of the Year , , - , rowspan="4", NT Indigenous Music Awards 2008, 2008 , rowspan="2", '' Gurrumul'' , Album of the Year , , - , Cover Art of the Year , , - , "Wiyathul" , Song of the Year , , - , himself , Artist of the Year , , - , rowspan="3", National Indigenous Music Awards 2009, 2009 , rowspan="1", '' Gurrumul'' , Cover Art of the Year , , - , Gurrumul Geoffrey Yunupingu – "Bapa" , DVD/ Film Clip of the Year , , - , himself , Artist of the Year , , - , rowspan="2", National Indigenous Music Awards 2010, 2010 , rowspan="1", "History" , Film Clip of the Year , , - , himself , Artist of the Year , , - , rowspan="6", National Indigenous Music Awards 2011, 2011 , rowspan="2", ''Rrakala'' , Album of the Year , , - , Cover Art of the Year , , - , "Mala Rrakala" , rowspan="2", Song of the year , , - , rowspan="2", "Gathu Mawula" (featuring Blue King Brown) , , - , Film Clip of the year , , - , himself , Artist of the year , , - , rowspan="3", National Indigenous Music Awards 2012, 2012 , rowspan="2", " Bayini" (featuring Sarah Blasko) , Cover Art of the Year , , - , Song of the Year , , - , himself , Artist of the year , , - , rowspan="4", National Indigenous Music Awards 2013, 2013 , himself , Special Recognition Award , , - , himself , Artist of the Year , , - , "Bayini" (live) - with Delta Goodrem , rowspan="2", Song of the Year , , - , "A Baru in New York" - with Yolanda Be Cool , , - , rowspan="3", National Indigenous Music Awards 2014, 2014 , himself , Artist of the Year , , - , Album of the Year , '' His Life and Music'' (with Sydney Symphony Orchestra) , , - , Song of the Year , "Marilitja" , , - , rowspan="5", National Indigenous Music Awards 2016, 2016 , rowspan="2", "The Children Came Back" Briggs (rapper), Briggs and Dewayne Everettsmith (featuring Gurrumul) , Song of the Year , , - , Film Clip of the Year , , - , himself , Artist of the year , , - , rowspan="2", ''The Gospel Album'' , Album of the Year , , - , Best Cover Art of the Year , , - , rowspan="3", 2018 , '' Djarimirri (Child of the Rainbow)'' , Album of the Year , , - , "Djarimirri (Child of the Rainbow)" , Song of the Year , , - , himself , Artist of the year , , - , National Indigenous Music Awards 2022, 2022 , Gurrumul , Hall of Fame , , -

Notes

References

External links

Record company bioVideo of Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu performing
at YouTube
National Indigenous Times – Issue 151
Yunupingu's voice creates waves throughout the world
Gurrumul obituary
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yunupingu, Geoffrey Gurrumul 1971 births 2017 deaths APRA Award winners ARIA Award winners Australian male singers Australian musicians Blind musicians Blind people from Australia Deaths from hepatitis Didgeridoo players Indigenous Australian musicians Yolngu