Ruby Charlotte Margaret Hunter (31 October 195517 February 2010), also known as Aunty Ruby, 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 I ...

singer, songwriter and guitarist, and the life and musical partner of

Archie Roach Archibald William Roach (8 January 1956 – 30 July 2022) was an Australian singer, songwriter and Aboriginal activist. Often referred to as "Uncle Archie", Roach was a Gunditjmara and Bundjalung elder who campaigned for the rights of Abori ...

Early life

Ruby Hunter was born on 31 October 1955 on

Goat Island Goat Island (or Goat Islands) may refer to: Arts * Goat Island (performance group), a Chicago-based company * ''Goat Island'' (play), ''Delitto all'isola delle capre'', by Ugo Betti Places Australia * Goat Island (Port Jackson) in Sydney Harbou ...

, on the banks of the

Murray River The Murray River (in South Australia: River Murray) (Ngarrindjeri: ''Millewa'', Yorta Yorta: ''Tongala'') is a river in Southeastern Australia. It is Australia's longest river at extent. Its tributaries include five of the next six longest ...

near Renmark in

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest o ...

. She was a

Ngarrindjeri The Ngarrindjeri people are the traditional Aboriginal Australian people of the lower Murray River, eastern Fleurieu Peninsula, and the Coorong of the southern-central area of the state of South Australia. The term ''Ngarrindjeri'' means "be ...

Kokatha The Kokatha, also known as the Kokatha Mula, are an Aboriginal Australian people of the state of South Australia. They speak the Kokatha language, close to or a dialect of the Western Desert language. Country Traditional Kokatha lands extend ov ...

and

Pitjantjatjara The Pitjantjatjara (; or ) are an Aboriginal people of the Central Australian desert near Uluru. They are closely related to the Yankunytjatjara and Ngaanyatjarra and their languages are, to a large extent, mutually intelligible (all are vari ...

woman. At the time of her birth, her parents were living in tents on Goat Island, having come to the

Riverland The Riverland is a region of South Australia. It covers an area of along the River Murray from where it flows into South Australia from New South Wales and Victoria downstream to Blanchetown. The major town centres are Renmark, Berri, Loxt ...

to find work after the Swan Reach mission had closed in 1946. As a child Hunter lived with her brothers, Wally, Jeffrey and Robert, and sister Iris, with their grandmother and grandfather at the

Aboriginal reserve An Aboriginal reserve, also called simply reserve, was a government-sanctioned settlement for Aboriginal Australians, created under various state and federal legislation. Along with missions and other institutions, they were used from the 19th c ...

Point McLeay Raukkan is an Australian Aboriginal community situated on the south-eastern shore of Lake Alexandrina in the locality of Narrung, southeast of the centre of South Australia's capital, Adelaide. Raukkan is "regarded as the home and heartland o ...

(later called Raukkan) on Lake Alexandrina in the Coorong region of South Australia. One day, when Ruby was eight years old, Wally was taken off the street by government officials, and then the men took the rest of the children from their home, under the pretext that they were being taken to the circus. Thereafter Ruby lived in institutions and foster care, as one of the

Stolen Generations The Stolen Generations (also known as Stolen Children) were the children of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander descent who were removed from their families by the Australian federal and state government agencies and church mis ...

. Hunter was placed in

Seaforth Children's Home Somerton Park is a seaside suburb of Adelaide in South Australia. The mainly residential suburb is home to the Somerton Park Beach, Sacred Heart College and North Brighton Cemetery. History Somerton Park Post Office opened on 1 July 1947 and ...

in the Adelaide seaside suburb of

Somerton Park Somerton Park was a football, greyhound racing and speedway stadium in Newport, South Wales. Football In April 1912 Newport County had been accepted to play in the Southern League for the 1912–13 season. Shortly afterwards, the site f ...

, and later with a

foster family Foster care is a system in which a minor has been placed into a ward, group home (residential child care community, treatment center, etc.), or private home of a state-certified caregiver, referred to as a "foster parent" or with a family mem ...

. After having an argument with her foster brother, she was placed at Vaughan House, which was a 'home for wayward girls' in the northern

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

suburb of

Enfield Enfield may refer to: Places Australia * Enfield, New South Wales * Enfield, South Australia ** Electoral district of Enfield, a state electoral district in South Australia, corresponding to the suburb ** Enfield High School (South Australia) ...

. Hunter met her partner for life,

, at the age of 16, while both were homeless teenagers, at the Salvation Army People's Palace, on

Pirie Street, Adelaide Pirie Street is a road on the east side of the Adelaide city centre, South Australia. It runs east–west, between East Terrace and King William Street. After crossing King William Street, it continues as Waymouth Street. It forms the souther ...

. It was Roach who inspired Hunter to learn to play the

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

and write her own music.

Performing career

Hunter first performed in public in 1988 during a festival at

Bondi Pavilion The Bondi Surf Pavilion in Sydney, New South Wales (NSW), Australia, is an outstanding beach cultural icon of Australia, together with the beach, park and surf lifesaving club. The structure is listed on the NSW State Heritage Register 01786 a ...

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

, where she performed "Proud, Proud Woman," the first song she had written. In 1990, she wrote the autobiographical "

Down City Streets "Down City Streets" is a song written by Australian singer songwriter Ruby Hunter and recorded by her husband Archie Roach. The song was released in 1991 as the second single from Roach's debut studio album ''Charcoal Lane'' (1990). "Down City ...

", which was performed by Roach on his debut solo album ''

Charcoal Lane ''Charcoal Lane'' is the debut studio album by Australian singer song writer Archie Roach, released in 1990. Name From the 1960s through to the 1980s, the inner-city Melbourne suburb of Fitzroy was a meeting place for Aboriginal people who had l ...

''. In 1994, Hunter became the first

Indigenous Australian Indigenous Australians or Australian First Nations are people with familial heritage from, and membership in, the ethnic groups that lived in Australia before British colonisation. They consist of two distinct groups: the Aboriginal peoples ...

woman to record a solo rock album, and the first Aboriginal woman signed to a major

record label A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the produ ...

, when she released her debut album ''Thoughts Within''. The album launched her career as a performer and songwriter. Thereafter she toured with Roach, both within Australian and overseas, releasing her second album, ''Feeling Good'', in May 2000. Also in that year Hunter appeared in a

feature Feature may refer to: Computing * Feature (CAD), could be a hole, pocket, or notch * Feature (computer vision), could be an edge, corner or blob * Feature (software design) is an intentional distinguishing characteristic of a software item ...

-length

documentary film A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional film, motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". Bill Nichols (film critic), Bil ...

, ''Land of the Little Kings'', which told the stories of Indigenous children affected by being forcibly removed from their families. The name of the film derives from a song by Paul Kelly, which is sung by Roach in the film. In the film, Hunter returns to her childhood home for the first time, and relates the story of her childhood. The film won a Human Rights Award in the television category in 2000. In 2001 Hunter made her acting debut in the award-winning feature fiction film ''

One Night the Moon ''One Night the Moon'' is a 2001 Australian musical non-feature film starring husband and wife team Paul Kelly, a singer-songwriter, and Kaarin Fairfax, a film and television actress, along with their daughter Memphis Kelly. The film was dire ...

'', directed by

Rachel Perkins Rachel Perkins (born 1970) is an Australian film and television director, producer, and screenwriter. She directed the films ''Radiance'' (1998), ''One Night the Moon'' (2001), ''Bran Nue Dae'' (2010), and ''Jasper Jones'' (2017). Perkins is an ...

and starring Paul Kelly. With Roach,

Paul Grabowsky Paul Atherstone Grabowsky (born 27 September 1958) is an Australian pianist and composer. Biography Born in Lae, Papua New Guinea, Grabowsky is a pianist and composer of music for film, theatre and opera. His father Alistair had lived in Papu ...

and his

Australian Art Orchestra The Australian Art Orchestra (AAO) is one of Australia's leading contemporary ensembles. Founded by pianist Paul Grabowsky in 1994, it has been led by composer/trumpeter/sound artist Peter Knight since 2013 and led by pianist/composer/producer A ...

(AAO), she wrote and performed the concert ''

Ruby's Story ''Ruby'' is a soundtrack album recorded live by Australian singers Archie Roach and Ruby Hunter with Paul Grabowsky and Australian Art Orchestra. The album, based on a musical production called ''Ruby's Story'' staged in 2004, was released in 200 ...

'', which tells her life story through song and spoken word. The production debuted at the Message Sticks Festival 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 architec ...

in June 2004, to good reviews. In 2004, the soundtrack won the Deadly Award for Excellence in Film & Theatrical Score, and the show went on to tour nationally and internationally until 2009. The soundtrack was released as an album on CD and as a digital download in 2005. In October 2004 a new concert, once again a collaboration with Roach, Grabowsky and the AAO, entitled ''Kura Tungar – Songs from the River'', premiered at the

Melbourne International Arts Festival Melbourne International Arts Festival, formerly Spoleto Festival Melbourne – Festival of the Three Worlds, then Melbourne International Festival of the Arts, becoming commonly known as Melbourne Festival, was a major international arts festi ...

, which was directed by

Robyn Archer Robyn Archer, AO, CdOAL (born 1948) is an Australian singer, writer, stage director, artistic director, and public advocate of the arts, in Australia and internationally. Life Archer was born Robyn Smith in Prospect, South Australia. She beg ...

that year. The concert, which was directed by Patrick Nolan, told stories from the two performers' lives, and featured songs about the Murray River and Ngarrindjeri Country, Ruby's home. The music used Roach and Hunter’s lyrics and chords combined with Grabowsky and the AAO's contemporary jazz orchestration. It played to full houses which gave

standing ovation A standing ovation is a form of applause where members of a seated audience stand up while applauding after extraordinary performances of particularly high acclaim. In Ancient Rome returning military commanders (such as Marcus Licinius Crassus a ...

s and was later performed at the

and

Adelaide Festival Centre Adelaide Festival Centre, Australia's first multi-purpose arts centre and the home of South Australia's performing arts, was built in the 1970s, designed by Hassell Architects. The Festival Theatre opened in June 1973 with the rest of the centr ...

. In 2005 ''Kura Tungar'' won the

Helpmann Award The Helpmann Awards are accolades for live entertainment and performing arts in Australia, presented by industry group Live Live Performance Australia (LPA) since 2001. The annual awards recognise achievements in the disciplines of musical th ...

for the Best Contemporary Australian Concert at the

5th Helpmann Awards The 5th Annual Helpmann Awards for live performance in Australia were held on 8 August 2005 at the Lyric Theatre in Sydney. '' The Sapphires'' by Tony Briggs, produced by Melbourne Theatre Company, was named Best Play and Best New Australian Wo ...

. In 2005, Hunter was invited by

Deborah Conway Deborah Ann Conway (born 8 August 1959) is an Australian rock singer-songwriter and guitarist, and had a career as a model and actress. She was a founding member of the 1980s rock band Do-Ré-Mi with their top 5 hit "Man Overboard". Conw ...

to take part in the Broad Festival project, with three other Australian female artists, where they performed their own and each other's songs. With Hunter and Conway were

Sara Storer Sara Bettine Storer (born 6 October 1973) is an Australian country music singer-songwriter and former teacher. She won a record breaking seven Golden Guitar awards in the Tamworth Country Music Festival in January 2004, and as of 2017, she has w ...

Katie Noonan Katie Anne Noonan (born 2 May 1977) is an Australian singer-songwriter. In addition to a successful solo career encompassing opera, jazz, pop, rock and dance, she was the singer in the band George and remains the singer in the band Elixir; perf ...

and

Clare Bowditch Clare Bowditch (born 1975) is an Australian musician, actress, radio presenter and business entrepreneur. At the ARIA Music Awards of 2006, Bowditch won the ARIA Award for Best Female Artist and was nominated for a Logie Award for her work on ...

Personal life

Hunter and Roach had a close and lifelong bond from the moment of their meeting, sharing a deep love that nourished both of them. They had two sons and officially fostered three children. They also mentored teenagers in the family home; unofficially, Roach estimated around 15 to 20 further children over the years. Hunter said that her proudest achievement was keeping her family together as a stable unit.

Death and legacy

Hunter died of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

on 17 February 2010, aged 54. Her partner

established Ruby's Foundation to help continue her legacy. The foundation is dedicated to creating opportunities for Aboriginal people through the promotion, celebration and support of Aboriginal arts and culture. the Ruby Hunter Foundation has a

Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin M ...

page, but no website or other presence. At the 2020

National Indigenous Music Awards The National Indigenous Music Awards (NIMA), also known as the NT Indigenous Music Awards from 2004 to 2008, are music awards presented to recognise excellence, innovation and leadership among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander musicians in ...

, Hunter was inducted into its Hall of Fame. '' Wash My Soul in the River's Flow'' (2021), written and directed by Philippa Bateman and produced by Bateman, Kate Hodges and Archie Roach, is a feature-length documentary based on the 2004 concert ''Kura Tungar-Songs from the River'', featuring Roach, Hunter, Paul Grabowsky and the Australian Art Orchestra, in which Hunter and Roach sing about the Murray River and Ngarrindjeri lands. The film also tells of the love story between Hunter and Roach, and is interspersed with vision of

The Coorong Coorong National Park is a protected area located in South Australia about south-east of Adelaide, that predominantly covers a coastal lagoon ecosystem officially known as The Coorong and the Younghusband Peninsula on the Coorong's southern si ...

. Hunter is featured wearing

pelican Pelicans (genus ''Pelecanus'') are a genus of large water birds that make up the family Pelecanidae. They are characterized by a long beak and a large throat pouch used for catching prey and draining water from the scooped-up contents before s ...

feathers, with Roach explaining that she was a pelican in the

Dreamtime The Dreaming, also referred to as Dreamtime, is a term devised by early anthropologists to refer to a religio-cultural worldview attributed to Australian Aboriginal mythology, Australian Aboriginal beliefs. It was originally used by Francis Ja ...

and that her spirit has returned to being a pelican. The film had its

world premiere A première, also spelled premiere, is the debut (first public presentation) of a play, film, dance, or musical composition. A work will often have many premières: a world première (the first time it is shown anywhere in the world), its firs ...

at the

Brisbane International Film Festival The Brisbane International Film Festival (BIFF) is an annual film festival held in Brisbane, Australia. Organised by the Screen Culture unit at Screen Queensland, the festival has taken place since 1992, with the program including features, doc ...

in October 2021 and was an official selection for the

Sydney Film Festival The Sydney Film Festival is an annual competitive film festival held in Sydney, Australia, usually over 12 days in June. A number of awards are given, the top one being the Sydney Film Prize. the festival's director is Nashen Moodley. Histo ...

and the

Melbourne International Film Festival The Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF) is an annual film festival held over three weeks in Melbourne, Australia. It was founded in 1952 and is one of the oldest film festivals in the world following the founding of the Venice Film Fest ...

in December 2021. In 2021, a group of people in the

region started a campaign to rename Goat Island to Ruby Hunter Island to honour her legacy. As Goat Island is part of the Murray River National Park, the

Department for Environment and Water The Department for Environment and Water (DEW) is a department of the Government of South Australia. Created on 1 July 2012 by the merger of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources and the Department for Water as the Department of ...

has the final say. In 2022, two side-by-side pillar-shaped monuments were erected on the shores of Lake Bonney at

Barmera Barmera is a town in the Riverland region of South Australia. It is on the Sturt Highway A20, 220 kilometres north-east of Adelaide, the capital of the state of South Australia. It is primarily an agricultural and viticultural town and is l ...

, in homage to Hunter and Roach. Glass

mosaic A mosaic is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and were particularly pop ...

artwork on the front side of each monument, designed by Hunter's sister-in-law, Rosslyn Richards, depict Hunter's Ngarrindjeri totem, the pelican () and Roach's totem, the

eagle Eagle is the common name for many large birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of genera, some of which are closely related. Most of the 68 species of eagle are from Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, just ...

, respectively. Hunter continues to be known affectionately as Aunty Ruby.

Publications

* "A Change is Gonna Come", poem (1995), published in the journal ''

Republica Republica are an English alternative rock band formed in 1994. The height of their popularity spanned from 1996 to 1999. The current line-up consists of Saffron (vocals), Tim Dorney (keyboards), Johnny Male (guitar), Conor Lawrence (drums). T ...

'' * Co-author (illustrator), with Roach, ''Took the Children Away'' (2010), a children's book created from the song; 30th anniversary edition shortlisted in 2021

Australian Book Industry Awards The Australian Book Industry Awards (ABIA) are publishers' and literary awards held by the Australian Publishers Association annually in Sydney "to celebrate the achievements of authors and publishers in bringing Australian books to readers". ...

, Australian Book of the Year for Younger Children * Co-author, with Roach, ''Butcher paper, texta, black board and chalk'' (2012), a children's song-book which features Aboriginal songs about land, health and life. Many of the songs were written through songwriting and music workshops held by Hunter and Roach with children across Cape York in

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

Discography

Albums

Filmography

*'' Evil Angels'' (1988) *''

Correlli ''Correlli'' is an Australian television series first broadcast by ABC TV in 1995. It starred Deborra-Lee Furness as prison psychologist Louisa Correlli. The series also featured her future husband Hugh Jackman in one of his earliest roles. ...

(TV mini-series, 1995) *''The Land of Little Kings'' (2000) *''

'' (2001) *'' Wash My Soul in the River's Flow'' (2021)

Awards and nominations

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 ...

. , - ,

1995 File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is O. J. Simpson murder case, acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the 1994, year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The ...

, ''Thoughts Within'' , Best Indigenous Release , , - ,

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...

, ''Feeling Good'' , Best Blues & Roots Album , , -

The Deadly Awards

The Deadly Awards The Deadly Awards, commonly known simply as The Deadlys, was an annual celebration of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander achievement in music, sport, entertainment and community. The event was held from 1995 to 2013. Description T ...

, commonly known simply as The Deadlys, was an annual celebration of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander achievement in music, sport, entertainment and community. The ran from 1995 to 2013. , - ,

Deadly Awards 2000 The Deadlys Awards 2000, were an annual celebration of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander achievement in music, sport, entertainment and community. Music *Excellence In Film or Theatrical Score: Wesley Enoch - ''The Sunshine Club' ...

, Hunter , Female Artist of the Year , , - ,

Deadly Awards 2003 Deadly Awards were an annual celebration of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander achievement in music, sport, entertainment and community. Music *Male Artist of the Year: Troy Cassar-Daley *Female Artist of the Year: Christine Anu * ...

, Hunter and Roach , Outstanding Contribution to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Music , , - ,

Deadly Awards 2004 Deadly Awards 2004 the awards were an annual celebration of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander achievement in music, sport, entertainment and community. Music *Most Promising New Talent in Music: Casey Donovan *Single Release of t ...

, ''

'' , Excellence in Film & Theatrical Score , , -

Helpmann Awards

The

Helpmann Awards The Helpmann Awards are accolades for live entertainment and performing arts in Australia, presented by industry group Live Live Performance Australia (LPA) since 2001. The annual awards recognise achievements in the disciplines of musical t ...

is an awards show, celebrating live entertainment and performing arts in Australia, presented by industry group ''Live Performance Australia'' (LPA) since 2001. , - ,

2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...

, , ''Kura Tungar: Songs from the River'' (with Archie Roach) , , Best Australian Contemporary Concert , , , -

National Indigenous Music Awards

The

recognise excellence, innovation and leadership among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander musicians from throughout Australia. They commenced in 2004. , - ,

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- ...

, herself , Hall of Fame , , -

Sidney Myer Performing Arts Awards

The

Sidney Myer Performing Arts Awards The Sidney Myer Performing Arts Awards were created in 1984 by the trustees of the Sidney Myer Fund to mark the 50th anniversary of the death of Sidney Myer Sidney Myer (born Simcha Myer Baevski (); 8 February 18785 September 1934) was a Ru ...

commenced in 1984 and recognise outstanding achievements in dance, drama, comedy, music, opera, circus and puppetry. , - , 2009 , , Ruby Hunter (with Archie Roach) , , Individual Award , , , -

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hunter, Ruby 1955 births 2010 deaths Australian songwriters Indigenous Australian musicians Members of the Stolen Generations People from South Australia Ngarrindjeri 20th-century Australian women singers