Tiddas were an all-female folk trio from

Victoria, Australia Victoria is a state in southeastern Australia. It is the second-smallest state with a land area of , the second most populated state (after New South Wales) with a population of over 6.5 million, and the most densely populated state in ...

.Tiddas at loreoftheland.com
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Biography

1990–1992: Career beginnings and ''Inside My Kitchen''

Originally the three women, Amy Saunders (a Gunditjmara woman from Portland), Lou Bennett (a Yorta Yorta Dja Dja Wurrung woman from Echuca) and Sally Dastey (from West Heidelberg) combined their vocal talents as backing singers for Aboriginal band Djaambi, led by Saunders' brother

Richard Frankland Richard Joseph Frankland is an Australian playwright, scriptwriter and musician. He is an Aboriginal Australian of Gunditjmara origin from Victoria (Australia), Victoria. He has worked significantly for the Aboriginal Australian cause. Biog ...

in 1990. The group were invited to perform at a musical celebration for women's artistic achievement, 'Hot Jam Cooking', in

Richmond, Victoria Richmond is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Yarra local government area. Richmond recorded a population of 28,587 at the 2021 census, with a ...

. Their performance was well received and inspired Ruby Hunter to dub the trio Tiddas, which is

Koori Koori (also spelt koorie, goori or goorie) is a demonym for Aboriginal Australians from a region that approximately corresponds to southern New South Wales and Victoria. The word derives from the Indigenous language Awabakal. For some people ...

for the "sisters". After performing together for over a year the band came to the attention of Paul Petran, host of ABC National Radio show 'Music Deli', who assisted Tiddas to record their debut EP, ''

Inside My Kitchen ''Inside My Kitchen'' is the debut extended play (EP) by Australian three-piece folk group Tiddas. The EP was released in October 1992. In 2018, Lou Bennett said of the title track "I wrote “Inside My Kitchen” after my partner at the time h ...

'' in 1991. ''Inside My Kitchen'' was released in October 1992 and received two nominations, for 'Best New Talent' and 'Best Indigenous Release', at the

ARIA Music Awards of 1993 The Seventh Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (generally known as the ARIA Music Awards or simply The ARIAS) was held on 14 April 1993 at the Entertainment Centre in Sydney. Note: User may be required to access archived ...

. Note: At the 1994 results ARIA incorrectly lists the album title as ''Sing About Love'' at Best Indigenous Release, but lists it as ''Sing About Life'' for Breakthrough Artist – Album nomination.

1993–1997: ''Sing About Life'' and ''Tiddas''

Tiddas quickly became live favourites, touring with

Sweet Honey in the Rock Sweet Honey in the Rock is an all-woman, African-American a cappella ensemble. They are an American three-time Grammy Award–nominated troupe who express their history as black women through song, dance, and sign language. Originally a four-p ...

and

Midnight Oil Midnight Oil (known informally as "The Oils") are an Australian rock band composed of Peter Garrett (vocals, harmonica), Rob Hirst (drums), Jim Moginie (guitar, keyboard) and Martin Rotsey (guitar). The group was formed in Sydney in 1972 ...

, adding didgeridoo player Tim "Froggie" Holtze for their first studio album ''Sing About Life'' which was released in November 1993. The album peaked at No. 36 on the

ARIA charts 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 ...

,Australian (ARIA) chart peaks: *Top 50 peaks: *Top 100 peaks to December 2010: *"Ignorance Is Bliss": N.B. The HP column indicates the highest position reached. achieved gold record sales in Australia (35,000 copies sold), was nominated 'Breakthrough Artist – Album', and won 'Best Indigenous Record' at the

ARIA Music Awards of 1994 The Eighth Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (generally known as the ARIA Music Awards or simply The ARIAS) was held on 30 March 1994 at the State Theatre in Sydney. Radio and TV personality Richard Stubbs hosted the ce ...

. National and international tours followed, including several WOMAD concerts. ''Sing About Life'' was released in the United States in September 1995, spurring tours of North America and Europe. The group's second studio album was produced by

Joe Camilleri Joseph Vincent Camilleri, (born 21 May 1948) aka Jo Jo Zep or Joey Vincent, is a Maltese Australian singer-songwriter and musician. Camilleri has recorded as a solo artist and as a member of Jo Jo Zep & The Falcons and The Black Sorrows. Jo J ...

titled '' Tiddas'' and was released in Australia in August 1996 reaching No. 26 on the

. The album was nominated for 'Best Indigenous Release' at the

ARIA Music Awards of 1997 The 11th Annual Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (generally known as the ARIA Music Awards) were held on 22 September 1997 at the Capitol Theatre in Sydney. The event was hosted by Australian actor–comedian Paul McDer ...

. The first single, " Ignorance is Bliss", was reputedly inspired by an argument with

Bob Geldof Robert Frederick Zenon Geldof (; born 5 October 1951) is an Irish singer-songwriter, and political activist. He rose to prominence in the late 1970s as lead singer of the Irish rock band the Boomtown Rats, who achieved popularity as part o ...

while touring in 1993. Backing musicians on the album included the Black Sorrows' Jen Anderson on violin, Joe Camilleri on sax (on "Waving Goodbye"),

Peter Luscombe Peter Luscombe is an Australian drummer and composer. Career Luscombe was a member of The Black Sorrows from 1985 to 1993 appearing on the albums ''A Place in the World'' (1986), ''Dear Children'' (1987), ''Hold on to Me'' (1988), ''Harley and ...

on drums, Steve Hadley on bass, and

Weddings, Parties, Anything Weddings, Parties, Anything. was an Australian folk rock band formed in 1984 in Melbourne and continuing until 1999. Their name came from The Clash song "Revolution Rock". Musicologist Billy Pinnell described their first album as the best Au ...

's Mark "Squeezebox Wally" Wallace on piano accordion. A second single "Walk Alone" was released in 1997.

1998–2000: ''Lethal By the Kilo'', ''Show Us Ya Tiddas'' and split

In 1998, the girls sang on "

Yil Lull "Yil Lull" is a song written and performed by Joe Geia. It originally appeared on his 1988 album of the same name. Yill Lull means sing in Guugu Yimithirr.Green Left Weekly issue #58 - 3 June 199Hidden Things worth looking for/ref> The colours u ...

" which was released as Singers For The Red Black & Gold. The third studio album, ''Lethal By the Kilo'', was recorded in Melbourne's ABC studios in late 1998. The album received almost no promotion from the record company and failed to chart. On 11 September 1999, Tiddas recorded a live performance at Continental Café which was released as ''Show Us Ya Tiddas'' later in 1999. In May 2000 Tiddas announced they were to break up, and spent months on a national tour to say farewell to their fans. In

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 S ...

Tiddas were awarded a

Deadly Award 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 ...

for 'Outstanding Contribution to Aboriginal Music'.

2018: Reformation and NIMA Hall of Fame

In 2018, the trio announced they were reuniting for a one-off national tour to celebrate the release 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 ...

's “lost” album, '' Dancing with My Spirit'', which was recorded in the 1990s and released in April 2018. In August 2019, Tiddas were inducted into the

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 ...

Hall of Fame.

Awards and nominations

ARIA 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 ...

are a set of annual ceremonies presented by

Australian Recording Industry Association The Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) is a trade association representing the Australian recording industry which was established in the 1970s by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replac ...

(ARIA), which recognise excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of the music of Australia. They commenced in 1987. Tiddas has received one

from six nominations , - , rowspan="2",

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Best New Talent Best or The Best may refer to: People * Best (surname), people with the surname Best * Best (footballer, born 1968), retired Portuguese footballer Companies and organizations * Best & Co., an 1879–1971 clothing chain * Best Lock Corporation, ...

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Sing About Life ''Sing About Life'' is the debut studio album by Australian three-piece folk group Tiddas. The album was released in November 1993 and peaked at number 36 on the ARIA Charts and was certified gold in Australia. The album was re-released in 1994 ...

'' , , Best Indigenous Release , , , - , Breakthrough Artist - Album , , , - , rowspan="1",

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, , rowspan="1", "Changing Times" , , Best Indigenous Release , , , , - , rowspan="1",

1997 File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; '' Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of ...

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Australian Women in Music Awards

The

Australian Women in Music Awards Australian Women in Music Awards (commonly known informally as AWMA) is an annual awards ceremony and conference celebrating the contributions of women in all areas of the Australian music industry. The two-day program includes forums, a show ...

is an annual event that celebrates outstanding women in the Australian Music Industry who have made significant and lasting contributions in their chosen field. They commenced in 2018. , - ,

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 United ...

, Tiddas , Auriel Andrew Memorial Award ,

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. They ran from 1996 to 2013. , - , Deadly Awards 1996 , "themselves" , Band of the Year , , - , Deadly Awards 1997 , " Ignorance is Bliss" , Single Release of the Year , , - , Deadly Awards 1999 , " My Island Home" , Excellence in Film or Theatrical Score , , - ,

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' ...

, "themselves" , Outstanding Contribution to Music , , -

National Indigenous Music Awards

The

(NIMA) recognise excellence, dedication, innovation and outstanding contribution to the

Northern Territory The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory shares its borders with Western Aust ...

music industry. They commenced in 2004. , - ,

National Indigenous Music Awards 2019 The National Indigenous Music Awards 2019 were the 16th annual National Indigenous Music Awards. The nominations were announced on 18 July 2019 and the awards ceremony was held on 12 August 2019. NIMA Reference Group Chair, Warren H. William ...

, themselves , Hall of Fame Inductee , , -

Members

* Sally Dastey * Amy Saunders * Lou Bennett

Discography

Studio albums

Live albums

Extended plays

Singles

References

{{Authority control ARIA Award winners Indigenous Australian musical groups Victoria (Australia) musical groups Musical groups established in 1990 Musical groups disestablished in 2000