Dan Sultan – Nali & Friends

Dan Sultan brings his new kids album to HOTA!

Dan is an Australian alternative rock singer-songwriter and guitarist. At the ARIA Music Awards of 2010 he won Best Male Artist and Best Blues & Roots Album for his second album, Get Out While You Can. At the 2014 ceremony he won Best Rock Album for Blackbird, which had reached number four on the ARIA Albums Chart. In 2017, Sultan’s record Killer was nominated for three ARIA awards: Best Male Artist, Best Rock Album, and Best Independent Release.

Nali & Friends is Dan’s first full-length kids album, but he is no stranger to the genre—having previously collaborated with children’s music icons The Wiggles and Play School. It was during a trip to Uganda with “The Thin Green Line” Wildlife rangers that Dan & Rhys had the opportunity to get up close with baby animals and observe their quirky personalities. This resulted in a new album being written bursting with playful, upbeat songs, interwoven with heart-warming stories about growing up, protecting our natural world, and learning to accept difference.

The album’s narrative arc follows the journey of hero character Nali, a baby Arctic bird with a crooked wing, who loses her way flying from the North to the South Pole. Along the way she meets different animals from all around the world, from the jungles of Uganda to the highlands of Borneo and the deserts of Australia.

During the show, young audiences are introduced to a cast of colourful characters. There are giraffes who think they’re elephants (‘Tembo’); blobfish who just want to rock’n’roll (‘Bobby’); easily frightened frill-necked lizards (‘Gulamana’); and flatulent baby gorillas (‘Bwindi’). Nali and her new pals learn about friendship, kindness and how to care for the world around us. Nali & Friends invites young children into a world where they can sing, dance, laugh and learn.

Dan Sultan tells us, “I co-wrote this with long-time friend and collaborator, filmmaker Rhys Graham, the stories were inspired by our journey through Uganda and Kenya working with The Thin Green Line Foundation—an international organisation that provides welfare and support to Wildlife Rangers. It was during this trip that we had the opportunity to get up close with baby animals and observe their quirky personalities. It was one of the most rewarding musical experiences I’ve had to date. There are elements, to this story of Nali, which talk about being nice to people and being a good person.”

“To celebrate the release, I’m taking the songs out on the road for my first run of kids shows. You can catch Me, Nali and Friends at HOTA on the 5th of October!”