All eyes are on Budjerah. Feeling “super fresh and ready to take everything on,” the 21-year-old Coodjingburra musician from the Bundjalung nation has been rehearsing next door to his family home, in his grandfather’s garage, with a new band. He’s getting ready to support Ed Sheeran on a nationwide tour and it’s been a whirlwind three years for him: releasing two EPs, winning the ARIA Breakthrough Artist award in 2021 and releasing a remix of a song, 2step, with Sheeran. Budjerah is just getting started.

Budjerah Slabb was born in 2002 in the small New South Wales town of Fingal Head. In the native language of the Coojingburra people, his name means first light. “I was born on a Sunday and my parents [who are both pastors] said that by Thursday they were practicing in church and I was there with my mum. I was straight into hearing that kind of music as soon as I could get out of the hospital.” Budjerah’s voice is strong, his melodies are sweet and his lyrics are thoughtful. His foundations come from church and he considers himself more of a gospel singer than the R&B label he is known for. “A lot of my music is based in what I listen to. I normally come back to listening to gospel music. My family were the band in church: my mum sang, my dad played the drums. Everyone played, so as far as my technique and the way I play and the way I structure my songs, it’s all based around gospel techniques.” He also notes that growing up by the beach has influenced him and his cousins to listen to a lot of reggae music, which we can see from the big banner of Bob Marley in his grandfather’s garage rehearsal space. It’s these spiritual, soulful influences that are cutting through Budjerah’s tone and music, setting him apart from his peers.

A close-knit, creative family has allowed him to fly and have fun. “That’s what it’s all about. My parents just said: do what you love and have fun with it. If you’re not having fun don’t do it. It helps you to have so much more creative freedom when you don’t have any pressure in that way.” His dad has been instrumental in shaping his artistry, teaching a young Budjerah how to write and sing. “My dad is a little bit of a harsh teacher but I think that’s good. If your teacher doesn’t make you cry then they’re not teaching you right,” he laughs. “But I really do trust my dad’s opinion. He’s got me this far.” The two of them film every show and play them back, closely watching, contrastively criticising and pointing out where “I should probably put a drum fill or sing this note here or open my mouth more… I see the difference it makes. My dad is a very smart man and I trust him with everything I do.” His inner circle is made up of his family members. “I still take one of my parents with me [on the road]. We’re driving half of the tour for Ed Sheeran and my dad is coming with me the whole way.” At this point in the conversation, Budjerah’s mum can be heard close by, pointing out that she “wanted the job but didn’t get it this year”, as she will be at home continuing to homeschool his siblings: his sister, Jalaan, is a professional surfer and board shaper; his other sister Namaala has just begun acting; and his brother Ngandu, the youngest, simply “does everything well – it’s quite annoying,” he says with a smile.

Budjerah’s family values have shaped what his music-making is all about: “My goal in music has always been – and my dad taught me this – it’s never really been about me. I enjoy singing, but when I perform and when I sing to people, my goal is to make sure they feel something. I have sad songs, I have happy songs; when I sing one song I hope they feel love and I hope they feel cared for, or if they’re going through a tough time I hope that this song can inspire them to get through whatever they’re going through. That’s all I want. If I can be there through my music to help someone, that’s what I stand for.” Performing feels like Budjerah’s purpose. It’s where he bares his soul and where he comes alive. “Oh man, I love performing. Before I started writing I was doing school musicals and all of that. All I want to do was be like Usher and Beyoncé.” His references are legends with powerhouse voices and technical ability who are leaders in commanding a stage, very much the idols of his generation. “One of my other favourite singers ever is Kelly Clarkson. I would love to sing with her. Whenever I go to sing I think, ‘How would Kelly Clarkson hit this note?’” Getting a band has changed the live experience. “It’s definitely changed the way I have been singing and how I approach recording. I think this year people will start to notice a bit of a difference in my performance.”

Australian singer-songwriter-producer Matt Corby has been a guiding force for Budjerah. The two met when the latter was only 15 and have since collaborated on both of his EPs, continuing to write together at Corby’s magical Rainbow Valley Studios. “He’s a really good mentor,” Budjerah says. “I met him when I got to open for him in Brisbane and we became friends after that. Any questions I’ve had, like when I got my record deal, we went to his house and I asked what he thought. He has been through it all, so it was helpful to have someone who is so knowledgeable to help guide me. Musically, he really helped me improve my singing, especially working on my breathing. He has helped build upon what my family had taught me.” Budjerah’s Indigenous heritage inspires his storytelling through his songwriting and his process is empowered by and rooted in collaboration. When talking about his new singles Therapy and Video Game, he considers how he has simply been inspired by good music from his close collaborators. “Therapy was a pitch track I heard in Hawaii. I just thought it was awesome, so I asked if I could sing it. I may not have written all the lyrics or done too much with the structure but the way I perform it, that brings a different kind of creative energy in the song.” Video Game, the second single for 2023, was written by Corby and singer Meg Mac. “I was doing some writing sessions with Meg and Matt and I showed up one morning and they had written a whole song and asked me to sing it. I think my creativity recently has been more based in the performance of a piece rather than composing it, which I don’t think is a bad thing.”

As Budjerah runs free across Yarra Beach for the 10 Men Australia shoot, that intrinsic lightness shines bright. Dressed in Miuccia Prada and Raf Simons’ Prada Menswear SS23 collection, which is inspired by a boy turning into a man, feels just right on him. “Fashion is so fun for me now. I love doing photoshoots. I love getting dressed up on stage. If I do a fitting, I try on everything. I love it.” His trajectory as an artist has been incredible to watch. “It’s kind of hard from my perspective [to see it],” he says. “I’m the insider, I don’t really know how people are seeing me. But when I talk about going on tour with Ed Sheehan or that I went to the ARIA Awards and won, it feels like I’m lying to people. It’s strange to me when people say it’s all happening and I’m like, is it all happening?!” His first ARIA win is one of the best moments on the journey so far for him, topped by a performance at A More Perfect Union festival in 2022: “I had the sunset slot and half-way through my set I sang a song called My Name off the Conversations EP. There’s a pause in the song, because I get the crowd to sing with me. I remember pausing and holding out this note and the crowd started cheering. Normally they cheer and quickly stop, but at this show it was the loudest crowd I’d ever heard, like, 10,000 people at Sandstone Point. They just kept cheering. I was standing on stage looking at my band for about half a minute. I was like, wow… seeing them sing along to my words, I didn’t think people listened to my songs that much. I was a little bit unsure at that time, too, wondering if I was doing the right thing. I’d just come back from an overseas tour and it was a pretty long one. And then I did that show and it set me back straight. That was the best moment.”

After this conversation, Budjerah will be going back into the garage to continue rehearsals. He’s found a lot of love for photography and has been documenting his journey. “I’ve just moved onto film, I’ve been capturing everything. I also just got a little handy cam so now I’m creating videos. I’ve been videoing rehearsals.” His grandfather’s garage is known as The Jam Shed. “There’s something in there. Yothu Yindi come here and rehearse. People are coming in and out of that shed all the time. I think it has a great creative energy. People don’t think too much [when they play] in there, they just have fun.” It sounds like the motto for his life. Everyone is rooting for Budjerah. 

Budjerah wears Prada in the new issue of 10 Men Australia, photographed by Joe Brennan and styled by Mercedes Rigby. Out now.

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