The emergence of cultural diversity in the Australian music scene

As a country with a range of multicultural neighbors, Australia was bound to receive influences from every direction, turning into a hub of arts, culture, and diversity.

Lemes band member, Nandrasrama Basuki, dancing at Swinburne University of Technology’s PPIA Culture Day 2025. (Credit: Lemes)

Recent ABS data shows 22% of Australian citizens can speak a language other than English, and this number is growing every day.

However, a recent report by Creative Australia tells a different story.

In 2024, just 1 in 7 of every practising Australian artist identified as culturally and linguistically diverse. So what is the reason behind this major disparity?

According to Therese Virtue, Director The Boîte, a multicultural music organisation[from], “it’s harder for artists from a non-English speaking background to break into an established profession and form a network of jobs.

Much of the processes artists face to get their work seen or heard require an intermediate or advanced English language ability. 

“It’s always a form in English.” She says, “then you have to put down a blurb about why you have to be on at the festival. Whether or not you can say that in English is a real and significant question.” 

The same report by Creative Australia shows that non-English speaking artists believe their background negatively impacts their career, with 36% of those surveyed agreeing with this statement.

Culturally and linguistically diverse artists often find it hard to break out of their own communities, “especially if your music is inclined to your own culture rather than outside,” said Ellen Chan, Marketing Officer at The Boîte.

Ellen noted that artists have to resort to playing something familiar and more widely accepted by Australian audiences.

This sentiment was reflected by Ria Soemardjo, an Australian-Indonesian musician who, speaking to Monash University, said she found it difficult to explain the music she creates due to its ‘exotic’ elements.

Meanwhile, Indonesian musician, Syifa Aulia believed that catering to the tastes of Australian audiences is part of the process for breaking into the music industry.

“To pull in the market, you'd have to appeal to them first. So I guess, we would have to perform songs that they prefer first,” she said.

Despite the number of challenges that diverse artists must face, those who come out to be commercially successful have been able to reap the rewards. 

Up-and-coming Indonesian student band, Lemes, has seen this lack of diversity as an opportunity for them to bring a piece of their culture to Melbourne’s stages. 

Amadeus Anggaraksa, co-founder and guitarist of Lemes, believed that the band could easily stand out amongst competitors in Melbourne due to their unique genre and style.

According to fellow bandmate Julian Tja, “the Indonesian music scene mostly consists of pop, romance, and breakup songs. We try to bring something more to the table so we can at least match the level of diversity that Melbourne has in the music scene.”

Lemes band members from left to right: Nandrasrama Basuki, Judah Adisurya, Dominique Stella, Chelsea Mohede, Caryn Renata, Syifa Aulia, Theodore Elroy, Josiah Imanuel, Jonathan Hendratno, Amadeus Anggaraksa, Julian Tja. (Credit: Lemes)

Rather than seeing the disparities in diversity as an obstacle, Lemes has been able to use it to their advantage and embrace their distinct sound.

Syifa, one of Lemes’ vocalists, said that the lack of competition makes “working up the ranks” much easier. 

The band’s success has been embraced by the Australian-Indonesian population, as the band has received personal invitations to play at events hosted by Indonesian associations.

“It's great to be able to share new music and share our own music from back home to new audiences. Audiences who haven't heard us or heard Indonesian music before, or even people who are rediscovering Indonesian music,” said Amadeus.

Bar Oussou is a local Senegalese music venue in Brunswick that promotes diversity within Melbourne’s music scene.

“Diversity really yields new experiences for people,” said Spencer, Head of Programming at Bar Oussou.

Orchestra Baobab in Sines, Portugal, 2008. (Credit: Wikimedia Commons)

“Australia is so multicultural that I've always thought we've got our own brand of culture here. The benefit of that is that it results in new and exciting music.”

Spencer’s enthusiasm and Lemes is not just an overly optimistic pipe dream. The data back them up. 

Creative Australia reported that the number of artists from ethnic backgrounds has gradually increased and is up by 5% since 2009.

In support of this trend, the Victorian Government recently announced a $1 million injection into the Music Works Grant.

This amount is almost 200 times more than the average annual income of Australian musicians, as reported by the MEAA.

The Music Works Grant aims to support new and underrepresented artists, paving a way for bands like Lemes.

Therese Virtue is in full support of this program.

She said “the more the government can support the arts, the better”, as funding opportunities for Australian artists are not as abundant as in equivalent countries. 

But, Ellen Chan said that the government can play a larger role in increasing cultural diversity within the music scene, suggesting they implement “quotas with venues about how many culturally diverse acts come through every week, month, or year.”

Bar Oussou prides itself on being a venue that puts its artists first. Spencer said that embracing the artist’s culture and being open to new ideas is important, “supporting the artists is not just a monetary thing - it's building a connection with them.”

No matter how large the gap in the market may be for culturally diverse acts, this space is filled by the pure enthusiasm and determination of the players of Australia’s music industry.

“Cultural diversity is just a reflection of our society in general,” said Ellen Chan.

“We're living in a really troubled world at the moment. The more people can recognise diversity, the less people can turn a blind eye to the atrocities that are happening everywhere,” said Therese Virtue.