About this event

Miss Kaninna is a First Nations artist whose music, voice, and presence have made her one of the most compelling figures in so-called Australian music today. Hailing from Bruny Island, Tasmania, she is of Yorta Yorta, Dja Dja Wurrung, Kalkadoon, and Yirendali heritage. She made history in 2024 with her debut single, Blak Britney, earning three ARIA nominations, including Best Independent Release, becoming the first independent Aboriginal woman nominated for an ARIA for a debut single. The track reached #1 on triple j, featured in Netflix’s Heartbreak High, and was named by Rolling Stone as one of the Best Australian & NZ Songs of the 21st Century, marking a critical and cultural breakthrough.

Her debut EP, KANINNA, followed to critical acclaim, winning Best Independent Hip-Hop EP/Album and Breakthrough Independent Artist of the Year at the 2025 Australian Independent Music (AIR) Awards, while also receiving an ARIA nomination for Best Hip-Hop Release.

In late 2025, Miss Kaninna took her music overseas, joining Irish rappers Kneecap for an 18-date sold-out tour across the UK and Europe. From Amsterdam to Glasgow, her ferocious charisma, rage, and resistance made every performance an uncompromising statement of identity and truth.

At home, she has supported Amyl and the Sniffers, Hiatus Kaiyote, and M.I.A, while also sharing stages with Stormzy, Steve Lacy, and RAYE on the 2024 Laneway Festival tour. She was named triple j Unearthed Artist of the Year, received SXSW Sydney’s inaugural Justin Cosby Award for Best New Talent, and was included in NME’s 2025 Essential 100 Emerging Artists. In 2026, Amazon named her one of its Global Artists to Watch.

Miss Kaninna’s reputation as a live performer rests on her ability to hold space, rousing rage and joy in equal measure. Floating effortlessly between hip-hop, R&B, rock, and pop, her genre-defying approach to performance provides a staunch foundation for a new artist with an urgency for change.

With activism a crucial thread in both her lineage and her art, contributing her platform and support to marginalised communities forms a vital part of her practice. In 2025, she spearheaded the creation of Sovereign Day Out—a festival to uplift First Nations people following a white supremacist attack on sacred land—and continues ongoing work with initiatives supporting Indigenous, immigrant, LGBTQI+, and women’s rights.

With each milestone and movement, Miss Kaninna continues to solidify her place as an artist whose voice and presence command attention. She is a cultural leader.

LISTEN