OMG - it's the Return of Sampa the Great!

Music Moving the Metro Chart

The rise of Sampa the Great has been spectacular to watch, from the immediate success of her debut, The Great Mixtape in 2015 to her second release in 2017 titled Birds And The BEE9, which gained the Zambian-born Melbourne artist the coveted Australian Music Prize. Sampa capped off last year with the release of Energy, paving the way for her first full-length album, The Return due in September. Her latest single, OMG, sits at number 4 on the Amrap Metro Chart this week, addressing Sampa’s ideas of home through the exploration of her African heritage.

Sampa’s not far behind Alice Skye at number 1 with her latest, Speak Your Language. It’s taken from Deadly Hearts 2 - the most recent collection of iconic Australian songs reworked by contemporary First Nations artists. Skye moves Leah Flanagan’s original into pop territory with the delicacy and sparkle the young Wergaia woman is known for. In her own words: “First Nations people are so multi-faceted and diverse but sometimes I feel this outside pressure to fit an archetype and tackle huge political topics via song - but it is just as powerful for us to be singing whatever it is that we are feeling, and existing as who we are.” Deadly Hearts 2 was released earlier this month and features Amrap favourites Dobby, Emily Wurramara, Archie Roach and Birdz.

Hits on the Regional Chart

Perth’s Psychedelic Porn Crumpets are back with Hymn For A Droid, the second single from their new album, And Now For The Whatchamacallit. They’ve jumped straight to the top of the Amrap Regional Chart with their unique brand of garage-grunge and sweeping melodies. ILUKA has also returned to the charts with Fall Apart Again at number 8 on Amrap Regional. The track combines soaring guitars with airy synths, allowing the Sydney artist's stunning vocals to charge forward and shine. ILUKA shimmers on the track as she navigates a narrative built on an emotional tug o’ war. The result is one of her brightest efforts to date.

Beyond The Charts

DZ Deathrays have dropped the second taste of their forthcoming album Positive Rising: Part 1. Teaming up with The Bronx lead singer, Matt Caughthran Year Of The Dog is a pedal to the floor thrashy party banger. The band say Caughthran d’rove an hour from his house, came into the vocal booth and nailed his part on, like, the first go,” While not in the charts yet, we’re tipping this to jump in soon.

If you are a community broadcaster and looking to find the latest tracks from across the country, get involved with Amrap's AirIt and start browsing what Australia's independent music scene has to offer!

The Amrap Charts show the top ten tracks ordered for airplay by community broadcasters through the Amrap’s AirIt music distribution service in both metropolitan and regional areas of the country. Amrap is an initiative of the Community Broadcasting Association of Australia which distributes new Australian music to community radio stations nationwide & empowers broadcasters to promote new Australian music on air & online.