Drmngnow | |
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Birth name | Neil Morris |
Born | Victoria, Australia |
Origin | Victoria, Australia |
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Years active | 2018–present |
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Neil Morris, known professionally as Drmngnow (stylised in all caps), is an Aboriginal Australian rapper, dancer, artist, and actor.
A Yorta Yorta/ Kaieltheban man, [1] Morris' stage name is a contraction of the phrase "dreaming now", referring to the Aboriginal concept of The Dreaming. [2]
Morris grew up on Yorta Yorta Country in Shepparton, a city in rural Victoria, Australia. He was first exposed to music via his parents' record collection that included Michael Jackson, Guns N' Roses, Midnight Oil, and Blondie. [3]
As a teen he discovered hip-hop, collating and trading cassette tapes of hip-hop artists Ice-T, N.W.A., Ice Cube, De La Soul, A Tribe Called Quest, and Wu Tang Clan. He and his friends also played basketball. [3]
After leaving school, he felt lost, feeling pain and grief and using drugs to numb his emotions. In 2001 he moved to the Melbourne's northern suburbs, and started studying for a Bachelor of Arts with a focus on creative writing, at the same time writing poetry. However he started experiencing thoughts of suicide by the end of 2002. He did a traineeship in conservation and land management and through his twenties travelled and worked seasonally in the rural sector. [3]
Morris started making his own music when he started to play guitar in 2005, learning " Come as You Are" by Nirvana, with his brother, and first performed on stage in 2015. [3]
He uses his music as to explore culture, community and country, and provokes discussion and education around Australia's Indigenous history and future. [4] He sings in Yorta Yorta. [3]
In November 2022, he collaborated with other First Nations artists Emma Donovan, Emily Wurramara, DOBBY, and Optamus to create a song in memory of Cassius Turvey, a Noongar- Yamatji boy who had died at the age of 15 the result of an assault by a random attacker when walking home from school in Perth, Western Australia. The song, titled "Forever 15", [5] was played at Turvey's funeral on 18 November 2022 funeral [6] and released three days later on 21 November 2022. [5] [7]
Title | Year | Album |
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"Australia Does Not Exist" (featuring Philly, Adrian Eagle, Culture Evolves and Pataphysics) |
2018 | Non-album singles |
"Indigenous Land" | ||
"Ancestors" (featuring Kee'Ahn) |
2019 | |
"We See You" | ||
"Always Remember" (featuring Kee'Ahn, Paul Gorrie and Pataphysics) | ||
"Survive" (featuring River Boy) |
2020 | |
"Never Defeated" | ||
"Get Back to the Land"
[8] (featuring Emily Wurramara) |
Deadly Hearts: Walking Together [9] |
Title | Year | Album |
---|---|---|
"IndiGenius" (with Rush Wepiha) |
2019 | IndiGenius |
"Medicine Weapon" (with Kosmic Force) |
2021 | Sound of a Weapon |
The Music Victoria Awards are an annual awards night celebrating Victorian music. They commenced in 2006.
Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
2018 | Drmngnow | Best Hip Hop Act | Nominated | [10] [11] |
2019 | Drmngnow | Best Solo Artist | Nominated | |
Drmngnow | Breakthrough Victorian Act | Nominated | ||
Drmngnow | Best Hip Hop Act | Nominated | ||
Drmngnow | The Archie Roach Foundation Award for Emerging Talent | Nominated | ||
2020 | Drmngnow | Best Electronic Act | Nominated | |
Drmngnow | Best Hip Hop Act | Nominated | ||
2021 | Drmngnow | Best Hip Hop Act | Won | [12] |