Barkaa

Indigenous Australian rapper

Barkaa (born 1995 as Chloe Quayle), styled BARKAA, is an Australian rapper and musician, and is a Malyangapa and Barkindji woman.

In September 2020, GQ Magazine dubbed her "the new matriarch of Australian rap".[1][2] and in 2020, Triple J listed her as one of the top 5 female rappers in Australia.[3]

## Early life[edit]

Barkaa was born as Chloe Quayle in 1995.[4] Her mother was one of the Stolen Generations, and she had an uncle who died in police custody.[5] She lived in the western Sydney suburb of Merrylands as a child. She was known for performing rap at high school, and entered rap competitions in Blacktown.[4] She is a Malyangapa and Barkindji woman.[6]

## Career[edit]

Barkaa takes her name from the Barkindji word for the Darling River,[5] and says that she feels very honoured to have been given permission to use this name to represent her people.[7] Her music reflects her experiences with incarceration, child removal and addiction, with much of it overtly political; she has drawn from the words of Shareena Clanton and Rosalie Kunoth-Monks in her songs.[5]

She first performed in front of an audience in 2019, at a Klub Koori event.[5]

She released her debut single, "For My Tittas", in March 2020.[8][9] Her song "Our Lives Matter", released in June 2020,[10] became the unofficial anthem for the Black Lives Matter movement in Australia.[5] She has collaborated with DOBBY ("I Can't Breathe"[1]) and Electric Fields, and has performed at the Sydney Opera House,[7] Enmore Theatre in Sydney and the Sidney Myer Music Bowl in Melbourne.[1]

As of November 2021 Barkaa is signed to Bad Apples Music, founded by Briggs.[5]

Her debut album was Blak Matriarchy, so named "in honour of powerful First Nations women who've paved the way for future generations", including her mother.[8] The song "King Brown", which she says is about a "shitty ex" is on the album.[5] The album was produced by jayteehazard.[11] The Blak Matriarchy EP begins with a sample of actress Shareena Clanton.[11]

Barkaa performed at the Paartjima festival on the 2022 Easter weekend in Alice Springs.[7]

## Personal life[edit]

Barkaa grew up with a single mother.[11] She was addicted to methamphetamine as a teenager, and spent three periods in juvenile detention or prison, where she gave birth to her third child, a son, in around 2016. She has been free of drugs since then, and has her children back. Her daughter Alinta often performs with her.[5]

## Discography[edit]

### Extended plays[edit]

Title  | EP details  | Peak chart

|
|

AUS

Blak Matriarchy |

* Released: 2 December 2021[12]
* Label: Bad Apples
* Formats: Digital download, streaming

| —[A]

### Singles[edit]

Title  | Year  | Album

|
|

"For My Tittas"[8] | 2020  | Non-album singles
"Our Lives Matter"
"I Can't Breathe"
(with Dobby)[4]
"22Clan"
"Groovy"[14]
"King Brown"[15] | 2021  | Blak Matriarchy
"Blak Matriarchy"
"Fight for Me"[16]
(featuring Electric Fields) | 2022
"Ball On 'em"[17] | TBA
"Division"[18] | 2023  | TBA

## Notes[edit]

1. ^ Blak Matriarchy did not enter the ARIA Albums Chart, but did peak at number 7 on the ARIA Australian Hip Hop/R&B Albums Album Chart.[13]

## Awards and nominations[edit]

### ARIA Music Awards[edit]

The ARIA Music Awards is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of Australian music. They commenced in 1987.

Year  | Nominee / work  | Award  | Result  | Ref.

|
|
|
|

2022 | Blak Matriarchy | Best Hip Hop / Rap Release | Nominated  | [19]
"Blak Matriarchy" (Barkaa, Selina Miles)  | Best Video | Nominated

### National Indigenous Music Awards[edit]

The National Indigenous Music Awards is an annual awards ceremony that recognises the achievements of Indigenous Australians in music.

Year  | Nominee / work  | Award  | Result  | Ref.

|
|
|
|

2022 | Barkaa  | New Talent of the Year  | Nominated  | [20][21]
"King Brown"  | Song of the Year  | Won
"King Brown"  | Film Clip of the Year  | Nominated
"Blak Matriarchy"  | Film Clip of the Year  | Nominated

### National Live Music Awards[edit]

The National Live Music Awards (NLMAs) commenced in 2016 to recognise contributions to the live music industry in Australia.

Year  | Nominee / work  | Award  | Result  | Ref.

|
|
|
|

2023 | Barkaa  | Best Hip Hop Act  | Nominated  | [22][23]

## References[edit]

1. ^ a b c "About". BARKAA. Retrieved 16 April 2022.
2. ^ Campbell, Amy (6 October 2020). "Meet Barkaa, the New Matriarch of Australian Rap". GQ Magazine. Retrieved 16 April 2022. "This piece originally appeared in GQ Australia's September/October 2020 edition"
3. ^ Latukefu, Hau (7 August 2020). "Five female rappers you need to get around". triple j. Retrieved 16 April 2022.
4. ^ a b c Byrne, Declan (10 November 2020). "Bars behind bars: How jail and motherhood forced rising rapper Barkaa to turn life around". Triple J. Retrieved 4 November 2021.
5. ^ a b c d e f g h Israel, Janine (28 November 2021). "'Unapologetically truthful and unapologetically Blak': Australia bows down to Barkaa". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 December 2021.
6. ^ Barkaa (14 April 2021). "Segments: Still Here: Barkaa On The Healing Power Of Rap". Triple R 102.7FM (Interview). Interviewed by Morris, Neil. Archived from the original (Audio + text) on 14 March 2022. Retrieved 16 April 2022.
7. ^ a b c BARKAA (16 April 2022). "Rap matriarch BARKAA and crossing the Borderlands with Van Diemen's Band's Julia Fredersdorff" (Audio + text). ABC Radio National (Interview). The Music Show. Interviewed by Keath, Alice. Retrieved 16 April 2022.
8. ^ a b c Silva, Nadine (3 December 2021). "Barkaa releases debut album honouring Blak matriarchs". NITV. Retrieved 16 April 2022.
9. ^ BARKAA - For My Tittas (Official Video) on YouTube 7 March 2020.
10. ^ BARKAA - Our Lives Matter (Official Audio) on YouTube 6 June 2020.
11. ^ a b c Howarth, Madison (15 December 2021). "BARKAA: Rapper claims the crown with fiery hip-hop that honours Blak women". NME. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
12. ^ Langford, Jackson (2 December 2021). "Barkaa releases her debut EP Blak Matriarchy". NME Australia. Archived from the original on 2 December 2021. Retrieved 31 January 2022.
13. ^ "ARIA Top 10 Australian Hip Hop/R&B Albums for week of 13 December 2021". Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). 10 December 2021. Archived from the original on 31 January 2022. Retrieved 31 January 2022.
14. ^ "Groovy". AllMusic. Retrieved 4 November 2021.
15. ^ "King Brown". AllMusic. Retrieved 4 November 2021.
16. ^ "New Aus Music Playlist ADDITIONS – 01/04/22". Music Feeds. 1 April 2022. Retrieved 2 April 2022.
17. ^ "Chillinit, Sahxl and Barkaa Score Big With NBA 2K23 Campaign". The Music Network. 30 November 2022. Retrieved 2 December 2022.
18. ^ "Barkaa responds to rejection of an Indigenous Voice to Parliament with new single 'Division'". NME. 10 November 2023. Retrieved 11 November 2023.
19. ^ Lars Brandle (12 October 2022). "Rüfüs Du Sol Leads 2022 ARIA Awards Nominees (Full List)". The Music Network. Retrieved 12 October 2022.
20. ^ "Nominees and Performers Announced For National Indigenous Music Awards 2022". Music Feeds. 13 July 2022. Retrieved 14 July 2022.
21. ^ "2022 NIMAs: Baker Boy Wins Two Awards, Archie Roach and Gurrumul Honoured". The Music Network. 6 August 2022. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
22. ^ "Nominees Announced For The 2023 National Live Music Awards". The Music. 5 September 2023. Retrieved 11 September 2023.
23. ^ "Genesis Owusu And Amyl & The Sniffers Win Big At The 2023 National Live Music Awards". The Music. 11 October 2023. Retrieved 12 October 2023.

## External links[edit]

* Official website

*[TBA]: To be announced
*[Ref.]: Reference