ARIA Awards 2025: Amyl and The Sniffers, Ninajirachi Win Big

Punk rock and EDM ruled at the 2025 ARIA Awards, presented Wednesday (Nov. 19) in Sydney, as Amyl and The Sniffers, Ninajirachi and Dom Dolla won big.

With four pointy trophies, Amyl and The Sniffers lauded over the 39^th annual awards, including best group, best rock album, and the coveted album of the year, for Cartoon Darkness, their third studio LP.

If Amy Taylor and Co. were the best-kept secret in pub rock for the past several years, the secret is out. The foursome has emerged as darlings of the international festival circuit, they’ve collected Grammy and Brit Award nominations this year, and they’re opening for AC/DC on the Rock Hall heavyweights’ ongoing stadium tour of Australia.

Taylor always leaves an impression. On winning the ARIA for best cover art, awarded prior to the telecast, the band’s force-of-nature singer Amy Taylor quipped, “I know you just like it because I was flashing my titties.”

On collecting album of the year late in proceedings, Taylor quipped, “as the new prime minister of Australia, I’d like to say: all immigrants welcome. I’d like to say: land back, the dole’s going up and every pub gets a million dollars.” The album, she added, had “changed all of our lives.”

Ninajirachi, the rising “girl EDM” star, entered the ARIAs with a leading eight nominations, and is coming off a gold rush, snagging the Australian Music Prize and triple j’s J Award for her debut full-length album, I Love My Computer. The Hordern Pavilion proved to be another happy hunting ground for Ninajirachi (real name: Nina Wilson), as the electronic music artist, singer, songwriter and producer collected her first ARIAs, for best solo artist, the Michael Gudinski breakthrough artist and best independent release.

Dom Dolla was a winner before the ARIAs got underway. The high-flying Australian electronic music producer and DJ was announced Monday (Nov. 17) as the inaugural global impact recipient, which he collected during the early phases of the ARIAs. Dom, who entered these ARIAs with seven nominations, doubled up with the award for best dance/electronic release, marking his third consecutive win in that category.

Kevin Parker added a brace of ARIAs, nabbing engineer – best engineered release, and producer – best produced release, for his work on the latest Tame Impala collection, Deadbeat. In a taped acceptance speech, Parker revealed that the engineering stage was “probably the thing I spend the longest on when making music.” On scoring the producer trophy, he remarked, “there’s some amazing minds” in the music community. “It’s getting harder and harder to keep up with what’s going on in Australia.”

Other winners included Troye Sivan (best Australian live act), Taylor Swift (most popular international artist), BOY SODA (best soul/R&B), BARKAA (best hip-hop/rap release), Thornhill (best hard rock/heavy metal album), and the Teskey Brothers, who collected a fourth best blues & roots album trophy, a record for that category.

Thelma Plum performed “Nobody’s Baby” from her second album I’m Sorry, Now Say It Back and made a second trip to the stage to collect best pop release, presented by Tyra Banks, the American supermodel and television personality who now calls Sydney home. “I can’t believe Tyra Banks just gave me an ARIA,” Plum remarked. “This feels like a fever dream.”

After shifting roughly 200,000 tickets on its latest national jaunt, the beloved Laneway Festival was confirmed as Australia’s favorite fest by scooping the inaugural best music festival award, introduced this year to recognize and celebrate the critical role Australian music festivals play in the music ecosystem.

Performers at the ARIAs, the Australian recorded music industry’s flagship event, included Olivia Dean, Keli Holiday, Thelma Plum, Missy Higgins, and alternative rock heroes You Am I, who were inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame and had the final word on the night with a two-song performance of “Heavy Heart” and “Berlin Chair.” The nation’s prime minister Anthony Albanese paid tribute to the band in a video package, pointing out that, “along the way, you’ve added to who we are.”

Sponsored by Spotify, the ARIA Awards streamed live across Paramount+, followed by a special presentation on the free-to-air network 10 with performances and moments available on the trade body’s social channels.

2025 ARIA Awards nominations and winners:

Album of the Year
Amyl and The Sniffers – Cartoon Darkness [Amyl and The Sniffers / Virgin Music Group] (WINNER)
Missy Higgins – The Second Act [Eleven Music / EMI Music Australia]Ninajirachi – I Love My Computer [NLV Records]RÜFÜS DU SOL – Inhale / Exhale [Rose Avenue Records / Warner Music Australasia]Thelma Plum – I’m Sorry, Now Say It Back [Warner Music Australasia]

Best Solo Artist
BARKAA – Big Tidda [Big Apples Music / Island Records Australia / Universal Music Australia]Dom Dolla – DREAMIN’ [Good Fortune Records]Kylie Minogue – Tension II [Mushroom Music]Mallrat – Light Hit My Face Like A Straight Right [Dew Process / Universal Music Australia]Missy Higgins – The Second Act [Eleven Music / EMI Music Australia]Ninajirachi – I Love My Computer [NLV Records] (WINNER)
Paul Kelly – Fever Longing Still [EMI Music Australia]The Kid LAROI – How Does It Feel? [Columbia Records / Sony Music]Thelma Plum – I’m Sorry, Now Say It Back [Warner Music Australasia]Young Franco – it’s Franky baby! [Neon Records]

Best Group
Amyl and The Sniffers – Cartoon Darkness [Amyl and The Sniffers / Virgin Music Group] (WINNER)
Folk Bitch Trio – Now Would Be A Good Time [Jagjaguwar]Hilltop Hoods – Fall From The Light [Island Records Australia / Universal Music Australia]Royel Otis – hickey [Ourness / Capitol Records]RÜFÜS DU SOL – Inhale / Exhale [Rose Avenue Records / Warner Music Australasia]

Michael Gudinski Breakthrough Artist presented by Spotify
Folk Bitch Trio – Now Would Be A Good Time [Jagjaguwar]Gut Health – Stiletto [AWAL Recordings]Mia Wray – hi, it’s nice to meet me [Mushroom Music]Ninajirachi – I Love My Computer [NLV Records] (WINNER)
Young Franco – it’s Franky baby! [Neon Records]

Best Pop Release
G Flip – Disco Cowgirl [AWAL Recordings]Kita Alexander – Press Pause [Warner Music Australasia]Kylie Minogue – Tension II [Mushroom Music]Mallrat – Light Hit My Face Like A Straight Right [Dew Process / Universal Music Australia]Thelma Plum – I’m Sorry, Now Say It Back [Warner Music Australasia] (WINNER)

Best Dance / Electronic Release
Confidence Man – 3AM (LA LA LA) [I OH YOU / Mushroom Music]Dom Dolla – DREAMIN’ [Good Fortune Records] (WINNER)
FISHER – Stay [etcetc Music Pty Ltd]Ninajirachi – I Love My Computer [NLV Records]Sonny Fodera, D.O.D & Jazzy – Somedays [Solotoka / ADA]

Best Hip Hop / Rap Release
BARKAA – Big Tidda [Big Apples Music / Island Records Australia / Universal Music Australia] (WINNER)
Hilltop Hoods – Fall From The Light [Island Records Australia / Universal Music Australia]Miss Kaninna – Kaninna EP [Soul Has No Tempo]ONEFOUR – Look At Me Now [ONEFOUR Records / The Orchard]The Kid LAROI – Baby I’m Back [Columbia Records / Sony Music]

Best Soul / R&B Release
BOY SODA – Lil Obsession [Warner Music Australasia] (WINNER)
JACOTÉNE – Why’d You Do That? [Epic Records / Sony Music]Jerome Farah – CHLORINE [Sony Music]Larissa Lambert – Cardio [New Levels / Virgin Music Group]PANIA – Pity Party [Warner Music Australasia / Say Less]Best Independent Release presented by PPCA
Ball Park Music – Like Love [Prawn Records / Inertia Music]Confidence Man – 3AM (LA LA LA) [I OH YOU / Mushroom Music]Folk Bitch Trio – Now Would Be A Good Time [Jagjaguwar]Miss Kaninna – Kaninna EP [Soul Has No Tempo]Ninajirachi – I Love My Computer [NLV Records]

Best Rock Album presented by Tooheys
Amyl and The Sniffers – Cartoon Darkness [Amyl and The Sniffers / Virgin Music Group] (WINNER)
Ball Park Music – Like Love [Prawn Records / Inertia Music]King Stingray – For The Dreams [Civilians / The Orchard]Royel Otis – hickey [Ourness / Capitol Records]Spacey Jane – If That Makes Sense [AWAL Recordings]

Best Adult Contemporary Album
Folk Bitch Trio – Now Would Be A Good Time [Jagjaguwar]Gordi – Like Plasticine [Mushroom Music]Meg Washington – GEM [OriGiN Distribution / ADA]Missy Higgins – The Second Act [Eleven Music / EMI Music Australia] (WINNER)
Paul Kelly – Fever Longing Still [EMI Music Australia]

Best Country Album
Dylan Wright – Half a World Away [Sony Music]Imogen Clark – Choking on Fuel [Potts Entertainment / MGM]Kasey Chambers – Backbone [Essence Music Group / MGM] (WINNER)
Keith Urban – High [CAPITOL – NASHVILLE / EMI Music Australia]Taylor Moss – Firecracker [Taylor Moss / Ditto Music]

Best Hard Rock / Heavy Metal Album
Civic – Chrome Dipped [ATO Records / Inertia Music]Press Club – To All The Ones I Love [Inertia Music]RedHook – Mutation [RedHook Records]The Amity Affliction – Let The Ocean Take Me Down (Redux) [GYROstream]Thornhill – Bodies [UNFD / Community Music] (WINNER)

Best Blues & Roots Album
Dope Lemon – Golden Wolf [BMG]Mama Kin Spender – Promises [Mama Kin Spender / MGM]Sons Of The East – SONS [Sons Of The East Music / MGM]Tash Sultana – Return to the Roots [Lonely Lands Records via Sony Music]The Teskey Brothers – Live At The Hammersmith Apollo [Mushroom Music] (WINNER)

Best Children’s Album
Emma Memma – Dance Island Party [GYROstream] (WINNER)
Justine Clarke – Mimi’s symphony [ABC Music / The Orchard]Teeny Tiny Stevies – Brain Fart [Love Your Records / Xelon]The Vegetable Plot – Season Three [ABC Music / The Orchard]The Wiggles – Wiggle Up, Giddy Up! [ABC Music / The Orchard]

Best Music Festival presented by Tixel
Ability Fest – Dylan Alcott Foundation + Untitled Group
Beyond The Valley – Untitled Group / Beyond The Valley Music Festival
Bluesfest Byron Bay – Bluesfest Byron Bay
Laneway Festival – St Jerome’s Laneway / Laneway Festival (WINNER)
Yours and Owls Festival – Yours and Owls

PUBLIC VOTED AWARDS

Best Video
Break My Love – RÜFÜS DU SOL, Alexander George (Katzki) [Rose Avenue Records / Warner Music Australasia]Craters – Missy Higgins, Claudia Sangiorgi Dalimore [Eleven Music / EMI Music Australia]Lordy Lordy – Emily Wurramara, Claudia Sangiorgi Dalimore [ABC Music / The Orchard]All the Noise – Spacey Jane, Dan Lesser [AWAL Recordings]car – Royel Otis, Jamieson Kerr [Ourness / Capitol Records]Big Dreams – Amyl and The Sniffers, John Stewart [Amyl and The Sniffers / Virgin Music Group]DREAMIN’ – Dom Dolla, Kyle Caulfield & Shevin Dissanayake [Good Fortune Records]Don’t Happy, Be Worry – Hilltop Hoods, Roman Anastasios and Jordan Ruyi Blanch [Island Records Australia / Universal Music Australia]Dancing2 – Keli Holiday, Ryan Sauer [Keli Holiday / GYROstream] (WINNER)
WASSA – Vv Pete, UTILITY, Formation Boyz, UTILITY [Trackwork]

Best Australian Live Act presented by Destination NSW
Amyl and The Sniffers – Cartoon Darkness World Tour
Ball Park Music – Like Love Tour
BARKAA – BIG TIDDA TOUR [Jackson Street & Bad Apples Music]Confidence Man – 3AM (LA LA LA) Tour [I OH YOU]Dom Dolla – Dom Dolla Australia 2024 [Untitled Group]Hilltop Hoods – Hilltop Hoods 2025
Kylie Minogue – Tension Tour 2025
Miss Kaninna – Dawg In Me Tour [Astral People]SPEED – SPEED AUSTRALIA TOUR ‘25
Troye Sivan – Something To Give Each Other Tour [Live Nation] (WINNER)

Song of the Year
Cyril, Maryjo – Still Into You [Warner Music Australasia / Spinnin Records]Dean Lewis – With You [Island Records Australia / Universal Music Australia]Dom Dolla Feat. Daya – Dreamin [Good Fortune Records]FISHER – Stay [etcetc Music Pty Ltd]Gotye, FISHER, Chris Lake Feat. Kimbra, Sante Sansone – Somebody [Eleven: A Music Company / EMI
Music Australia]OneFour, Nemzzz – Spinnin [ONEFOUR RECORDS / THE ORCHARD]Royel Otis – Linger (SiriusXM Session) [Ourness]Sonny Fodera, D.O.D & Jazzy – Somedays [Solotoko / ADA]The Kid LAROI – Girls [Columbia Records / Sony Music] (WINNER)
Tobiahs – Angel of Mine [Mushroom Music]

Most Popular International Artist
Alex Warren – [Atlantic Records / Warner Music Australasia]Calvin Harris – [Columbia Records / Sony Music]Gracie Abrams – [Interscope / Universal Music Australia]Kendrick Lamar – [Interscope / Universal Music Australia]Noah Kahan – [Republic Records / Universal Music Australia]Post Malone – [Republic Records / Universal Music Australia]Sabrina Carpenter – [Island Records USA / Universal Music Australia]Tate McRae – [RCA Records / Universal Music Australia]Taylor Swift – [Republic Records / Universal Music Australia] (WINNER)
Tyler, The Creator – [Columbia Records / Sony Music]

ARTISAN AWARDS

Best Cover Art
Giulia McGauran for The Cat Empire – Bird in Paradise [BMG]John Stewart for Amyl and The Sniffers – Cartoon Darkness [Amyl and The Sniffers / Virgin Music
Group] (WINNER)
Kira Puru, Em Jensen for Thelma Plum – I’m Sorry, Now Say It Back [Waner Music Australasia]Nina Wilson, John You, Aria Zarzycki for Ninajirachi – I Love My Computer [NLV Records]Sarah McCloskey for Hilltop Hoods – Fall From The Light [Island Records Australia / Universal Music
Australia]

Engineer – Best Engineered Release
Alice Ivy for Alice Ivy – Do What Makes You Happy [Kewpie Mayo Records / Independent]Dom Dolla for Dom Dolla – DREAMIN’ [Good Fortune Records]Eric J Dubowsky for Emma Louise & Flume – DUMB [Three Six Zero Recordings / ADA]Kevin Parker for Tame Impala – End of Summer [Columbia Records / Sony Music] (WINNER)
Thomas Purcell p/k/a Wave Racer for Ninajirachi – I Love My Computer [NLV Records]

Producer – Best Produced Release
Alex Burnett for Thelma Plum – I’m Sorry, Now Say It Back [Warner Music Australasia]Dom Dolla for Dom Dolla – DREAMIN’ [Good Fortune Records]Kevin Parker for Tame Impala – End of Summer [Columbia Records / Sony Music] (WINNER)
Nina Wilson p/k/a Ninajirachi for Ninajirachi – I Love My Computer [NLV Records]RÜFÜS DU SOL for RÜFÜS DU SOL – Inhale / Exhale [Rose Avenue Records / Warner Music Australasia]

FINE ARTS AWARDS

Best Classical Album
Andrea Lam – Piano Diary [ABC Classic / The Orchard] (WINNER)
Australian Chamber Orchestra / Richard Tognetti – Tchaikovsky: Serenade for Strings and Andante
Cantabile / Shostakovich: Chamber Symphony in C minor [ABC Classic / The Orchard]Nat Bartsch – Forever Changed [Amica Records]Simone Young & Sydney Symphony Orchestra – Mahler: Symphony No.2; Barton: Of The Earth [Deutsche Grammophon Australia / Universal Music]Sophie Hutchings – Become The Sky [Universal Music Australia / Mercury KX]

Best Jazz Album
Evans Robson Quartet – Zenith [Lamplight Records]Lachlan McKenzie – Departures [ABC Jazz / The Orchard]Lucy Clifford – Between Spaces of Knowing [ABC Jazz / The Orchard] (WINNER)
TL; DR & Peter Knight – Too Long; Didn’t Read [Earshift Music / The Planet Company-MGM]Touch Sensitive – In Paradise [Future Classic]

Best Original Soundtrack or Musical Theatre Cast Album
Australian Chamber Orchestra – Memoir of a Snail (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) [ABC Classic /
The Orchard]François Tétaz – The Surfer [Impressed Recordings / Rubber Music Pty Ltd]Michael Cassel Group – Michael Cassel Group Presents A (Very) Musical Christmas [The Orchard]Various Artists – How To Make Gravy [Origin Recordings] (WINNER)
Vidya Makan – The Lucky Country (Original Cast Album) [ORiGiN Distribution / ADA]

Best World Music Album
Electric Fields, Melbourne Symphony Orchestra – Live In Concert [ABC Music / The Orchard]Gurrumul – Banbirrngu – The Orchestral Sessions [Decca Australia & Skinnyfish / UMA] (WINNER)
Joseph Tawadros – The Forgotten Path To Humanity [Independent / The Planet Company]Tenzin Choegyal – Snow Flower [Warner Music Australasia / Rainbow Valley Records]The Cat Empire – Bird in Paradise [BMG]

OUR SOUNDTRACK OUR ADS
Best Use of an Australian Recording in an Advertisement
Fox League 2025: Our Greats – Fox Sports Australia, 3% (WINNER)
Menulog: What’s Good in Your Hood – Thinkerbell, Bliss n Eso
Paramount+ Australia: Ballad of the GOATS – Paramount+ Australia, Briggs
Tooheys: I Feel Like a Tooheys – Thinkerbell, Dune Rats
Tourism & Events Queensland: That Holiday Feeling – Publicis Worldwide, Kita Alexander