Awards & Recognition

Kev Carmody’s contributions to music and the arts have not only resonated deeply with audiences across Australia, but also earned him widespread recognition within the industry. Throughout his remarkable career, Kev has been celebrated with numerous prestigious awards, acknowledging his outstanding contributions to both Indigenous and Australian culture. Below are just some of the many accolades he has received in recognition of his artistic legacy and profound influence on music and the performing arts:

2023 Conferred Honorary Doctorate of Literature University of Queensland

2023 Conferred Honorary Doctorate of Letters (Hon LittsD) Australian National University

2022 Shining Star Award Byron Bay Bluesfest

2021 National Indigenous Music Awards (NIMA) Hall of Fame Inductee

2019 J.C.Williamson Award (part of the Helpmann Awards) outstanding contribution to the live entertainment and performing Arts Industry.

2017 Alumnus of the Year Awards - Outstanding Alumnus of the Year - University of Southern Queensland

2017 Indigenous Service Alumnus of the Year - University of Southern Queensland

2013 Australia Council Don Banks Award

2010 Senior Australian of the Year State Finalist, Qld.

2009 Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) Hall of Fame inductee.

2009 Queensland Great. Awarded by the state government, the Queensland Greats Awards honour individuals and institutions whose long term or lifetime achievements have played a significant role in the history and development of Queensland.

2008 Honorary Doctorate – University of Southern Queensland

2005 Deadly Awards, recipient of the Jimmy Little Award for Lifetime Achievement in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Music

2002 Film Critics Circle of Australia & Screen Music (Australia) Awards for the score for One Night The Moon.

2001 Australian Film Industry’s Open Craft Award in a Non-Feature Film for an Original Score for One Night The Moon.

1994 Australian Entertainment 19th Annual “MO” Awards - Folk Performer of the Year

1993 Country Music Association of Australia Heritage Award for From Little Things, Big Things Grow

1994 Australian Entertainment 19th Annual “MO” Awards - Folk Performer of the Year

Kev Carmody House at UQ

Kev Carmody and the University of Queensland are proud to welcome new students to the Kev Carmody student residency house. Located on the university’s campus, the stunning new addition to UQ’s world class facilities has been built to honor the contributions that Kev has made to the teaching, administration and student body.

Vice Chancellor, Deborah Terry, wrote to Kev about the historic significance of the building with the residency becoming the first UQ-owned residential building and serve as a “visible reminder to our community of the transformative power of education and an inspirational symbol for future generations.”

For more information visit

https://uqres.com/kev-carmody-house/

It is a privilege to have The University of Queensland’s (UQ) new student residency named in my honour.

My journey to formal education started a little later than most. I didn’t learn to read and write until I was 10, but once I started to dive deep into the written and spoken word through music – including during my studies at UQ – the world took on a new meaning for me. Music and storytelling are my contributions to education. The way critical analysis of politics, history and the natural world can be blended to make songs and tell powerful stories is extraordinary.

I hope my story can help inspire students at UQ to follow their passions, to embrace and respect each other and to express their imagination in its fullest capacity.

Reviews & Words of Praise

Kev Carmody’s music is a testament to the power of storytelling. Through his profound lyrics and storytelling, he has given a voice to the voiceless and shed light on Australia’s hidden past. From fellow artists to fans across the country, Kev’s work continues to resonate deeply. This collection of reflections, tributes, and praise highlights the undeniable legacy of Kev’s music, and the powerful impact he’s had on both the Australian music scene and the nation as a whole.

“The revamped Cannot Buy My Soul contains some true delights, such as Mo’Ju, Birdz and Trials’ overhaul of Bloodlines’ ‘Rider in the Rain’. Mo’Ju adapts Carmody’s first verse into a rousing chorus built around the line: “This road’s called ‘progress,’ it runs from oblivion to nowhere,” while Birdz uses the original lyrics as a springboard for his own reflections on the lies and hypocrisies of white Australia. Trials’ production deviates from the disturbed pace of the original to create an uplifting hip hop and soul number.”

— Augustus Welby - Music Feeds

“Kev Carmody is the real deal. He has been an inspiration to a couple of generations of songwriters for being a truth teller, and an indefatigable fighter for the rights of Aboriginal people in this country. His songs have always had a profound effect on me, brimming with quiet wisdom and poetic beauty. I was honoured to be asked to contribute to the original Cannot Buy My Soul project in 2007 and encourage you to get your hands on the updated 2020 version that features Courtney Barnett and Kasey Chambers amongst others. It’s out August 21 so head on over to Cannot Buy My Soul for more info. Love, BF”

— Bernard Fanning

“Dear Kev,
Forgive my intrusion. I wrote a short note to you 13 years ago – hope you still have the same email address!
I would just like to nominate Kev Carmody as Australia’s greatest ever poet. I don’t know of any other words that capture the essence of the Australian experience, as I understand it, depicting the land and its people in all its beauty and all its shame. I would also like to nominate ‘Cannot Buy My Soul’ as the greatest Australian music release of all time – with particular regard to the original releases. The tribute versions are fittingly heartfelt and wonderful but the originals are the essence for me. The haunting backing vocals of ‘Thou Shalt Not Steal,’ the portent of the violin playing on Droving Woman – the tears I have shed listening to that song! That is possibly the greatest, quintessential Australian song/poem of all time. Stupefied into an emotional breakdown every time! I would also like to nominate the core lyrics of Moonstruck for the new national anthem. By now I’m sure you are thinking I am completely crazy but……… for anybody who has any appreciation of this land we call home, and we all love the bush (apparently) who wouldn’t be proud busting out a chorus about western skies, the milky way and dingoes…..and walking to that morning moon set. (Picture attached is the last full moon – 6th June – setting west over the Camel Hills in the Gascoyne. Just got back last night from my slice of Australian heaven. Yamatji Country. Sooooo beautiful and no-one EVER visits!)
On a political note, I believe this country, Australia, has reached a tipping point. Such a long way to go and so much work to do but my instincts tell me that the culture and people of Australia’s first nations are on the way to being revered, loved and respected by the overwhelming majority. Aboriginal culture will be the primary underlying cultural definition of what Australia is and what it stands for. It has taken a long time (obviously) for white Australia to wake up but it seems that the trickle has started and momentum is finally shifting. 13 years ago my email was not quite so optimistic. I believe I will be alive to see a better place.
My apologies for ranting. My apologies for the ruinous occupation of Aboriginal lands.
Much peace and love.”

— Andrew - via email

“Watching your stuff on NITV mate. You are opening my eyes further, thanks for giving me a deeper understanding, just letting you know I acknowledge your feelings of a past that has been hidden from view, and if everybody acknowledged that we would all get along just fine.
Love the do not steal song mate, ironic.
Cheers, stay safe. ”

— Chris - WA

“Seriously, this is album is some great piece of work. Kev Carmody came out of the box blazing. His debut Pillars of Society has it all. When I got the record I felt like the new Dylan had arrived. But Kev got fuck-all attention for it. My friend Rob Miller, who was doing publicity for Larrikin Records, put me on to it and put his heart into promoting it. It’s the only reason I know about the record. I met Kev then - and a few good times after. Much later he got all kinds of awards and deserved tributes, but listening back to this collection of folk rage is enough to bring some kinda mix of tears and joy and anger into your system. It wasn’t so much racism that stopped Kev, although that was there for sure in the system when this came out in 1988. It was ageism. Kev was maybe in his 30s then? Just guessing. He seemed to be a planet wiser, that was for sure, and if he’d produced this folk blues blister in his early 20s he would have been acclaimed as a god. But as a young man Kev was probably by a fire in far west Queensland, on the edge of a desert somewhere, listening to wise old men tune their radios to a broadcast of Under Milk Wood, taking in their guidance as it played to the stars. Kev can probably still recite you some Dylan Thomas, if you like, I am sure. I always remember him telling me the story, the transporting magic of it. Anyway, I interviewed him then, Pillars of Society time, loved the record and loved him. But I knew his chances had been slowed down unfairly and he was like bottle arriving on his own shore. A message in a bottle in 1988. Kev Carmody you are one of the true greats. Pillars of Society was and is a masterpiece. I’m so angry and happy I got to listen to it and talk with you then. You were always welcoming and warm, your music a storm and a fire. Pillars of Society will be around a hundred years from now, telling the truth …”

- Mark Mordue