Warren Hedley Williams is an Aboriginal singer, musician and songwriter from Hermannsburg in Central Australia. Williams is an Arrernte man who plays country music and works as a broadcaster on CAAMA Radio in Alice Springs He started playing guitar at six with his father Gus Williams. In 2007, he wrote the musical Magic Coolamon, which debuted as the first ever Central Australian Indigenous musical and in 2015, Williams made his directorial debut, writing and directing two episodes of the Aboriginal television seriesOur Place for ICTV. In 2016, Williams teamed up with emerging artist Dani Young, writing and recording an album of traditional country duets in Nashville. The album, Desert Water was produced by Grammy and ACM award-nominated songwriter Billy Yates, and features Grammy winner Jim Lauderdale.
Awards
Warren H Williams and John Williamson's duet "Raining on the Rock" was nominated for an ARIA Award in 1998 for Best Indigenous Release and Collaboration of the Year at the 1999 Australian Country Music Awards. Williams won a Deadly in 1998 for Single Release of the Year for the duet "Raining on the Rock" and another in 2001 for his album Where My Heart Is. In 2006 Warren was the 'NAIDOC Artist of the Year' and won "Song of the Year" at Music NT's 2006 Indigenous Music Awards. Warren H Williams was in 2004 presented with a Country Music Centenary Medal from CMAA for service to Australian society through music and in 2008 was an inductee into the Country Music Hands of Fame in Tamworth. With John Williamson and Amos Morris he won another Australian Country Music Award for Bush Ballad of the Year in 2009. Williams was announced the 2012 Red Ochre Award winner at the National Indigenous Arts Awards.
Music career
Williams has released 10 albums to date, including Desert Water with duet partner Dani Young released on 22 July 2016. The album debuted at #2 on the ARIA Country albums charts, and the first single "Two Ships" spent 6 weeks at #1 on Tamworth Country Radio. Williams toured with John Williamson and Pixie Jenkins between 1998 and 2010, including 'Mates on the Road', 'Stone and Wire', 'Chandelier of Stars' and 'Wildlife Warrior on Tour'. In 2004 he was the subject of an episode of the television series Nganampa Anwernekenhe. In 2015, Williams invited long-time friend and award-winning Australian singer Shane Nicholson to visit his hometown of Hermannsburg to help break his writer's block. Williams took him to sacred sites and shared Aboriginal Dreaming stories which inspired Nicholson's ARIA-nominated album Hell Breaks Loose, which features the track 'Hermannsburg'.
Radio career
In 1996, Williams was the first remote Indigenous broadcaster on the 8KIN FM network, presenting music shows live from Hermannsburg. He is the longest serving broadcaster on CAAMA Radio, currently presenting the mid-morning show from 9am - 11am on weekdays, as well as the 80s Mix on Monday evenings, Rockn on Wednesday evenings, and CAAMA's highest rating program Strictly Country on Tuesday and Thursday evenings. His programs are also played through the National Indigenous Radio Service.
