Produced by Budjerah’s collaborator and artistic confidante Matt Corby, on Wash My Sorrows Away, ARIA award winning Budjerah’s luminous vocals smoothly glide over the lo-fi production to elevate the track to spiritual proportions.

“Wash My Sorrows Away is my teenage heartbreak song. Everyone has tough times and we all have our own ways of dealing with sadness, and this song tells what it's like for me when I'm in those situations. If I'm ever having a tough time I like to go home and get into the ocean, whether it's surfing or just diving under for a few seconds, it helps me get out of my own head. ‘You know I try to keep myself out of mind’. It's also about wanting to be with someone in particular, someone that takes up that space in your head ‘But I still keep you inside,’” muses Budjerah.

The new song comes off the back of news of 5 x ARIA nominations - including for Best Artist, Michael Gudinski Breakthrough Artist and Best Soul/RNB Release; as well as a NIMA win for Best New Talent.

Musically, the song follows on from his gleaming, soulful single Talk feat. MAY-A - an appeal to look up, take a beat, take a breath, and reconnect with your loved ones. The track is a joyful, much-needed tonic for a world riddled with misunderstanding and miscommunication and takes a clear cue from his idols and antecedents Sam Cooke and The Clark Sisters — patron saints of clarity and honesty.

He might be young, but there’s always been something wise-beyond-his-years about Budjerah. The Coodjinburra musician’s debut, self-titled EP, released earlier in 2021, displayed an aptitude for the sheen and indelibility of old-school soul singers, a quality that spoke to the classic records he was raised on growing up in coastal New South Wales.

Budjerah’s phenomenal run commenced in October 2020 with his acclaimed debut single Missing You, which landed the #1 most played position on triple j, and soon followed with his runaway hit single Higher, which achieved Top 30 national airplay. Budjerah performed on The Sound, Music From The Home Front, and at the AFL Dreamtime match; and collaborated with dance music superstars PNAU. He announced a partnership with Warner Records US, was named an Apple Music Up Next artist and most recently was selected as one of the artists from around the globe for #YouTubeBlack Voices Artist Class of 2022.

Budjerah’s personal highlights include supporting local luminaries including The Avalanches, Thelma Plum, Jack River and Lime Cordiale, and performing to a sold out crowd in Sydney who sang along adoringly to all his songs. “It was always my dream come true to perform to hundreds of people, and now it’s right in front of me,” Budjerah says. It makes sense: Budjerah’s music makes dreams feel like shining, tactile reality.