Australia’s leading young Indigenous Singer Songwriter.
Acknowledged and respected as a gifted musician, JASON is a dazzling Guitarist, Drummer, Bass and Didjeridu Player.
Jason is currently rehearsing with his band ‘Desert Sea’ gearing up to promote his new album ‘From The Desert To The Sea’ due to be released 22nd January 2002. His busy schedule this past year has included Reconciliation Day, and Sydney Opera House performances. Although based on Queensland’s Gold Coast, twenty three year old Jason’s homelands encompass the coastal regions of the Nullarbor Plains (Undiri) through to Western Australia.
Jason’s connection to his cultural identity gives his music an unmistakable depth of passion. His music is cutting edge, contemporary and unashamedly commercial blending Pop, Rock rhythms with Indigenous language and instruments. Jason’s ambition is to make a difference as a driving force in the very competitive field of Rock & Pop
Jason comes from a long line of family performers. JASON’S father, Buna Lawrie (Coloured Stone) and his uncle, Bart Willoughby (No Fixed Address and Mixed Relations) are both ARIA Award winning performers. From the age of 13, JASON has played guitar, bass and drums for Coloured Stone, performing throughout Australia. In 1994, JASON toured the USA as part of a cultural exchange program with (Wirrangu Band).
Jason is also a regular performer at the annual Australia Day Concert ‘Survival’. This televised concert held in Sydney attracts an audience of some 20,000 people.
Jason’s progress as a young Aboriginal Musician is evident with the success of his hit single ‘Modern Aborigine’ and two further hit singles ‘Corroboree Dance’ and ‘Desert To The Sea’
Jason is the perfect role model for young Aboriginal musicians. He has paid his dues and this amazing young musician’s star is definitely on the rise.
Deadly Vibe Issue 59 January 2001
Boasting a musical pedigree few can match, Jason Scott is well placed to become one of Aboriginal Australia’s leading performers. And with a debut album just out, Deadly Vibe is confident that 2002 will be his year.
Jason Scott was born and bred in the music industry (well, South Australia’s Ceduna, to be precise). An early developer, he was onstage playing drums for Coloured Stone, his father Buna Lawrie’s band, at age 13. Buna’s romance with music began when he saw his elders getting to grips with an old battery-operated wireless in the South Australian outback. Now, a generation down the track, Jason is continuing the romance.
“My father was my role model and I looked up to him and created an image of him, which has created me, a modern Aborigine of the 21st century,” says Jason proudly. “My father was born a musical person, and he’s passed his talent down to me.”
Still in his mid twenties, Jason is already a veteran of the industry. Hardly surprising considering one of his earliest memories was of banging pots and pans on the kitchen floor at the age of three. His incessant drumming prompted his parents to buy him a kit the following year.
Before long Jason had blossomed into a talented drummer. In fact he was such a natural, he was often invited to perform in his father’s band. But because he was only seven years old at the time, he was too small to be seen above the drum kit by the audience!
At the ripe old age of 13, he secured a place at Perth’s Aboriginal Music College where he learned to read music and master the keyboard, and furthered his percussive skills. Upon his return a few months later, Jason ” now big enough to be seen over the cymbals ” was officially invited to join Coloured Stone in the capacity of drummer. His first major gig? Rock Against Racism in Adelaide.
“I was nervous and scared of the big outside world,” says Jason. ” And just being a part of my dad’s group that I’d been dreaming about since I was little! I mean, they were the leading Aboriginal group in Australia. It was such a big responsibility and I was playing drums for them.”
It was an auspicious debut. After Coloured Stone, the young musician moved on to lead guitar and vocals for Wirrangu Band in 1994. From there he formed Desert Sea in 1995, performing at Survival the following year. In 2000 he again performed at Survival, but this time simply as Jason Scott.
“Survival was excellent,” he says. “I’ve enjoyed being part of the festival, promoting and sharing my music. The atmosphere is always great. It makes me proud to be a strong black person and a role model for Indigenous and non-Indigenous young people.”
Jason’s musical career has allowed him to travel extensively. He recalls his first overseas experience, travelling to America in 1994 for a two-week cultural exchange program with American Indians.
“It was an amazing experience. The sorts of issues they experience are similar to the kinds of issues we’re dealing with. It was great to get a taste of their culture, traditions, music and the way they live.”
Jason had a busy year in 2001, performing at the Woodford Folk Festival, Survival (again), the Black Nite Youth Concert, the Big Day Out concert series, and Alice Springs’ Yeperenye Federation Festival. He also travelled to Egypt for the Cairo International Festival of Music.
But 2002 will see this young and very talented man really hit the scene. With the release of his debut album, Desert to the Sea, this month, Jason is set to secure his spot as Australia’s premier young Indigenous musician.
“I’m really looking forward to that CD release!” he says. “It feels as though it’s been a long time coming.”
Desert to the Sea is not the product of someone who thought they might like to give the music biz a bit of a whirl. This is the work of a highly polished musician who’s been eating, breathing and sleeping it since he was in nappies. The lyrics are reflective of Jason’s life thus far, dealing with everything from the love he has for his family to his cultural heritage (he has ties to the Kokatha, Wirangu and Mirning nations) and his encouragement of the younger generation. This is music with rhythm, heart and soul.
A favourite at Vibe is “It Starts with You and Me”. Beautifully combining Jason’s strong, passionate voice with tattoo-style drumming and some great guitar work, this track is a call to arms for peace lovers everywhere. It also confirms Jason as a singer possessed of a vocal range and timbre similar to that of John Farnham.
“Modern Aborigine”, a sophisticated fusion of tribal and modern instruments, is another standout. A winner at the 1999 South Pacific International Music Awards, the song relates the difficulties of growing up in contemporary times while trying to retain a sense of heritage and culture.
Yet in spite of his emerging status as a first-class musician, Jason remains somewhat philosophical. After all, he’s been working towards this for most of his life.
“You’ve got to crawl before you walk,” he says. “It takes a lot of sacrifice, dedication and commitment. You’ve got to be strong and to really love what you’re doing. I love what I’m doing. It’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me from day one.”
For further information: Manager: Maggie Britton
Tel: 61 7 55 611 778 Fax 61 7 55 611 779 Mob: 0412 757 337 E-mail:
(Story 1/1/2001 end)
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