Thelma Plum, Holly Throsby, Elki and Ngaiire to entertain thousands at Fusion17 on 21 October

From hirsute handmade baked goods to high rotation on Triple J, Wagga Wagga City Council has assembled one of the biggest entertainment line-ups yet for Fusion17.

Headlining this year’s free multicultural street festival are musicians Ngaiire, Thelma Plum, Holly Throsby and Elki, along with entertainment from Old Spice, Stiltuesque, The Bearded Bakers and Melbourne-based DJs Saca La Mois, Monkey Marc and Victor Gil Gomez.

The diverse range of acts and performers are set to entertain thousands of people of all ages and backgrounds at the Civic Centre Precinct on Saturday 21 October from 4pm to 9.30pm.

“Each year at Fusion we celebrate the 112 countries of origin, 107 language groups and 62 faiths that make up our community,” Council’s Director Community Janice Summerhayes said.

“And there’s no better way to do that than by sharing our food, art, music and culture with each other.

“This year’s entertainment line-up boasts some of most creative and talented performers in the country, which will be complimented by our community performers, food from across the world and more.”

The headliners share a passion for music, whether it’s Ngaiire’s soaring voice that has taken her to the stage of the iconic Glastonbury Festival, or the lyricism of singer-songwriter and author Holly Throsby.

Elki is known for her powerful alt-pop, while Thelma Plum has dominated the Triple J airwaves with songs like How Much Does Your Love Cost?.

With last year’s Fusion festival attracting more than 10,000 people from across the region and interstate, Ms Summerhayes said it has quickly become one of the city’s biggest events.

“Events like Fusion contribute to the 1.3 million visitors our city hosts each year,” Ms Summerhayes said.

“Wagga Wagga City Council is proud to make the annual multicultural street festival possible, with our local community and visitors alike able to enjoy eclectic performances, mouth-watering food, pop-up shops and more on the backdrop of our stunning Civic Precinct and Wollundry Lagoon.”

For more information on Fusion17, visit www.wagga.nsw.gov.au/fusion.

Fusion17 is proudly funded and presented by Wagga Wagga City Council in partnership with Multicultural Council of Wagga Wagga, Riverina Community College and media sponsor The Daily Advertiser.

FUSION17

When: Saturday 21 October, 4pm to 9.30pm

Where: Civic Precinct (corner of Baylis and Morrow streets)

What: Free multicultural street festival with performances from Ngaiire, Thelma Plum, Holly Throsby and Elki and entertainment by Old Spice, Stiltuesque, The Bearded Bakers and Melbourne-based DJs Saca La Mois, Monkey Marc and Victor Gil Gomez.

HEADLINERS

Ngaiire

Born in Papua New Guinea and spending her early years in New Zealand, by age seven Ngaiire had beaten rare form of cancer “Ganglioneuroblastoma” after two years of treatment.

When her family moved to Australia, her musical world expanded with everything from Jeff Buckley to Debussy. Her breathtaking voice has taken her across the world, including the iconic Glastonbury Festival, as well as shows with Alicia Keys and John Legend, supporting Sufjan Stevens, a slot at Splendour in the Grass and more.

Thelma Plum

With Triple J Unearthed, NIMA and DEADLY wins under her belt, the constantly animated Thelma relocated from Brisbane to Melbourne to Sydney, absorbing the sounds of the city and developing her craft to expand beyond six strings.

Collaborating along the way with beat smith M-Phazes (Meg Mac, Kimbra, Eminem), the resulting Monster EP with lead song How Much Does Your Love Cost? has dominated airwaves. Follow up Young In Love and guest vocals on Golden Features’ No One the Horrowshow/Urthboy track Any Other Name have meant Thelma Plum is always next on the playlist.

Holly Throsby

Holly Throsby is a songwriter, musician and novelist from Sydney. She has released five critically acclaimed solo albums – On Night (2004), Under the Town (2006), A Loud Call (2008), Team (2011), and After a Time (2017) – as well as a collection of original children’s songs (See!, 2010), and an album as part of the band, Seeker Lover Keeper (with Sarah Blasko and Sally Seltmann).

Holly has been nominated for four ARIAs – including two for Best Female Artist, and one for Best Children’s Album – and has toured with the likes of Joanna Newsom, Bill Callahan, Paul Kelly, Devendra Banhart and The Handsome Family.

Elki

Elki makes “powerful alt-pop with a strong command of storytelling and playful melodies, underpinned by a shimmering darkness”. Counting Kate Bush, Stevie Wonder and Burt Bacharach as her most important influences, she’s been fine-tuning her craft for a number of years. She has been working with ex-Eskimo Joe and Meg Mac producer Joel Quartermain, with her recent single Golden Age added to full rotation on Triple J.

ENTERTAINMENT

The Bearded Bakers

The Melbourne-based Bearded Bakers are hitting the road to bring their Jerusalem street food to Wagga Wagga. Their commercial bakery, a repurposed shipping container is adorned with street art and the bakers spend as much time entertaining the crowds and dancing on the counter tops, as they do baking their delicious Middle Eastern dessert.

Old Spice

Old Spice: He's not scary, he's not posh, and he's definitely not a baby. He's old.

And, while he may be retired, he's certainly not retiring. This grandpa knows how to spice up the dance floor and he's going to party like it's 1999 (when he was only 65 years old). Having busted a move, but luckily not a hip, at last year’s Fusion, Old Spice is excited to be heading back to Wagga.

Stiltuesque

Stiltuesque is an entertainment and performance-art stilt walking company that specialises in creating high-quality and visually stunning interactive theatre performances. Professionally trained dancers and performers use hand-crafted costumes to create the larger-than-life stilt walking characters.

Saca La Mois DJ

Saca La Mois DJ (aka Moses Iten) is a Melbourne-based dancefloor DJ who has toured all over Australia and the world including New Zealand, Europe, United Arab Emirates, USA and Mexico.

​Victor Gil Gomez

From Mexico City via Melbourne, Victor Gil Gomez - or Sonidero Esperanza – has been mixing classic cumbia, Mexican norteño, tropical sounds, electronic beats and techno. Be sure to bring comfy shoes because you will hear music that will make you yell “Arriba”.

Monkey Marc

Born in Wales and based in Melbourne, producer Monkey Marc’s warm, rugged, bass-heavy sound comes from his obsession with classic old-school production techniques, and a studio full of lovingly-maintained vintage studio gear, including drum machines, samplers, synthesisers, effects units and an analogue console.