Multi-award winning Australian singer-songwriter Gina Williams will perform the indigenous Noongar language at the Wales Millennium Center (WMC) tonight, Sunday 30 October.

She will perform alongside her musical partner Guy Ghouse, as part of the Llais Festival, Cardiff’s annual international music and arts festival, with the performance presented as part of the UK/Australia season.

Gina Williams and Guy Ghouse have earned a reputation for bringing a fresh, modern take on ancient traditions. fusing evocative sounds, natural acoustic instruments, poignant stories with this incredible and beautiful voice.

Gina is a Balladong girl; one of 14 clan groups that make up the Noongar Nation, covering the south-west corner of Western Australia.

The Noongar language is one of the rarest languages ​​on the planet of southwestern Australia and today it is spoken by less than 400 people.

His mother and grandmother, both of the “Stolen Generations”, were never allowed to speak their language.

Gina was not stolen, but was given up as a baby for adoption. Telling her story and singing these beautifully crafted songs in the language she speaks is deeply personal.

Lifestyle change

This performance comes ten years after Gina visited Wales as part of the British Council Acceleration Program and while here she made the ‘life-changing’ decision to start performing in his own language, Noongar.

Williams and Ghouse, however, are on a mission to save it from extinction through song, with their music bringing a modern take on ancient Aboriginal traditions, fusing acoustic guitar with singing, capturing the natural rhythms of the language.

Speaking about her time in Wales, Gina said: ‘I had a chat with a lovely chap from the National Eisteddfod of Wales. We talked about the Welsh language and the parallels with the Noongar language, in that it has been almost erased.

“He explained how you had to figure out what makes your heart beat faster and pursue that. People will notice it and that’s how you will revive your language. For me, it was obvious. It was always that I sang in my language. I came back to Australia and I knew what I had to do.
“Since then I’ve wanted to bring a performance back to Wales because I got something really life changing and really important there. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if I could as a thank you come back and say, “That’s what you taught me, but that’s what I made of it.

“Language is our birthright. I’m pursuing this because it’s important, not just to me, but to my children.



Indigenous music

To date, Williams has released four studio albums in Noongar and has received seven West Australian Music Industry Awards for her contribution to Indigenous music.

Working with Ghouse, she spread the popularity of Noongar in schools, translating some of the world’s best-known songs into Noongar and in 2021 they co-created the first-ever Noongar opera, performed by West Australian Opera.

Speaking before their performance Rebecca GouldActing National Director of the British Council Wales, said: “Gina has been here for ten years on the British Council Accelerate program and we are delighted that, thanks to the UK/Australia season, the Wales Millennium Center have been able to bring her back.

“She said what she wanted more than anything was to stand up and say thank you to the people of Wales, and we are delighted to be able to support this performance.

Together, Guy and Gina perform music that weaves ancient storytelling with the contemporary and is something not to be missed. We wish them the best of luck with this show.

Gina Williams and Guy Ghouse will perform as part of the Llais Festival, taking place October 26-30 at the Wales Millennium Centre. They will perform on the Glanfa stage at 4:30 p.m. This event is free. Further information about the event is here

For more information on the Festival de Llais, visit the website