Amyl and the Sniffers, Alice Ivy and Miss Kaninna were all thrice victorious at the 2025 AIR Awards. The awards ceremony went down at Adelaide Town Hall on Kaurna Country in Adelaide/Tarntanya on Thursday 31 July

ABC Music was named Independent Label of the Year. The label’s recent releases include Emily Wurramara’s NARA, Custard’s Suburban Curtains, and Electric Fields’ Melbourne Symphony Orchestra collaboration, Live in Concert.

Former Not Drowning, Waving leader David Bridie won the Outstanding Achievement Award for his work with Wantok Musik Foundation, which is centred on preserving and celebrating “music, art and stories of First Nations peoples.”

A slew of genre awards were handed out in addition to the awards for album, song, breakthrough artist, producer and label of the year. Gut Health won Best Independent Punk Album or EP for their debut album Stiletto, released through their own Highly Contagious label via AWAL. Ella Thompson’s Hopestreet Recordings LP Ripple On The Wing won Best Independent Soul/RNB Album or EP.

Emma Donovan took out Best Independent Blues and Roots Album or EP for Til My Song Is Done, released via Civilians (fka Cooking Vinyl Australia). Indie pop duo Good Morning won Best Independent Pop Album or EP for their double album, Good Morning Seven.

Amyl and the Sniffers‘ 2024 album Cartoon Darkness, released via the band’s own B2B Records (and distributed by Virgin), won Best Independent Rock Album or EP and Independent Album Of The Year. The band also won Independent Song of the Year for “U Should Not Be Doing That.”

Miss Kaninna’s debut EP KANINNA, released via Brisbane/Magandjin’s Soul Has No Tempo, won Best Independent Hip Hop Album or EP. Miss Kaninna also won the Breakthrough Independent Artist of the Year category, while engineer Nick Herrera won Independent Mix, Studio and Mastering Engineer Of The Year for his work on KANINNA.

Alice Ivy won Best Independent Dance or Electronica Album or EP for her third album, Do What Make You Happy, released via Helix Records. Ivy’s song “Do I Need To Know What Love Is?” (feat. Josh Teskey) won Best Independent Dance, Electronica or Club Single, and Ivy was also named Independent Producer Of The Year.

See all of the winners below.

READ: RONA. returns with ‘Show Me’: ‘I wanted the next body of work to say something really important’

Independent Label Of The Year
ABC Music

Outstanding Achievement Award
David Bridie

Independent Song Of The Year
Amyl & the Sniffers – “U Should Not Be Doing That”

Independent Album Of The Year 
Amyl & the Sniffers – Cartoon Darkness

Breakthrough Independent Artist Of The Year
Miss Kaninna

Best Independent Soul/RNB Album or EP
Ella Thompson – Ripple On The Wing

Best Independent Punk Album or EP
Gut Health – Stiletto

Best Independent Heavy Album or EP
The Amity Affliction – Let The Ocean Take Me (Redux)

Best Independent Rock Album or EP
Amyl & the Sniffers – Cartoon Darkness

Best Independent Blues And Roots Album or EP
Emma Donovan – Til My Song Is Done

Best Independent Pop Album or EP
Good Morning – Good Morning Seven

Independent Publicity Team Of The Year
Thinking Loud for Royel Otis, Pratts & Pain

Independent Marketing Team Of The Year
Ourness, The Annex for Royel Otis, Pratts & Pain

Independent Producer Of The Year
Alice Ivy – Do What Makes You Happy

Independent Mix, Studio And Mastering Engineer Of The Year
Nick Herrera for Miss Kaninna, KANINNA

Independent Music Video Of The Year
Nick Rae, Jordan Ruyi Blanch for 3%, “Won’t Stop” feat. Jessica Mauboy

Best Independent Hip Hop Album or EP
Miss Kaninna – KANINNA

Best Independent Country Album or EP
Kasey Chambers – Backbone

Best Independent Jazz Album or EP
Parvyn – Maujuda

Best Independent Children’s Album or EP
Teeny Tiny Stevies – The Green Album

Best Independent Dance, Electronica pr Club Single
Alice Ivy – “Do I Need To Know What Love Is?” feat. Josh Teskey

Best Independent Dance or Electronica Album or EP
Alice Ivy – Do What Makes You Happy

Best Independent Classical Album or EP
Electric Fields x Melbourne Symphony Orchestra – Live In Concert

READ:  Sarah Blasko reconnects with her first two albums: ‘I didn’t really know what I was doing’

READ: Phoebe Rings’ Ben Locke on how a band breakup led to a deep, existential depression