This Pride Month the Australian music industry is getting a very welcomed addition with the official launch of Tomboi Records, a record label that fills a huge gap for a community that has been underrepresented for far too long – theemerging and established Women,LGBTQIA+ and POC in music.
Launching with six artists on the roster, this Naarm/ Melbourne-based independent record label is one of the first of its kind in the world, making it their mission to be a safe label for all peoples signed and working with them – specifically for Women, LGBTQIA+ and POC.
Tomboi Records founder and CEO, Alexis Benedict, is seasoned in the music industry with 25 years of experience in self-management, production, performance, writing and recording. Identifying as a non-binary person who has experienced first-hand and watched fellow artists in the industry receive a lack of support and endure discrimination due to their gender, colour, disability and sexual orientation, Benedict felt it was time to take a stand and represent. Having always been drawn to positive change and fighting injustice, Benedict can continue to be part of a new movement and bring change to the industry with Tomboi Records now filling that gap. Benedict states:
“We are here to start a new safe space in the music industry and shake it up a little! We are the first record label in the world created to be specifically a safe label for Women, LGBTQIAplus and POC in music and beyond and we are so excited to bring incredible artists to light and let them shine the best way we know how. Our hope is that other teams can adopt this approach that we do and see that there is a gap in the industry and it is a must for real change and to genuinely create inclusive elements to the music industry”
Alongside Benedict on the Tomboi team comes a ton of experience through Tim Youngson (A&R/ Label Development/ International Relations) and Lee Groves (Executive Producer). Youngson is best known for his music management, with his most notable signing being worldwide sensation Lorde, alongside Parson James, Glades and many more. Groves is a multi-award winning producer, composer, mixer and audio artist, working on projects with artists and bands including Goldfrapp, Depeche Mode, Gwen Stefani, Craig David, Dave Matthews, Black Eyed Peas, Bertie Blackman, Jessica Mauboy and more.
Joining forces with Ingrooves Music Group, Tomboi Records are thrilled to have penned a global distribution deal with another collaborative and supportive team with aligned values that will help push their roster to the front and centre.
Making up this one of a kind roster is some immense talent. This includes the likes of queer black electro-pop/ alt artist Lion; emotive alt-pop act Joan & The Giants, fronted by Grace Newton-Wordsworth and Aaron Birch (First Nations person); female/ LGBT duo Forces & Fury, with their dreamy electronica; Greg Gould (LGBT), whose album ‘1998’ landed at number one on the Australian Charts amongst a huge list of other successes; visual artists and art/pop electronic female artist Parker, who has won best music video at New York Film Awards, Los Angeles Film Awards and more; and lastly, Tomboi’s own pop-alt artist, Benedict, who has seen support from Rollingstone, Tonedeaf, Earmile, Music Feeds and more.
All six artists will be performing at Tomboi Records Showcases in Melbourne on June 30 at The Toff In Town and in Sydney on July 14 at The Great Club.
Tomboi Records and their stellar roster will no doubt be shaking up the industry and setting a new marker in how these artists are represented. This launch is a milestone that the entire industry needs to celebrate.
