Since her arrival in Australia in the late 1990s, Ajak Kwai has become Australia’s renowned songwoman of contemporary South Sudanese music. She has established her footing firmly in the Australian music landscape, having collaborated with some of Melbourne’s finest producers and musicians, showcasing her artistry and cultural heritage.

Raised in the town of Bar on the Upper Nile, Ajak’s musical beginnings were rooted in her village’s choir. Displaced by Sudan’s civil war, she journeyed to Egypt, joining a gospel choir and creating Bor Band, a female group performing original and traditional Dinka songs. Singing in Dinka, Arabic, and English, her unique voice bridges cultural worlds.