I feel truly blessed to walk in two worlds – the old and the new. I was born in the old wooden hospital in Emerald in the Central Highlands of Queensland and raised on Bidjara Country. My mum and my grandmother were born in Springsure, south of Emerald. My great-grandmother was born at the Carnarvon Gorge in Central Queensland. My father came from the Gunggari tribe and was born in the yumba [Aboriginal] reserve on the banks of the Maranoa River just outside Mitchell in Southern Queensland.

As a child, I wandered the hills and I loved listening to the birds. I truly believe the birds taught me to sing, never dreaming it would take me from the Carnarvon songlines to the canonisation of Mary MacKillop and four other saints in the Vatican [in 2010]. I was a special guest at the Una Notte Australiana [An Australian Night] celebration at the Vatican Museums with my son William and other artists. We performed a beautiful bird song. I was asked to write the special lyrics. I think that is one of the highlights of my life, though I’ve performed at many international events over the years.

I lived on Country until I was...