Title: I Belong
Artist: Nancy Bates
Language: Barkindji and English
Lyrics
As I’m walking my country, feel the spirit of the trees
Hear our stories upon the wind
Feel the power of this place, speak our language speak our name
We come together, as we have always.
I belong, I belong
Let the love of country make you strong
I am free, I am free
Part of everything that lives and breathes, I am free
When our bodies return to the land, back to dust to soil and to sand
I’ll be ready, I’ll understand
Ancestors there in the sky, will lead us all through the long dark night
Through their love, into the light
I belong, I belong
Let the love of country make you strong
I am free, I am free
Part of everything that lives and breathes, I am free
Kirra-yi-ri, kirra-yi-ri thik-aapa
Kirra-yi-ri, kirra-yi-ri thik-aapa
Kirra-yi-ri, kirra-yi-ri thik-aapa
Song Background
I was asked to write this song to be included on a Kaurna Welcome to Country video resource put out by the Port Adelaide Enfield City Council in consultation with members of the Kaurna community, led by Rodney Welch.
As a Barkindji, Wilykali and Nyaampa woman living off country, I really wanted to honour the connection Kaurna have to their lands, waters and skies, and pay my respect to the hospitality and healing I have received from this place, and from Kaurna people.
Bio
Nancy Bates is a First Nations composer, curator, educator, and proudly Barkindji. With cultural ties to communities running the length of the Baarka (Darling River), she is freshwater woman living a multifaceted life, intertwining music, education, and advocacy to resist the colonial continuum. From 2013 to 2017, Nancy completed a musical apprenticeship under the mentorship of renowned Song Man, Uncle Archie Roach. With exceptional contributions to the music industry, Nancy has been honoured as an APRA Ambassador and been awarded several other accolades in the South Australian Art scene.
Nancy has extensive experience in facilitating Cultural Safety/ Indigenous Health topics at a primary, secondary and tertiary level. She advocates for access and inclusion rights of First Nations People with disability, and in 2023, supported mob to tell their stories of Abuse Neglect and Exploitation to the Disability Royal Commission.
Through the ‘Songs Inside’ film project, Nancy taught ukulele and songwriting to women in prison, giving them voice, and freedom of expression within a colonial punishment system, which won the Adelaide Film Festival People’s Choice Award in 2024, with an attached 2-year Social Impact Campaign to accompany the release. Nancy curated the Blak Country Showcase in partnership with the Adelaide Guitar Festival debuting in 2024 with the vision of this becoming an international cultural exchange and showcase of Indigenous Country Music.