Townsville is gearing up for another stadium show at Queensland Country Bank Stadium with the announcement that Tones and I will headline the family-friendly Tropic Sounds concert as part of the North Australian Festival of Arts (NAFA) this July.
The Australian singer-songwriter shot to international fame in 2019 with her break-out hit Dance Monkey, which charted at number one in more than 30 countries and saw her become the first Australian to top Spotify’s global daily streaming chart.
Tropic sounds is one of a dozen headline acts announced in NAFA’s Teaser Program released today. Other acts include Theatre iNQ’s The White Rose & the Red, Dungarri Nya Nya Ngarri Bi Nya by six local First Nations groups and the Dancenorth ensemble, and an assortment of visiting acts including comedian Tim Ferguson, Australian gothic play Eden and kids’ circus duo Brass Monkeys.
Townsville Mayor Jenny Hill said this year’s NAFA would continue to best of Australia’s arts and culture scene to the heart of North Queensland
“Council is thrilled to be able to bring NAFA to the Townsville community. There’s no doubt that artists and performers across the country have felt the impact of COVID-19 which is just one standout reason we’re so pleased to be able to present another iteration of NAFA.
“In its inaugural year NAFA sold more than 23,000 tickets across Townsville, with hundreds of thousands more experiencing free events and activations across NAFA.
“These numbers were extremely heartening not only for performers and artists, but also for the local tourism and hospitality industry that experiences the follow-on effect from the festival.”
Member for Thuringowa Aaron Harper said events like NAFA helped highlight a different side of Townsville to more people.
“Townsville has a strong arts community and events like NAFA help bring many people into the city,” he said.
“NAFA has become a big success in Townsville since it began in 2019. It originated from the Commonwealth Games Townsville Festival 2018 and has become this hugely successful event.”
NAFA runs from 2 July to 1 August across Townsville. Tropic Sounds will be held on 31 July 2021
