How a Melbourne suburb inspired an Americana star.
From the quiet, community-focused streets of Yarraville to the world stage of the Josie Music Awards in Nashville, Aaron D’Arcy is carving out a distinct space for Australian storytelling within the global Americana scene.
The award-winning alt-country artist is preparing to release his most personal work to date: a self-produced album named after his beloved Melbourne hometown.
D’Arcy’s nomination for Americana Artist of the Year at the 2025 Josie Awards is a profound honour, a sign he’s “doing something right” after being selected from tens of thousands of entries.
Fresh from a nerve-wracking but inspiring performance at Nashville’s iconic Bluebird Café, he’s channelled that energy into Yarraville, an album he describes as a journey for music fans of all ages.
We sat down with the artist to discuss the challenges of self-production, the catchy appeal of his radio single ‘Corner of My Mind,’ and his deep connection to the place that inspires it all.
HAPPY: What’d you get up to today?
AARON D’ARCY: It’s been a crazy week of Mixing TV Commercials for the AFL Grand Final.
HAPPY: Tell us a little about where you’re from, and what you love about it!
D’ARCY: I grew up in a Town west of Melbourne called Ballarat. Although I’ve spent most of my life in Yarraville an inner west suburb of Melbourne. It has the feel of a country town yet only minutes from the CBD. It has a really great community which is what I love the most.
HAPPY: Being nominated for a Josie Award in Nashville is a huge achievement for an Australian artist. What did that recognition mean to you and your career?
D’ARCY: It means a lot to be nominated for any award but to be recognised in a country that created the genre is a real honour.
To be plucked out of a group of over 80 thousand entries must mean I’m doing something right.
HAPPY: What was your experience like performing at the Bluebird Café, and what did you take away from it?
D’ARCY: The Bluebird cafe was nerve racking! It has such an amazing reputation and to play on the same stage as so many phenomenal artist and songwriters really blew me away.
So great to perform to an intimate audience, all totally silent enjoying your music.
HAPPY: Your new album is named after your hometown. Why did you decide to make Yarraville the central character and title of this record?
D’ARCY: You can’t help to be inspired and influenced from where you live. Whether obvious or not, Yarraville will always feature somehow in my music.
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HAPPY: Yarraville is entirely self-produced. What was the biggest challenge and the biggest reward of taking on every aspect of the album’s creation yourself?
D’ARCY: Producing and performing an album can be a lonely exercise but very rewarding as well. The speed that you can work is a big plus as you can get your ideas down as soon as you have them reather than waiting to goto the studio.
HAPPY: The focus track ‘Corner of My Mind’ is described as your radio single. What is it about that song in particular that you felt made it the next key introduction to the album?
D’ARCY: ‘Corner of My Mind’ was written in Nashville with my mate Zach Allen. He is an amazing guitarist and songwriter and this song is just so catchy.
The backing vocals were recorded by LA Artist MEGG who also featured on Album tracks “On my own” and “Four.”
HAPPY: How do you hope listeners, both in Yarraville and abroad, will feel when they listen to this album from start to finish?
D’ARCY: I would just love people to have a listen and go on a journey. This is an album for Americana, Country, Rock and Pop fans of all ages. There’s really something for everyone.
HAPPY: Having just released such a personal, self-contained project, what’s next for you? Are you already thinking about the next chapter?
D’ARCY: Lot’s of shows and touring. I’m playing the Groundwater Country Music Festival in the Goldcoast on the 17th-19th Oct and performing on The Blues Train in January.
You can find me and the band at Moondog Wild West in Footscray on the 24th Oct and 1st Nov, a bar which I DJ alot under the name DJ Moonshine.
HAPPY: Lastly, what makes you happy? :-)
D’ARCY: Music and Family.
