KASEY CHAMBERS RETURNS TO TAMWORTH WITH 13 GOLDEN GUITAR NODS
By Tahlia On
If you’re in Tamworth this week, you don’t have to look far to feel Kasey Chambers’ presence.
Chambers is back at the Country Music Festival with 13 Golden Guitar nominations, a touring schedule that barely slows down, and a clear focus on giving back to the industry that raised her.
“I feel like walking into this room feels a bit like my family,” Chambers told NGAARDA Radio during a live broadcast from Gamilaroi Country. “I love you guys and I love catching up with you every year.”
She’s nominated across major categories, including Album of the Year and Female Artist of the Year, with several nominations linked to her latest record Backbone. Some of those nods also recognise her role as producer, something she says is new territory.
“I’ve never been nominated as a producer before, so that’s pretty special,” she said. “I’m feeling very grateful.”
Chambers’ Tamworth week is tightly packed. She’s balancing festival commitments with performances on the Red Hot Summer Tour alongside Paul Kelly and Missy Higgins. On Golden Guitar Awards day, she’ll play a show near Newcastle, then drive straight back to Tamworth in time for the ceremony.
“I’ll be doing my hair and makeup in the car,” she said. “That’s just how it has to work.”
Family remains central to her Tamworth routine. Her father, Bill Chambers, still runs daily jams at a local pub and plays guitar in her band. Her children are nearby too, even if early mornings aren’t high on their list.
“I was going to drag my daughter in here today and she said, ‘We don’t have to get up that early, do we?’” Chambers said, laughing.
Looking back, she says Tamworth shaped her career from the start. She first came to the festival in the early 1990s, busking on the street and sometimes sleeping in a tent.
“People here got behind us before anyone knew who we were,” she said. “Slim Dusty was one of the first people to really support us. You don’t forget that.”
That sense of support is why she still spends time mentoring younger artists through the Country Music Academy.
“I want to give back,” she said. “This industry has given me so much.”
Chambers also reflected on the song that changed everything, Not Pretty Enough. She told NGAARDA Radio she almost kept it to herself because it felt too personal.
“I wrote down all the most scary feelings inside me,” she said. “I didn’t know if I’d ever play it for anyone.”
She performed the song live during the broadcast, stopping the studio in silence.
“When I dig deep and go to an honest place, that’s what connects,” she said. “That’s what people hear.”
As Tamworth rolls on, Chambers says she still sees the festival as a place where artists support each other, even as country music shifts and grows.
“We might all sound different,” she said. “But we’re still one family.”
If you’re listening this week, chances are you’ll hear her again on stage, on air, or somewhere between a gig and a long drive back to Tamworth.