Newcastle Region 2026
Meet the 4 artists/bands and 4 hype people who have been invited to participate in our carefully curated program, which includes intensive mentoring, song development, recording sessions, video content, and live performance opportunities.
This free, end-to-end six-month program aims to provide valuable support to talented musicians from the Newcastle region, helping you overcome barriers to succeed in the Australian music industry.
Our free program cuts through the noise to provide you with access to a huge range of resources, activities and connections that will expand your creative work and remove barriers for you to realise your artistic ambition.
Each artist will receive:
a fully produced, mixed and mastered track, made in collaboration with one of the program’s producers. Across 4 x full day studio sessions, you will be working closely with a producer to craft a song and sound that best represents you and your story;
intensive one-on-one mentoring with the music industry’s sharpest minds to help you build pathways for your work to connect with audiences;
an artist documentary film, made in collaboration with a collective of the industry’s most in-demand directors to deep dive into your personal story as an artist, providing audiences a window into your creative world;
live performance opportunities in the City of Newcastle and beyond
STEPH RUSSELL
A contemporary jazz singer, songwriter and keys player. Steph has been writing and performing music all my life, but lately has lacked direction. Steph is excited for the opportunity to learn from people who can help turn her artistic vision into a sustainable career.
Follow- @stephoruss
ELIJAH AMOSS
Elijah Amoss is a vocalist and songwriter from Mulubinba (Newcastle) an experimental artist who explores themes of mental health, authenticity, LGBTQIA+ and radical self-acceptance with strong blends of rap, pop & r&b influences in his ever-evolving sound.
Follow - @elijahamoss
ELLIS UNDERCOVER
Ellis Undercover is a singer-songwriter telling Australia’s toughest stories. Raised between mountains in rivers in rural NSW, now Newcastle based Elle’s sound is acoustic and grounded. Her name and work is inspired by years teaching music in NSW Juvenile Justice and Correctional centres. She’s stepping into 2026 strong with her single ‘Too much to ask for’ and ‘October’ duet with Australia Country Star Wade Forster.
FollOW - @ellisundercover
IZZY T
Izzy T is a 22-year-old hip-hop/rap artist from Newcastle, Australia, making his mark with a raw sound and high-energy presence. Having already shared stages with some of Australia’s biggest names, he’s steadily built a reputation as one of Newcastle’s rising artists. With every release and performance, Izzy T continues to push beyond his hometown and establish his name in Australian hip-hop.
Follow - @isthatizzyt
HYPE PEOPLE
Lucy Watson
Lucy Watson is a Singer/Songwriter from Maitland, NSW. Lucy’s career is supported through graduations from Hunter School of Performing Arts, The Australian Institute of Music, and the CMAA Academy of Country Music. Elle and Lucy met at CMAA Academy of country music in January and have been writing, recording and sharing the stage ever since.
Fabihah Siddique
Growing up in Newcastle, I've been lucky to be surrounded by a musically enriching environment, learning piano, vocals, guitar, flute and harmonium. I'm excited to support an artist with music as rich and meaningful as Steph's, and keen to learn from this experience.
Lucy Gooch
A local artist supporter, introverted-extrovert & queer creative from Coquun (Maitland). Lucy is here to bring innovative new perspectives to artists spaces, with Lucy’s passion for photography, art, music and culture. Lucy is very excited to be a part of this years Grid Series and to meet new creative minds.
Gexrdie
Originally from Nowra on the NSW South Coast, Gexrdie is a hip-hop artist and long-time collaborator of izzy t, with the pair having created plenty of music together over the years. Their shared history in music has built a natural creative chemistry and a strong friendship beyond the studio.
PRODUCERS
Antonia Gauci
Antonia Gauci is an engineer, mixer, producer, songwriter and artist who’s credits are astounding, having worked with artists including Kesha, Lil’ Yachty, What So Not, Troye Sivan, DMAs and more. She has made it a priority to feed that knowledge back into her musical community, becoming a mentor to aspiring artists and music professionals through the New Age Noise/All Girl Electronic program,, AIR’s Women In Music Mentoring program, as well as running workshops for Electronic Music Conference, Music NSW, Music SA, APRA SongMakers and NATSIMO’s Resonate program.
Jayteehazard
Originally from Newcastle, Jayteehazard is one of Australia’s most proficient and in-demand producers, DJs and songwriters. An artist who harnesses an unbeatable ability to create unique soundscapes and immersive musical atmospheres, Jayteehazard has continued to carve out a sound that is undeniably his own. Producing for Hilltop Hoods, Haiku Hands, Barkaa, Kobie Dee and more, Jayteehazard has been refining his skills as a performer, writer and producer for over ten years.
Assembler Code
Assembler Code is distinguished through a catalogue of authentic productions, ultra-high energy DJ sets and live performances, traversing the likes of electro, techno, IDM and breaks seamlessly. Time in the lab as an audio engineer alongside his love for machines lends AC his reputation for pounding drums, razor-sharp sound design, and a focus always on character and groove. The timelessness of AC’s productions is evidenced through plays by music history titans such as Aphex Twin, DJ Stingray and Helena Hauff.
Mitta Norath
Mitta is head of audio at Tommirock Newcastle, spending many years recording and mixing predominantly metal, rock, pop, country-rock and hip hop artists, working with various label and independent artists such as Roxferry, Eat Your Heart Out, Thy Art Is Murder, Collidescope, Boo Seeka, Ben Gillies (Silverchair), Vacations and more. Known for big drums, loud and bombastic mixes, Mitta’s productions are in your face and impossible to ignore.
MENTORS
Heath Johns
Heath Johns became Managing Director of BMG Australia in early 2016. Previously he was the Director of A&R at Universal Music Publishing Group Australia, having joined the company in February 2003 after a stint in A&R at BMG Records.
Heath has signed a number of domestically and internationally successful songwriters including Jet, Wolfmother, The Living End, Guy Sebastian, Children Collide, Dead Letter Circus, The Butterfly Effect, Jessica Mauboy, Snob Scrilla, Daniel Merriweather, The Veronicas, M-Phazes, Peking Duk, Passenger, The Potbelleez, 360, Passenger, Bag Raiders, Marvin Priest, Sietta, Aston Shuffle, Dope Lemon, Chet Faker, Angus and Julia Stone, Crowded House and Redcoats.
Shivani Sharma
Shivani Sharma is a driving force across Australia's electronic music landscape, bringing boundless energy and a collaborative spirit to everything she does.
Shiv currently holds three concurrent roles: Head of Partnerships and Events at Mixmag ANZ, spanning commercial partnerships, event production, ticketing platform development and sales, editorial coordination, and brand licensing; Community Engagement Manager at EMC, engaging electronic music communities so EMC can be responsive to their needs and deliver program benefits; and Booking and Artist Manager at KAST Agency in Melbourne.
At the heart of it all is a genuine love for building and sustaining grassroots music culture, championing emerging talent, nurturing community-first spaces, and doing the work that keeps scenes alive and thriving from the ground up.
Kirsty Lee Akers
Kirsty Lee Akers is a proud Wonnarua First Nations woman with immense experience and achievements as a self directed manager, producer and song writer within the International Country Music Industry.. From busking at Tamworth Country Music Festival at age 15 to currently the only artist in history to win 3 major Australian Country Music Awards and recently inducted into the “Hands of Fame” alongside Slim Dusty, Keith Urban and Troy Cassar-Daley.
Gary Seeger
Gary Seeger has been involved in the music industry for 30+ years. He cut his teeth at the record labels: CBS and PolyGram before making the move to music publishing. He was Creative Manager for PolyGram Music Publishing Australia creating opportunities in the film and TV industries. He expanded his role when he moved to the Festival Mushroom Group, working both label and publishing sync opportunities. During this time, Gary negotiated deals for artists including the Bob Marley catalogue, Marc Bolan, Nick Cave and Powderfinger.
seegerMUSIC has music supervised over 50 productions, including: The Sapphires, Rake, Jack Irish, The Invisible Man, Wolf Creek 2, Back Snow 2, Colin From Accounts and I Am Woman. Gary’s current role outside seegerMUSIC, is Creative Director for the oldest global independent music publisher, Peermusic.
FILM MAKERS
Nick Sullivan
Nick Sullivan is an award winning filmmaker working internationally across film, commercials, and story telling projects who began his career producing music television for Channel [V] and MTV, and now directs for major advertising and streaming campaigns. Story is at the heart of everything he makes, and his films have screened at national and international film festivals. Much of his inspiration traces back to his hometown of Newcastle, the people, the scenery, and the working class culture that shaped how he sees the world.
Wanagi Zable-Andrews
Wanagi Zable-Andrews is a Newcastle-based photographer and videographer embedded within the local music community, working closely with artists across live performance, press imagery, music videos, and documentary storytelling. His work is built on trust and access — creating space for artists to feel comfortable, allowing for honest, unfiltered moments both on and off stage. Alongside this, he produces profile-based video work exploring artists’ process, identity, and creative practice. Through this, his work has become a trusted, go-to within the Newcastle scene for capturing artists in a way that feels authentic, grounded, and representative of who they are.
Jye Currie
Jye Currie is an Australian director, producer, and founder of Green Frog Productions. After documenting stories and cultures across more than 80 countries as a photographer, he transitioned into filmmaking, bringing a distinctive human-focused perspective to his work. His films have screened internationally, won multiple awards, and been released on platforms including Stan and Apple TV. Through Green Frog Productions, Currie develops, produces, and distributes feature films and documentaries, with a focus on emotionally powerful stories that create lasting impact both on screen and beyond.
Holly Clayton
Holly Clayton is a collaborative creative director and producer, weaving joy and meaning into her work. Music and narrative-driven are the foundations of her work which spans campaigns, commercials, series and documentary. For the past six years she has predominantly focussed on social and human-interest documentary work. Travelling the world producing content for international NGOs whilst mentoring young creatives on ethical storytelling practices, producing under-represented stories within global humanitarian contexts. Her approach is organic, playful and intentional, with a strong cinematic visual style.
GRID Series Newcastle is proudly supported APRA AMCOS and the NSW Government through the Sound NSW funding program