Nearly five years after taking home the best newcomer award at the 2021 ARIA Awards, Budjerah is preparing to step into a new chapter with the release of his first full studio album, Gentleman.
The project, which was produced by Om’Mas Keith (Frank Ocean), is scheduled for release on Friday, July 24 through Warner Music Australia and Warner Records in the United States. The American release follows the partnership agreement made in 2021 aimed at introducing the soul pop artist to a wider audience.
The album is introduced by the recently shared single “Want You Back” along with the title song, which is being released today.
According to the Australian artist, the record reflects the person he hoped to become while growing up. “This album was almost a four-year process for me,” he says. “Between my life at home and life on the road, I experienced so much change and growth. Chasing my dreams I faced new challenges which helped me understand who I wanted to be. Every song on this album holds a piece of me. I hope little Budjerah is proud.”
Budjerah, whose full name is Budjerah Julum Slabb, is already well known across the Australian music scene. The Coodjinburra artist, celebrated for his distinctive voice, continues to establish himself as one of the country’s standout emerging talents with an impressive list of achievements already behind him.
Originally from Fingal Head in New South Wales, Budjerah released his self titled EP in 2021. That same year he became the first recipient of the Michael Gudinski Prize during a lockdown era ARIA Awards ceremony. In 2022 he earned his first APRA Music Award for most performed R&B soul work for “Higher” with Matt Corby and also won the ARIA Award for best soul R&B release.
As a performer, Budjerah joined Ed Sheeran as a support act during the British star’s 2023 stadium tour and also appeared on a remix of Sheeran’s track “2step.” His catalogue has now surpassed 60 million streams even before the arrival of his debut album. In 2023 he also secured representation in the Americas after signing with United Talent Agency. Since then he has continued building momentum through national headline tours.
Before formally revealing the album, Budjerah introduced the project on Wednesday afternoon (March 18), one day after celebrating his birthday, with a special showcase performance at Lazybones Lounge in Marrickville, located in Sydney’s inner west.
Dan Rosen, president of Warner Music Australasia and Southeast Asia, told attendees that this marks the beginning of what he called “the era of the Gentleman.” Speaking to industry guests, he described the album as “is going to be a defining moment in Australian music. We first met Budjerah six years ago with a voice that stopped the nation, a once in a generation talent.” He added that this is a “man who is finally stepping into his power and his full capacity as an artist.”
The 24 year old performer also gave a preview of several songs from the upcoming album, including the closing track “Even At My Worst,” written by Diane Warren, and his 2023 release “Therapy,” which has achieved platinum certification in Australia and has nearly 19 million Spotify streams.
The song “Gentleman” was created with writers Autumn Rowe (Alexis Jordan, Kylie Minogue), Kizzo Keaz (Jon Batiste, Ne Yo), and Philip Lawrence (Bruno Mars) and carries a classic inspired feel. Budjerah says that influence was intentional. “You have to be a gentleman and make sure your girl is treated right,” he explains. “I grew up around a lot of old people, so I was influenced by the music they played as well as watching how they treated each other, and that is what this song is about.”
Check out the Gentleman tracklist below and pre order here.
Gentleman
Want You Back
I Only Remember Your Name
Competition
Could I Be
Sinner
Pretty
Hard Time
Lonely
Let Me Know
Even At My Worst
NEWS
Live from London, it is Saturday Night Live.
The legendary sketch comedy institution officially launched its UK edition on March 21 with Saturday Night Live UK, featuring former SNL cast member Tina Fey as host and British indie rock group Wet Leg as the episode’s musical guest.
This global expansion of Lorne Michaels’ famous NBC program began with Fey’s opening monologue, which included unexpected cameos from Michael Cera and UK television personality Graham Norton.
“It’s an absolute honour and kind of historic,” Fey told the crowd. “Guys, I am the youngest person to ever host SNL UK!”
During the broadcast, Wet Leg delivered performances of two songs taken from their second album Moisturizer, which opened at Number 6 on Billboard’s Top Rock and Alternative Albums chart and also climbed to Number 1 on the Official Albums Chart in the United Kingdom.
The band first appeared performing the record’s fourth single “Mangetout,” a Grammy nominated song that also earned a place on Billboard’s list of the 20 best UK and Ireland songs of 2025. Later in the show they returned to play the album’s lead single “Catch These Fists.”
After their appearance on SNL UK, Wet Leg will travel back to the United States for a series of major festival dates including Coachella, Governors Ball, Bonnaroo and Outside Lands. Their US tour is scheduled to begin April 15 at the Fox Theater in Pomona, California.
Upcoming episodes of SNL UK have also been confirmed. Wolf Alice will serve as musical guest on the March 28 episode hosted by Jamie Dornan, while Kasabian will perform on the April 2 show with Riz Ahmed as host.
The show is broadcast on Sky in the United Kingdom and is available to stream on Peacock in the United States. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the first episode attracted more than 220,000 viewers on Sky. It was released in the US on March 22 via Peacock.
You can watch Wet Leg’s SNL UK performances below.
