The Goldhearts

For more than a decade, The Goldhearts have paired infectious indie-pop with songs inspired by the world around them. Their latest single, Original Nation, explores themes of truth-telling, history and reconciliation through the band's own experiences and perspective. In this interview, The Goldhearts discuss the inspiration behind the song, the ideas that shaped its creation, and how decades of making music continue to influence their songwriting.

Original Nation tackles themes of truth-telling, history and reconciliation. Can you talk about the experiences, conversations and moments of reflection that ultimately led to writing this song?

Margy, who wrote the song, didn't learn the ugly truths of colonisation at school—although she did receive a commemorative booklet celebrating Captain Cook "discovering" Australia. It wasn't until studying Social Work at university and later working in the field that she began to understand the devastating impact of colonisation. Like many of her colleagues, those learnings deeply affected her.

She also watched Rachel Perkins' The Australian Wars documentary series, films such as Rabbit-Proof Fence, and learnt about the Australian Massacre Map, a Newcastle University research project documenting sites where frontier massacres occurred across colonial Australia. At the time she wrote Original Nation, around 250 massacres had been documented. Today, the project has identified more than 400 massacre sites. These experiences and discoveries ultimately became the foundation for the song.

The lyrics explore the contrast between what many Australians were taught at school and what they've learned later in life. How did your own understanding of Australian history evolve, and how did that journey shape the song?

Original Nation is a response both to the brutal truths of colonisation and to the fact that, for many Australians, this history simply wasn't taught in schools. While there's hope that education has improved, there's still plenty of room for change.

The band believes truth-telling is a vital part of reconciliation because it allows people to understand the violence, harm and lasting impacts of colonisation. As difficult as those truths are, they can also inspire people to become active participants in reconciliation.

The song also reflects Margy's own experience of being warmly welcomed by Aboriginal people, particularly in the workplace, despite her limited cultural understanding at the time. Through those relationships she developed a deep appreciation for Aboriginal culture, humour and the achievements of Indigenous Australians across sport and the arts. As those connections grew, the history of colonisation became deeply personal, transforming her into an ally. Ultimately, Original Nation emerged from years of gentle learning directly from Aboriginal people, proving it's never too late to learn the truth and walk the path towards reconciliation.

The Goldhearts have always balanced catchy indie-pop hooks with thoughtful subject matter, from environmental themes in songs like Microplastic through to the social commentary in Original Nation. Why is it important for the band to engage with these kinds of topics through music?

We live in challenging times where people are confronted with countless social and environmental issues every day. There's only so much emotional energy people can devote before it becomes overwhelming.

For The Goldhearts, the subjects that find their way into songs are the ones that become part of everyday life—plastic pollution in Microplastic and Beach Butts, trophy hunting in Shooters Party, and now colonisation in Original Nation.

Songwriting has become a therapeutic way of processing these issues. If those songs also help listeners feel less alone or encourage conversations that matter, then that's an added reward.

You've each had long musical journeys before and during The Goldhearts, including playing major festivals, touring internationally and sharing stages with iconic artists. How have those experiences shaped the band's identity and approach to songwriting today?

Having spent much of their lives playing in bands and sharing stages with countless artists has given The Goldhearts the confidence to keep creating, recording and performing.

It's easy to feel intimidated as veterans of the music industry, but the band continues because they genuinely enjoy making music together. They're also reconnecting with friends they've played alongside over the years, strengthening old friendships while encouraging their local community to get out and experience live music. That sense of connection has become just as important as the music itself.

As a non-Indigenous band, you've been careful to position Original Nation as a contribution to reconciliation rather than speaking on behalf of First Nations people. What conversations did you have around that responsibility while creating and releasing the song?

The band sees Original Nation as both an apology and a love letter to Aboriginal Australia. However, they believe the song's primary audience is the broader Australian community.

As non-Indigenous Australians, they feel they have a responsibility to keep reconciliation part of the national conversation, particularly following the Voice referendum. Their hope is that Original Nation encourages other non-Indigenous Australians who are grappling with the realities of colonisation to continue engaging with themes of truth, hope and reconciliation.

The Goldhearts have built an audience across Australia, the US, Japan and Peru over the past decade. Looking ahead, what does the next chapter for the band look like, and what do you hope listeners take away from Original Nation and the music still to come?

Original Nation has been selected as a finalist in the Gold Coast final of the Listen Up Music Awards, and the band will perform the song live for the first time at Den Devine in Broadbeach on 27 August. They're hoping violinist Sue Ferrers, who composed and performed the haunting violin parts featured on the recording, will join them on stage. Her performance beautifully captures both the tragedy of colonisation and the hope that reconciliation can bring.

Looking ahead, The Goldhearts describe themselves as "the little band that could"—determined to keep making music for as long as they can. They're about to enter a new writing phase and plan to experiment with fresh creative approaches. Whatever comes next, they hope their music continues to resonate through meaningful lyrics, memorable melodies and the simple fact they're still out there doing what they love.