2023 Territory Sounds Countdown Winner Revealed

Alice Springs/Mparntwe artist Katanga Junior has topped the 2023 Territory Songs Countdown, with his 2022 track Rejected Love touted as the most popular song released last year. Check out the song below.

This year’s Territory Sounds Countdown was broadcast live last night throughout the NT on ABC Radio Darwin and the Northern Territory, 8CCC.

Katanga Junior topped the countdown amongst tight competition (including two of his other songs) with Baker Boy’s reworked Bernard Fanning classic, Wish You Well, Camp Dog by King Stingray, My Mind by Alice Cotton, and more snapping up spots. You can view the top 10 of this year’s Territory Songs below.

Over 500 people voted in the countdown, with Rejected Love landing the #1 spot alongside Junior’s Nakupenda and Uhuru also making it into the top five.

MusicNT Executive Director Mark Smith said in a statement, “Leading into the NT Music Awards being held in Mparntwe/Alice Springs, this year's Territory Countdown really does scream loud and proud that NT music is on the rise nationally and the depth and diversity of acts really sets NT music apart from the rest of the country.”

If you missed out on the countdown or just want to check out the songs featured last night, you can stream this Spotify playlist or listen to the broadcast on the ABC Radio Darwin website.

Katanga Junior is a Tanzanian-born and raised musician whose music mines numerous genres, from hip-hop to reggae and indie folk-like sounds. Junior aims to get dancefloors going through singing and MCing and always maintaining a memorable flow.

In an interview with Megan Starter, Junior was dubbed a “Firestarter” and said that he named his debut EP Moto “because there’s fire and burning in the lyrics”.

On the support he’s received from the community in Mparntwe, he added, “It’s a really big town – and a good town – for music and every art. It’s really amazing. You can’t find a place like this anywhere else in the world. To be here, it’s special. I pay my respects to the First Owners of the Country, and everyone.” You can read the full interview here.

Territory Sounds Countdown Top 10 

1. Rejected Love - Katanga Junior

2. Wish You Well - Baker Boy

3. Nakupenda - Katanga Junior

4. Unravel - Crystal Robins

5. Uhuru - Katanga Junior

6. Camp Dog - King Stingray

7. Death Curse - We Burn Bridges

8. My Mind - Alice Cotton

9. You Drive a Hilux - Alice Cotton

10. Predator - We Burn Bridges