Fanny Lumsden almost wants to thank the people who didn’t believe in her.
The two-time ARIA winner who has toured the world and performed alongside Australian legends says she would not be where she is today without those who tried to stand in her way.
As a country music artist whose decade-and-a-half-long career is hard to define, Lumsden is used to facing rejection.
“The industry always has certain artists it is backing - that it can see fits the mould,” she told AAP.
“I have just never been that artist."
“When you’re creating your own sound and it doesn’t sound like all the others around you, it’s hard to be put in a box: I’m not Americana enough or I’m not country enough, or I’'m not folk enough - but I’m a little bit of all of it.”
Her song Look at Me Now, which has been nominated for Video of the Year at the 2026 Golden Guitar awards, encapsulates her journey since the 2010s.
Grainy snippets of gigs and rehearsals on different stages across the country are spliced together with moments from the life she shares with her husband and music collaborator Dan Freeman.
“If it wasn’t for all the people that said, ‘that doesn’t fit here, that song won’t play on radio - it doesn’t have a chorus’ or ‘you can’t do that’, I wouldn’t have gotten to where I am now.
“It’s not a spite song, it’s really a celebration.
“To all those people who didn’t believe in me - it’s almost a thank you.”
During 2025, the singer-songwriter did two tours with the legendary Paul Kelly who, unlike those earlier in her career, helped realise her artistic vision.
He insisted she be offered a full band and present her set the way she wanted.
“Getting to perform in those massive venues and still do my silly little dances and have a lot of fun … it really was the perfect gig,” she said.
Lumsden has already won nine Golden Guitar awards and the Look At Me Now video represents her 19th nomination at the Tamworth Country Music Festival.
Though her gigs at the regional festival may not be able to fit as many listeners as the Kelly shows, they offer a chance to reflect on her first performance in the beating heart of country music.
“In Tamworth, it’s kind of egalitarian artist-wise - it doesn’t really matter what stage you’re at, you’re all in it together,” she said.
“I remember having this light bulb moment of being like, ‘oh my god, this is where we’re meant to be’.”
The Country Music Awards of Australia will take place on Saturday night in Tamworth.
AAP travelled with the assistance of Tamworth Country Music Festival
