My Island Home

Pitch :

In the late 1980s, the song My Island Home was released in two completely different nations, 7,000 km apart: Australia and Tahiti (French Polynesia). Each version went on to influence the country where it was aired, eventually becoming a classic in both Australian and Polynesian musical heritage.

The original Australian version was performed by Warumpi Band, a band that paved the way for modern Aboriginal music. They proved to their communities that it was possible to break into the Australian Music scene which had previously been dominated by artists of European descent such as AC/DC, INXS, Renée Geyer, Men at work.

In 1988, one year after the Australian version, the Polynesian adaptation is released performed by Bobby Holcomb and Angelo Neuffer, who reworked the lyrics in both English and Tahitian. It was an instant success in Tahiti and overtime became a staple of Polynesian music. Nowadays the song is frequently covered by numerous contemporary bands and artists performing on Tahitian stages, even though most are unaware of its Australian origins.

How can audiences from completely different cultural backgrounds, living in two countries 7,000 km apart, resonate in unison with the same song and lyrics? What universal message does My Island Home convey that allows it to touch the hearts of two distinct nations?