Dan Kelly

Daniel Kelly is an Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist. He has released music as part of Dan Kelly and the Alpha Males. His uncle is well-known Australian musician Paul Kelly.

Early life and education Daniel Kelly born in the Australian state of South Australia, the son of a father and a nurse, Both parents played the guitar, and Dan learnt play the instrument at 13.

He studied environmental science at Griffith University in Brisbane.

Career Early career Kelly formed his first band, Nord, in Brisbane before moving to Melbourne in 1996.

In 1996 he lived St Kilda with his aunt and uncle, musician Paul Kelly, and worked as a dishwasher, then kitchen-hand, and then cook. He played in various bands during this period, and started writing his own songs in around 2000.

2000–2003: first solo recordings & Man O Mercy In 2000 he started playing solo shows under the name Dank Alley, not wanting to trade on his famous uncle Paul Kelly]'s name.

Kelly said "The songs were basically taken from jokes said around the kitchen table and they all referenced my flatmates. We were slightly mad back then. The songs are still pretty gag-heavy but we didn't want the album to be a joke. I didn't want to be a joke writer, a comedy writer, that's a whole different world – I didn't want to hang out with comedians the rest of my life."

Their second album, Drowning in the Fountain of Youth, released in August 2006, was awarded Album of the Year by Melbourne-based music magazine Inpress. Kelly received his third nomination for ARIA Award for Best Male Artist at the ARIA Music Awards of 2007.

In early 2007, Kelly announced his backing band, the Alpha Males, were to disband for an undecided amount of time to allow the individual members to focus on other projects, a pertinent example being the addition of Dan Luscombe to the line up of The Drones. Kelly again joined his uncle, performing on his 2007 album, Stolen Apples and subsequent national tour, and has often returned to his touring band since.

Kelly also played in Stardust Five, a five-piece surf rock and pop band formed in Melbourne in 2005. Other members of the band were Paul Kelly, Dan Luscombe, Peter Luscombe, and Bill MacDonald.

In 2008 Kelly teamed up with Melbourne faux Hawaiian duo, The Ukeladies, to release "The S.U.V Song", undertaking a number of headline shows and support shows with Augie March, in October and November 2008.

2009–2014 : Dan Kelly's Dream Band In late 2009 Kelly commenced work on a new album, Dan Kelly's Dream. The first single, "Bindi Irwin Apocalypse Jam", was released in April 2010. Kelly undertook a national tour with a new line up called Dan Kelly's Dream Band comprising Dave Williams & Kiernan Box (Augie March), Indra Adams (Ground Components) and Ryan Nelson (SubAudible Hum). Dallas Packard (Ground Components) and Kelly's teenage cousins Madeleine and Memphis Kelly (daughters of Paul Kelly) also featured on the album, with the girls frequently joining the touring band on stage to provide backing vocals.

Dan Kelly’s Dream made a number of best album of the year lists, notably Faster Louder, Mess and Noise and The Age. At the EG Awards of 2010, Kelly won the award for Best Male artist and was nominated for Best Male Artist at the ARIA Music Awards of 2010. Dan Kelly’s Dream was nominated for the 2010 AMP award for best Australian album.

2015–present: Leisure Panic! In October 2015, Kelly released Leisure Panic! on ABC Music. The album was recorded over two years in East London, Northern New South Wales, Melbourne and Sydney with members of the Dream Band and long time collaborator Aaron Cupples. The album spawned the singles "Never Stop the Rot" and "Everything's Amazing". It was met with critical acclaim culminating in its nomination for the 2015 AMP award for best Australian album.

In 2016, Kelly embarked on the 'Australian Dreamers' national tour with Alex Gow (Oh Mercy), with both artists taking the stage together.

In 2019, Kelly celebrated 15 years of Sing the Tabloid Blues by performing the album in Australia.

Released: 15 March 2004 Label: In-Fidelity Recordings (IF009CD) Format: CD, digital download —

Released: 12 August 2006 Label: In-Fidelity Recordings (INFCD-125) Format: CD, digital download —

Released: 16 July 2010 Label: Dan Kelly, Shock Records (DK003) Format: CD, digital download 100

Released: 9 October 2015 Label: ABC Music, UMA (4749804) Format: CD, digital download, streaming, LP —

Released: 5 September 2024 Label: Dan Kelly (DANK001V) Format: CD, digital download, streaming, LP —

Extended plays Title Details Man-O-Mercy EP Released: 2002 Label: In-Fidelity Recordings (IF002CD) Format: CD Pirate Radio Released: October 2005 Label: In-Fidelity Recordings (INFCD-124) Format: DD, CD

Awards AIR Awards The Australian Independent Record Awards (commonly known informally as AIR Awards) is an annual awards night to recognise, promote and celebrate the success of Australia's Independent Music sector. They commenced in 2006.

himself Best Independent Artist Dan Kelly's Dream Best Independent Album 2026

Song of the Year

ARIA Music Awards The ARIA Music Awards is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of Australian music. Kelly has been nominated for six awards.

Best Male Artist Breakthrough Artist - Album Best Independent Release 2006 Pirate Radio Best Male Artist 2007 Drowning in the Fountain of Youth Best Male Artist 2010 Dan Kelly's Dream Best Male Artist

Australian Music Prize The Australian Music Prize (the AMP) is an annual award of $30,000 given to an Australian band or solo artist in recognition of the merit of an album released during the year of award. It commenced in 2005. 2010 Dan Kelly's Dream Australian Music Prize 2015 Leisure Australian Music Prize

EG Awards / Music Victoria Awards The EG Awards (known as Music Victoria Awards since 2013) are an annual awards night celebrating Victorian music. They commenced in 2006. 2010 himself Best Male Artist

J Award The J Awards are an annual series of Australian music awards that were established by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's youth-focused radio station Triple J. They commenced in 2005. 2006 Drowning in the Fountain of Youth Australian Album of the Year