In his first-ever album Rhyan Clapham, known by his stage name Dobby, brought together his ancestral connection to the Murray-Darling Basin and hip hop earning him a nomination for the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) Music Award under the category Best World Music Album. 

"It's definitely a very surreal moment," Ryhan said.

The album, titled Warangu: River Story, takes the listener on a journey through the Murray-Darling Basin, capturing the undiluted voices of the inhabitants and the sounds of nature around them. 

Members of the Indigenous community and Rhyan's relatives, including Tommy Barker, Jose Byno, Brad Gordon, Lily Shearer, and Rhyan's grandmother Mary Clapham, speak about the river and the meaning it has to them.

 Rhyan's family passed on many stories about the importance of keeping the waters healthy. Photo: Prince Reyes.

Rhyan's paternal side has its roots in Brewarrina. 

"Dad would always talk about playing underneath the weir so that the water would run over his head. And about going fishing and swimming on really hot days after school." 

His grandmother, who passed away in 2022, also had a deep connection to the land she grew up on. 

"As she got older, she started talking a lot about going back to Bre and missing home," Ryhan said.

Her voice is featured on the album on the final piece including the voices of several other Elders in the local Indigenous community. 

"I was following my gut and trusting that the voices would not only contribute effectively to the project but also needed to be heard on the album," Rhyan said. 

"It's important for me to have her voice on my album. She is the reason I am here." 

Despite not growing up in Brewarrina, Rhyan has always felt an intense belonging to the land and water through his roots. 

"When I grew up Bre was a small place. Now a lot of people put their hand up and say, 'I've been to Bre.'

 "The river is a massive part of Brewarrina. There's a saying that if the river is high, then the spirits are high in town."

While making the album, Rhyan discovered that in the same way, everything has its place in nature, his place is educating people about the importance of taking care of the water. 

"I discovered that I'm definitely a small piece to a big puzzle," Rhyan said.

"It's way bigger than me. It's a global story. Water is universal." 

Rhyan said that the traces climate change leaves on the Barwon, Bogan, and Culgoa Rivers are evident in small details that point to a more scathing issue. 

"I worry about the future. Sometimes the weather feels like four seasons in one. Fewer bugs hit the windshield as you're driving. They are smaller clues to a catastrophic climate shift." 

As Rhyan looks into the future, he sees many unanswered questions

"Will people be held accountable? Will people change their ways? Will we stop contributing to the misallocation of water and floodplain harvesting going unmonitored and unregulated? Everything will amount to something if we don't stop it now." 

The winners of the ARIA Awards will be announced on 20 November at the Hordern Pavilion.

You can listen to Dobby's album on here.