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// Workers AI · dad joke modeIs Omar Musa a poet? Does he have a lot of "musa"-ings?

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Omar bin Musa
Omar Musa at Jaipur Literature Festival, Federation Square, Melbourne 2017
Omar Musa at Jaipur Literature Festival, Federation Square, Melbourne 2017
Background information
Born
Omar bin Musa

{[January 9, 1984 ]}
Queanbeyan, New South Wales, Australia
Genreship hop, slam poetry, spoken word
OccupationsPoet, rapper, novelist, artist
Instrumentvocals
Years active2002–present
AwardsVictorian Premier's Prize for Fiction
Miles Franklin Award
Websiteomarmusa.com.au

Omar Musa, born Omar bin Musa, is a Malaysian-Australian author, poet, rapper, and visual artist. His novel Here Come the Dogs was longlisted for the 2015 Miles Franklin Award and the International Dublin Literary Award. In 2025, he released a second novel, Fierceland, that won the 2026 Miles Franklin Award.

Early life and education

[edit]

Omar Musa was born Omar bin Musa in Queanbeyan, New South Wales, Australia. His mother, arts journalist Helen Musa, is of Irish descent. His father, Musa bin Masran, was a Malaysian poet of Suluk heritage, whose mother was of Kedayan descent from the border areas between Malaysian Borneo and Brunei.[1]

Musa grew up in a block of flats in Queanbeyan, a satellite city of Canberra. He has described his upbringing as influenced by the cultural diversity of his Macedonian, Korean and Serbian neighbours. He witnessed social challenges within his community, including domestic violence, which he recalled in his 2013 TEDxSydney talk, "Slam Poetry of the Streets". In the talk, he contrasted his childhood with the idealised image of Australia, stating that his experience held "no white sails of the Opera House ... no pavlova."[2]

Musa's parents were both strong advocates for artistic expression, and provided him with access to cultural experiences such as concerts, exhibitions, and theatre performances. He has credited this exposure to the arts as a formative influence on his creative development and career.[3]

Musa studied at the Australian National University and the University of California, Santa Cruz.[citation needed]

Career

[edit]

Musa is a poet, hip hop musician, novelist, and visual artist.[4][5][6][7] Musa's career began in poetry, and he gained national attention as a runner-up in the 2007 Australian Poetry Slam.[8] He won the competition the following year, performing at the Sydney Opera House. He also won the Indian Ocean Poetry Slam in 2009.[9]

Much of Musa's early work explores themes of migration, Australian racism, violence, masculinity and loneliness.[7] His poetry collections include: The Clocks (2009),[10] Parang (2009),[11] Millefiori (2012),[12] and Killernova (2018). Parang, named after the Malay word for "machete," explores themes of his Malaysian heritage, migration, and loss.[4][11]

During a visit to family in Borneo, Musa developed an interest in woodcutting, which led him to incorporate his own woodcut artwork in Killernova, adding a visual element to his creative work.[13] Musa's fourth collection of poetry, Killernova, also features his woodcuts.[14]

Musa has collaborated with various musicians and hip-hop artists, including Kae Tempest,[15] Horrorshow, Kate Miller-Heidke, L-FRESH the Lion,[16] Marc E. Bassy, Lior, Hau Latukefu from Koolism, Joelistics, The Last Kinection, Daniel Merriweather, Akala, and Soweto Kinch.[17]

In 2014, Musa published his debut novel, Here Come the Dogs,[18] which centres on the lives of three disillusioned young men in small-town Australia. The novel examines issues of race, identity, and the struggles of marginalised youth.[18] The Los Angeles Times called the novel "rousing" and "searing", and said that "with compassion and urgency, Here Come the Dogs excavates the pain of those who struggle to remain part of a ruthless equation that has been determined by others".[19] Here Come the Dogs was nominated for numerous awards, including the Miles Franklin Award[20] and the International Dublin Literary Award.[21] It won the People's Choice Award at the ACT Book of the Year Awards.[22] Musa was named one of the Sydney Morning Herald's Young Novelists of the Year and the novel was short-listed for the New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards in 2015.[23][24]

In 2017, Musa released Since Ali Died, a full-length hip hop album featuring Sarah Corry, Amali Golden, and Tasman Keith.[25] In 2018, he created a one-man play, Since Ali Died, based on the album, that premiered at Griffin Theatre in Sydney.[26]

Musa's 2025 novel, Fierceland, is set in Sabah. It focuses on two siblings coming to terms with the legacy and death of their palm-oil baron father.[27] It explores topics surrounding illegal logging, indigenous rights, and Borneo rainforests.[27][28] The novel won the 2026 Victorian Premier's Prize for Fiction,[29] was shortlisted for the fiction category of The Age Book of the Year Awards,[30] and won the Miles Franklin Award.[31]

Bibliography

[edit]

Books

[edit]
  • The Clocks (2009)
  • Parang (2013)
  • Here Come the Dogs (2014)
  • Millefiori (2017)
  • Killernova (2021: Australia, Penguin) (2022: UK, Broken Sleep Books)
  • Fierceland (2025: Australia, Penguin)

Plays

[edit]
  • Since Ali Died (2018)

Discography

[edit]

Studio albums

[edit]
Title Details
World Goes to Pieces
Since Ali Died
  • Released: December 2017
  • Label: Moneykat Music
  • Format: CD, Digital download, streaming

Extended plays

[edit]
Title Details
The Massive EP
  • Released: 2009
  • Label: Omar Music (OBM001)
  • Format: Digital download, streaming
Dead Centre
  • Released: 2016[32][33]
  • Label: Big Village (BV019)
  • Format: CD, Digital download, streaming

References

[edit]
  1. ↑ Neerven, Ellen van (2 November 2019). "Rapper, poet and novelist Omar Musa". The Saturday Paper. Archived from the original on 6 January 2026. Retrieved 5 August 2026. ...the 35-year-old...
  2. ↑ "Omar Musa, Australia's star slam poet, brings 'in-betweener' perspective to US". the garret podcast. Retrieved 29 March 2025.
  3. ↑ "At home with Omar Musa". the garret podcast. Retrieved 29 March 2025.
  4. 1 2 Sebag-Montefiore, Clarissa (17 February 2016). "Omar Musa, Australia's star slam poet, brings 'in-betweener' perspective to US". The Guardian. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  5. ↑ Skidmore, Maya (28 April 2022). "How hip-hop poet Omar Bin Musa discovered a garden of delights through his cultural heritage". Time Out. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  6. ↑ Hall, Hannah (1 February 2017). "Hannah Hall Interviews Omar Musa". Cordite. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  7. 1 2 "Omar Musa: Killernova". Penguin. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  8. ↑ "Poetry Slam comes down to a 'Slam-off'". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 28 January 2016.
  9. ↑ Mordue, Mark (24 January 2018). "Omar Musa". Neighbourhood. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  10. ↑ "The clocks / by Omar Musa". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  11. 1 2 "Omar Musa: Parang". Penguin. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  12. ↑ "Omar Musa: Millefiori". Penguin. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  13. ↑ Cousins, Lucy E (12 August 2022). "Multi-Faceted Artist Omar Musa On Operating At The Margins". T Australia. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  14. ↑ "5 Questions with Omar Musa". Liminal Mag. 2 December 2021. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  15. ↑ "Omar Musa". ABC. 24 August 2023. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  16. ↑ Fuamoli, Sosefina (5 August 2016). "Omar Musa opens up on his new EP, Dead Centre, and his return to music after time out of the hip hop scene". The AU Review. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  17. ↑ "Omar Musa". internationales literaturfestival berlin. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  18. 1 2 "Omar Musa: Here Come The Dogs". Penguin. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  19. ↑ "Review: Omar Musa brings Australian hip-hop, poetry and subculture to the US in 'Here Come the Dogs'". Los Angeles Times. 14 January 2016.
  20. ↑ "Miles Franklin Literary Award longlist 2015: Omar Musa, Suzanne McCourt and Christine Piper hit it big with debut works". The Sydney Morning Herald. 30 March 2015. Retrieved 28 January 2016.
  21. ↑ "Omar Musa: 2018 Young Alumnus of the Year". Australian National University. 21 March 2018. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  22. ↑ "Henshaw, Musa take Book of the Year honours". Riotact. 18 December 2015. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  23. ↑ "NSW Premier's Literary Awards 2015 shortlists announced". Books + Publishing. 24 April 2015. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  24. ↑ "Maxine Beneba Clarke, Alice Pung, Ellen Van Neervan, Omar Musa, Michael Mohammed Ahmad are 2015 Best Young Australian Novelists". The Sydney Morning Herald. 22 May 2015. Retrieved 28 January 2016.
  25. ↑ "Omar Musa "Since Ali Died" new album out now". All Aussie Hip Hop. 5 December 2017. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  26. ↑ Tongue, Cassie. "Since Ali Died review | Theatre in Sydney". Time Out Sydney.
  27. 1 2 "Fierceland". Penguin Random House SEA. Retrieved 12 December 2025.
  28. ↑ ""Fierceland" by Omar Musa". Asian Review of Books. 15 August 2025. Retrieved 12 December 2025.
  29. ↑ Cain, Sian (25 February 2026). "Evelyn Araluen wins $125,000 for 'politically uncompromising' poetry at Victorian premier's literary awards". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 25 February 2026.
  30. ↑ "The Age Book of the Year 2026 shortlists announced". Books+Publishing. 15 April 2026. Retrieved 17 April 2026.
  31. ↑ Cain, Sian (5 August 2026). "Omar Musa wins Miles Franklin literary award for 'tour de force' novel Fierceland". The Guardian. Retrieved 5 August 2026.
  32. ↑ Teague, Marcus (4 August 2016). "Omar Musa: Dead Centre review – a vital, if uneven, slice of hip-hop and poetry". The Guardian. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  33. ↑ "New album reviews: Omar Musa, Salty, Stoney Joe, Oh Pep! and Blood Orange". The Sydney Morning Herald. 2 August 2016. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
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