Briggs swaps rap for punk with Big Noter: ‘I’m the same guy with the same middle finger!’
News Source
•Wed, 16 Sep 2026 15:00:23 GMT
📰 What Happened
Australian rapper Adam Briggs has started a punk band called Big Noter. He sings lead, with Steve Smith on drums, Leigh Davies on guitar and Craig Strain on bass. Their first album, Songs in the Key of Wrestling, is out on 18 September.
Briggs says the move is a ‘gear shift’, not a departure. ‘I am the same guy with the same message and the same middle finger,’ he told the Guardian. He grew up with punk and calls it a staple of his childhood.
The record features big names. Tom Morello plays a solo on a song about mental health. Public Enemy's Chuck D appears on A Message from Chuck, and Idles singer Joe Talbot joins in too.
🔍 The Backstory
Briggs is a Yorta-Yorta, Wurundjeri and Wemba-Wemba musician. His 2014 album Sheplife put his home town of Shepparton on the map. He almost quit music after racist abuse over his first release.
He went on to become one of Australia's biggest hip-hop artists, both solo and in the duo AB Original. He also started two labels, Bad Apples and Irruk Birruk, to lift up First Nations voices.
Briggs says hip-hop struggles to travel overseas, while punk is understood almost everywhere. He has toured Europe and played with Morello, Suicidal Tendencies and Amyl and the Sniffers.
🎯 Why It Matters
Briggs is reaching new fans with a new sound while still backing First Nations artists. His labels have helped launch more than a dozen careers.
Australian rapper Adam Briggs has started a punk band called Big Noter. He sings lead, with Steve Smith on drums, Leigh Davies on guitar and Craig Strain on bass. Their first album, Songs in the Key of Wrestling, is out on 18 September.
Briggs says the move is a ‘gear shift’, not a departure. ‘I am the same guy with the same message and the same middle finger,’ he told the Guardian. He grew up with punk and calls it a staple of his childhood.
The record features big names. Tom Morello plays a solo on a song about mental health. Public Enemy's Chuck D appears on A Message from Chuck, and Idles singer Joe Talbot joins in too.
Briggs is a Yorta-Yorta, Wurundjeri and Wemba-Wemba musician. His 2014 album Sheplife put his home town of Shepparton on the map. He almost quit music after racist abuse over his first release.
He went on to become one of Australia's biggest hip-hop artists, both solo and in the duo AB Original. He also started two labels, Bad Apples and Irruk Birruk, to lift up First Nations voices.
Briggs says hip-hop struggles to travel overseas, while punk is understood almost everywhere. He has toured Europe and played with Morello, Suicidal Tendencies and Amyl and the Sniffers.
Briggs is reaching new fans with a new sound while still backing First Nations artists. His labels have helped launch more than a dozen careers.