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An uplifting music video is on top rotation for Bourke High School in its latest cultural collaboration with Desert Pea Media. Indigenous student collective ‘28 On Top’ also worked this year with original members of Bourke’s groundbreaking hip hop group ‘B-Town Warriors’ (People of the Red Sunset, Thundercloud, My Generation). The result is the moving song and video ‘All that you Need’, which finds “beauty in the stillness” and learns “from the past to create a new tomorrow”. For 20 years Desert Pea Media (DPM) has unearthed incredible Indigenous talent around Australia and, in this new collaboration, Bourke students urge each other to honour ancestors and look to a bright future: “Do it for yourself and the ones who come before you … you can be who you want to be”. In 2023/24 DPM delivered the ‘Crossroads’ project in Bourke and Moree to build community foundations, a cultural legacy and creative employment opportunities. The 12-month project included songwriting, storytelling and digital media, skills development and cultural education. Original B-Town Warriors members work weekly on new projects at Bourke High School and facilitate DPM projects in neighbouring communities. “The legacy of DPM’s work in Bourke is well-known in this region. Hopefully we can create a model where the older crew inspire the younger students, and they in turn become leaders and role models for future generations. This project also helps boost literacy and engagement.” (Murray Cronin – Executive Principal, Bourke High School) “It’s been an incredible experience being a part of the Crossroads project, and to return to Bourke High, no longer a student but as a mentor and creative. We don’t get many opportunities out here, and we feel the impacts not only on the kids and the community but our own wellbeing. Music is medicine.” – Lorraine Dutton (B-Town Warriors, Project Co-Facilitator) "Our work in Bourke and Moree over the past couple of decades, and more recently through 'The Crossroads Project' has been an incredible journey of connection and transformation” says Toby Finlayson, Creative Director of DPM. “It’s an honour to watch these young people grow, not only as artists and creatives but as people. The power of music and media to bridge gaps, create healing and amplify unheard voices is immeasurable.” ’28 On Top’ and DPM released their debut track ‘Home’ in 2023. In 2016, The B-Town Warriors and DPM released their hit debut single ‘People of the Red Sunset’ which dropped onto spot rotation on Triple J, attracted international media attention on its way to becoming a summer anthem of 2017 (400,000+ views on Youtube). The crew went on to release four other songs and win two NIMA Awards. Desert Pea Media is a community-driven media organisation amplifying the voices of Australia’s remote and regional communities. Through innovative arts and digital media initiatives, Desert Pea Media empowers individuals to tell their stories and celebrate their unique perspectives. Desert Pea Media's ongoing projects in Bourke have fostered community connections, building the trust required to share story, knowledge, aspirations, and struggles through the medium of music and media. The project's objective is to empower these voices, create opportunity and drive real, meaningful change.