Lee Raymond Kernaghan (born 15 April 1964) is an Australian country music singer, songwriter and guitarist. Kernaghan has won four ARIA Awards and three APRA Awards, and has sold over two million albums, and as of 2021, has won 38 Golden Guitars at the Country Music Awards of Australia.
He was the 2008 Australian of the Year, in recognition of his support for rural and regional Australia. Kernaghan was the recipient of the Outstanding Achievement Award at the 2015 ARIA Awards, for Spirit of the Anzacs.
Biography 1965–1990: Early years Lee Kernaghan was born on 15 April 1964 in Corryong, Victoria and is the son of country music singer and truck driver Ray Kernaghan. Lee spent his formative years growing up in Albury New South Wales. His grandfather was a third generation drover of sheep and cattle.
In 1986, Kernaghan traveled to the United States to represent Australia at the Nashville 'Fan Fair' country music festival.
1990s In 1992, Kernaghan released "Boys from the Bush" which became his first number one on the country chart. The song peaked at number 130 on the ARIA Chart. Kernaghan said "When Garth (Porter) and I first wrote 'Boys from the Bush' I had no idea it would ever be a hit. It was just a song about me and my mates, working on the land, going to the pub and tearing around in utes. I didn't think anyone would be that interested in us... we were just kids from the bush but Garth said 'this record (The Outback Club) has to be about your life and where you come from so we wrote that song and several others and before long I had a band and we were out on the road performing them live."
In May 1992, Kernaghan released The Outback Club. The album debuted at number 94 on the ARIA Charts. At the 1993 Country Music Awards of Australia (CMAA), the album won Album of the Year the ARIA Award for Best Country Album. The album re-entered the chart later peaking at number 58 in May 1994.
In August 1993, Kernaghan released his second studio album, Three Chain Road. The album again won the CMAA Album of the Year and the ARIA Award for Best Country Album.
In July 1995, Kernaghan released his third studio album, 1959, which peaked at number 9 on the ARIA Chart, becoming Kernaghan's first top ten album. The album won Kernaghan his third Album of the Year at the CMAA of 1996.
In February 1998, Kernaghan released his fourth studio album, Hat Town. The album peaked at number 7 on the ARIA Chart and won his fourth Album of the Year at the CMAA of 1999.
Kernaghan's fifth studio album was The Christmas Album in November 1998. The album peaked at number 31 on the ARIA chart.
2000s In January 2000, Kernaghan released his sixth studio album, Rules of the Road. This was followed by Electric Rodeo in July 2002 which won Album of the Year and Top Selling Album of the Year at the 2003 CMAA. Electric Rodeo peaked at number 5 on the ARIA chart.
Kernaghan was part of The Man from Snowy River: Arena Spectacular in 2002.
In October 2004, Kernaghan released his first greatest hits collection titled, The Big Ones: Greatest Hits Vol. 1. The album peaked at number 16 on the ARIA charts and was certified platinum.
In April 2006, Kernaghan released his eighth studio album, The New Bush. The album peaked at number 6 on the ARIA Charts and won Album of the Year and Top Selling Album of the Year at the 2007 CMAA.
In July 2007, Kernaghan released his ninth studio album, Spirit of the Bush. The album's title track peaked at number 11 on the ARIA singles chart, becoming Kernaghan's highest charting single. The song won three awards at the 2008 CMAA.
In November 2009, Kernaghan released his tenth studio album, Planet Country.
In 2009 Kernaghan was named the biggest hit-maker of the last twenty years on the Australian Country Tracks chart, beating musical greats from Australia and international.
2010s In September 2011, Kernaghan released his second greatest hits collection, Ultimate Hits. The album peaked at number 8 on the ARIA chart.
In October 2012, Kernaghan released his eleventh studio album, Beautiful Noise. The album peaked at number 9 on the ARIA chart.
During a visit to the Australian War Memorial (AWM) in 2013, Kernaghan's friend and AWM Director Dr. Brendan Nelson introduced Kernaghan to letters that were written by Australian service men and women during various wars dating back to the landing at Gallipoli during the First World War. These letters were held in the vaults at the AWM. The power of the letters affected Kernaghan deeply and the experience at the Australian War Memorial that day was the catalyst that saw these letters put to music in what would become the Spirit of the Anzacs (album) in March 2015. Upon release, the album peaked at number 1 on the ARIA charts, becoming Kernaghan's first chart topper. It was the highest selling Australian artist album for 2015.
2015 also saw the release of Kernaghan's first book, The Boy from the Bush, These Are My Songs, These Are My Stories.
In March 2017, Kernaghan released his fourteenth studio album, The 25th Anniversary Album. The album peaked at number 2 on the ARIA chart.
In 2019 Kernaghan released his fifteenth studio album, Backroad Nation with the title track staying four weeks at #1 on the country singles charts.
2020s In 2022 Kernaghan is set to celebrate his 30th anniversary as an artist. In January 2022, he released a 3-CD greatest hits collection titled The Very Best of Lee Kernaghan: Three Decades of Hits on 14 January 2022 which peaked at number 17 on the ARIA charts.
Personal life During July 2015, Kernaghan's music was played at anti-Islam rallies in Australia, without his permission. He responded that the use of his work should be "consistent with – and respectful of, the memory of ... [soldiers who] laid down their lives for the freedoms we have today." Fellow local artists, Jimmy Barnes, John Farnham and Mark Seymour, objected to the use of their material at those rallies.
Kernaghan married musician Robyn McKelvie in 1999. They have two sons, Jet and Rock.
Business ventures For several years, Kernaghan owned the historic Great Western Hotel in Rockhampton, Queensland, after buying the pub in 2003 when it was placed into receivership after a downturn in trade and public liability concerns.Kernaghan buys Great Western pub, Chris Lawson, Queensland Country Hour, ABC Rural, 9 April 2003. Retrieved 23 March 2017.Boy from the bush buys QLD pub, National Rural News, ABC Rural, 9 April 2003. Retrieved 23 March 2017. Kernaghan has described the time during which he owned the Great Western Hotel as one of the greatest periods of his life.Country music legend Lee Kernaghan returns to 'second home', Michelle Gately, The Morning Bulletin, 7 May 2015. Retrieved 23 March 2017.
Discography
Studio albums Title Album details Peak chart positions Certifications AUSPeak chart positions in Australia: Top 50 peaks: Top 100 peaks to December 2010: The Outback Club Release date: 4 May 1992 Label: ABC Music (512 336-2) 58 ARIA: 2× Platinum Three Chain Road Release date: August 1993 Label: ABC Music (518 304-2) 35 ARIA: 2× Platinum 1959 Release date: July 1995 Label: ABC Music (479809-2) 9 ARIA: Platinum Hat Town Release date: February 1998 Label: ABC Music (493846-2) 7 ARIA: Platinum The Christmas Album Release date: 23 November 1998 Label: ABC Music (498040-2) 31 Rules of the Road Release date: January 2000 Label: ABC Music (524618-2) 16 ARIA: Gold Electric Rodeo Release date: July 2002 Label: ABC Music (1243-2) 5 ARIA: Platinum The New Bush Release date: May 2006 Label: ABC Music (5101-13104-2) 6 ARIA: Platinum Spirit of the Bush Release date: July 2007 Label: ABC Music (5144-21680-2) 5 ARIA: Platinum Planet Country Release date: November 2009 Label: ABC Music (8000288) 13 ARIA: Gold Beautiful Noise Release date: October 2012 Label: ABC Music (8800973) 9 ARIA: Gold Driving Home for Christmas Release date: November 2014 Label: ABC Music (3798306) 46 Spirit of the Anzacs Release date: March 2015 Label: ABC Music (8800099) 1 ARIA: Platinum The 25th Anniversary Album Release date: 24 March 2017 Label: ABC Music (LEE9898) 2 Backroad Nation Release date: 10 May 2019 Label: ABC Music (7760261) 3
Collaboration albums Title Album details Family Tradition (with Ray Kernaghan) Release date: 1985 Label: KCR (KCR 009)
Live albums Title Album details Peak chart positions AUS Live at the Deni Ute Muster Release date: 15 April 2022 Label: ABC (ABCC0016) 53
Compilation albums Title Album details Peak chart positions Certifications AUS The Big Ones: Greatest Hits Vol. 1 Release date: October 2004 Label: ABC Music (1404-2) 16 ARIA: Platinum Ultimate Hits Release date: October 2011 Label: ABC Music (8800919) 8 ARIA: Gold The Very Best of Lee Kernaghan: Three Decades of Hits Release date: 14 January 2022 Label: ABC Music (ABCC0012) 17
Video albums Title Album details Peak chart positions Certifications AUSDVD Access All Areas Release date: June 2004 Label: ABC Country (1391-9) 8 ARIA: Gold
Charting singles +Charting singles in the top 200 Title Year Peak chart positions Album AUSPeak chart positions in Australia: Top 50 peaks: N.B. The High Point number in the NAT column represents the release's peak on the national chart. "Boys from the Bush" 1993 130 The Outback Club "She's My Ute" 156 "Save This Land" 1994 105 "Country Crowd" 1995 130 1959 "This Is the Outback" 1997 84 "Missin' Slim" 2004 49 "Spirit of the Bush" 2007 11 Spirit of the Bush "Beautiful Noise" 2012 187 Beautiful Noise "Spirit of the Anzacs" 2015 32 Spirit of the Anzacs
Awards and nominations Kernaghan received the Order of Australia Medal in 2004.
In 2008, he was Australian of the Year, in recognition for his support of rural and regional Australia; his 'Pass the Hat Around' tours have raised more than a million dollars for rural communities during a challenging period of drought. He was presented with the award by Prime Minister Kevin Rudd.
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.
| 2013 |Beautiful Noise | Best Independent Country Album
| 2018 |The 25th Anniversary Album | Best Independent Country Album
| 2020 |Backroad Nation | Best Independent Country Album
ARIA Music Awards The ARIA Music Awards is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of Australian music. Kernaghan has won two awards from 14 nominations. Plus, he received the Outstanding Achievement Award in 2015.
| 1993 | The Outback Club | rowspan="10"| Best Country Album
| 1994 | Three Chain Road
| 1995 | Country Crowd
| 1996 | 1959
| 2000 | Rules of the Road
| 2002 | Electric Rodeo
| 2006 | The New Bush
| 2010 | Planet Country
| 2013 | Beautiful Noise
| rowspan="4"| 2015 | Spirit of the Anzacs
| "Spirit of the Anzacs" (directed by Duncan Toombs) | rowspan="1"| Best Video
| Garth Porter forSpirit of the Anzacs | rowspan="1"| Producer of the Year
| Spirit of the Anzacs | rowspan="1"| Outstanding Achievement Award
| 2017 | The 25th Anniversary Album | rowspan="2"| Best Country Album
| 2019 | Backroad Nation
APRA Awards The APRA Awards are held in Australia and New Zealand by the Australasian Performing Right Association to recognise songwriting skills, sales and airplay performance by its members annually. Kernaghan has won four awards from nine nominations.
| 1993 | "Boys from the Bush" | Country Song of the Year
| 1996 | "1959" | Most Performed Country Work
| 1999 | "Hat Town" | Most Performed Country Work
| 2004 | "Way It Is" | Most Performed Country Work
| 2007 | "New Bush" | Most Performed Country Work
| 2008 | "Spirit of the Bush" (featuring Adam Brand and Steve Forde) | Most Performed Country Work
| 2011 | "Planet Country" | Country Work of the Year
| 2014 | "Flying with the King"