World Autism Day Gig is presented by the City of Yarra and Wild At Heart.

World Autism Acceptance Week is an annual event that seeks to move beyond awareness to actively promoting acceptance and inclusion of people with autism. By focusing on acceptance, the event aims to create a society where people with autism are valued for their unique contributions and can live fulfilling lives with the support they need.

Join us as we celebrate and acknowledge this week with an evening of performances by artists with autism. Presented with Wild At Heart - a vibrant music organisation led by artists and other contributors with lived experience of disability.

This event will be hosted by Prue Stevenson, whose band 'Ice Cream in a Mug' will also perform some songs.

Lineup

5.30pm: Fantasma

Know under his stage name, Fantasma, Damian is a huge talent in the world of rap and hip hop, recently featuring as part of Melbourne Fringe’s VIP show. Damien, who identifies as having autism, raps about the ways the system lets people with disabilities down, speaking truth to power and energizing a crowd to action, while spitting wicked bars.

6.00pm: Ice Cream in a Mug

Ice Cream in a Mug, led by the indefatigable Prue Stevenson, is a band that celebrates happy hope and good times! Highly theatrical with boundless energy for our audience, they sing songs of cheer and cake. The band take the exotic delights of the old world and sweep them into the present day so you can just enjoy them and get on with your life.

6.30pm: Edward Roussac band

Edward is a prolific songwriter and multi instrumentalist performer whose musical style has been compared to Brian Wilson, Syd Barret and TISM. His songs explore the challenges in communicating and connecting with other people on an emotional level as someone who is neurodiverse.

7.00pm: Billiam and the Split Bills

Aussie-based, eccentric garage punks Billiam (and the Split Bills) are a ball of high-energy, chaos infused with synths, quirky guitar riffs, and an addictive sense of melody. It’s hyperactive bedroom punk that sings to the ears of every punkster and weirdo whose brains exist in a constant state of glorified frenzy.