One Sixth
Australian born, Namibian raised rapper, vocalist, producer, songwriter, workshop facilitator, curator, director, actor, model and performing artist Aaron Stephanus aka 1/6 has been honing his craft since 2005. As a well established member of the local music scene, he has travelled extensively around Australia with numerous groups and bands, including The Public Opinion Afro Orchestra, Black Jesus Experience (BJX), the now defunct hip hop band Illzilla and The Four Aces (Mata and Must, Flu) amongst others, while also performing solo material at various festivals and venues countrywide. He was the first recipient of the Hilltop Hoods grant initiative when it went national in 2010 and has been releasing solo material since that same year. His debut album Electronic Mail was released in 2012 with local Hip Hop label Pang Productions and was warmly received, leading to support slots on national tours with Urthboy and Jimblah (Elefant Traks) and the Alliance Tour alongside Nelson Dialect, Maundz, Social Change and more. In 2016 he released an EP produced by Phil Gektor (Crate Cartel) titled Hemicrania, a conceptual piece addressing mental health issues, and Outbox, a 6 track E.P recorded over 7 days featuring interludes that were literally recorded by phone through each featured producer’s voicemail. Stay Nice, 2nd Thought, Royalz, Sensible J (REMI), RBD and ⅙ served as producers. His efforts extend past his own endeavours, as he has been working with community organisations such as Multicultural Arts Victoria, running the “Heard Instinct” hip hop program in conjunction with Shingo’s Cafe in Shepparton in 2019 and the “All Pasts Lead To Now” festival in 2020 (partly disrupted by COVID), “The Learn” Hip Hop literacy program run through the Fitzroy Library with Fitzroy Learning Network in 2017, Yarra Youth Services and various schools around Victoria facilitating writing and performing workshops with youth eager to develop their own practice in the field of music composition and song-writing. 2021 saw a return to releasing solo music alongside producer The Silent Titan for a two track E.P Nunc Est Bibendum/Dreams which was released digitally via Low Key Source. The single Nunc Est Bibendum was launched as an immersive video launch and live performance, curated by One Sixth and featuring the video work of Raphael Recht and photographer and movement director Deepasheni Thirumoothy and exhibited at B-SIDE Gallery, Melbourne in between lockdowns that halted all live events.