Sia and Troye Sivan are among the first industry patrons backing the launch of the NUMAs, a new youth-focused awards platform for young Australian music creators and music teachers, Billboard reports.
Established by Milly Petriella, the NUMAs are designed for Australian students aged 6–18, placing emerging school-age creators alongside the educators who help guide their musical development. The inaugural event is scheduled for Jan. 28, 2027, at Carriageworks in Sydney.
The announcement gives the Australian music calendar a new platform with a clearly defined focus: young people making music, and the teachers working with them. Rather than positioning itself around established industry figures, the NUMAs are being introduced as a space centered on students at the earliest stages of their creative lives.
That emphasis is what makes the involvement of Sia and Troye Sivan notable. Both artists are named among the first industry patrons, lending visibility to an awards concept built around young Australian talent. Their support arrives at the launch stage, when the event is still being shaped in public and ahead of its first ceremony.
Petriella’s establishment of the NUMAs also places music teachers within the frame, not only as background influences but as part of the awards platform’s intended community. In youth music, that recognition matters: for many students, teachers are often the first people to encourage performance, songwriting, recording, or a broader understanding of what a music career can look like.
The age range also gives the NUMAs a wide scope. By including students from 6 to 18, the platform stretches from early childhood participation through to older teenagers who may already be developing a clearer artistic identity. It suggests an awards model that is not limited to one school year, one level of experience, or one narrow idea of what a young music creator looks like.
Carriageworks, the planned Sydney venue for the first event, gives the inaugural ceremony a prominent cultural setting. The date, Jan. 28, 2027, also gives the NUMAs a long runway before launch, allowing the platform to build awareness among students, families, teachers, and the wider Australian music community.
For now, the details being reported are deliberately focused: a new awards platform, founded by Milly Petriella, aimed at Australian students and music teachers, with Sia and Troye Sivan among its first patrons. No broader list of categories or additional programming has been outlined in the source notes, and the event remains more than a year away.
Still, the premise is direct. The NUMAs are being introduced not as a general music industry awards show, but as a youth-centered platform with education and early creative development at its core. In a music culture often driven by releases, touring cycles, and established names, this launch shifts attention toward the people just beginning to make their mark.
With its first ceremony set for Sydney in 2027, the NUMAs now enter the long build toward an inaugural edition that will test how a national youth music awards platform can connect students, teachers, and high-profile industry support under one banner.
