Sixpence None The Richer will make their Australian debut in March with Ella Hooper joining the American band for the national tour.
by Paul Cashmere
Sixpence None The Richer will undertake their first-ever Australian tour in March, bringing Leigh Nash and Matt Slocum’s band to Canberra, Thirroul, Newcastle, Sydney, Port Fairy, Tweed Heads, Brisbane, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth, with Ella Hooper confirmed as special guest.
The tour represents a significant international chapter for Sixpence None The Richer following the band’s reunion, renewed recording activity and return to extensive live performance. The group has spent the past two years rebuilding its touring schedule after a period away from the road, including performances across the United States and Latin America and plans for its first European tour.
For Australian audiences, the tour also provides an opportunity to hear a catalogue that has remained visible long after Sixpence None The Richer’s late 1990s breakthrough. “Kiss Me” spent three weeks at No. 1 in Australia in June 1999 and reached No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States. The song became a top 10 hit in 16 countries and has continued to find new audiences through streaming, social media and film and television placements.
The current momentum has been accompanied by new music. In 2024, Sixpence None The Richer released the “Rosemary Hill” EP, their first new release since 2012. The band followed it with further releases including “The Dawn Of Grace” and “Live At Gruene Hall”, extending a recording catalogue that now spans nine global album releases.
The renewed activity has also taken place against significant change within the band. Longtime bassist Justin Cary died on June 18, 2026, aged 50, following a stroke. Cary had been a member of Sixpence None The Richer since 1997 and played through the period that produced the band’s best-known recordings. Matt Slocum described the death as a devastating loss, saying the band had been “planning for 30 more years”.
Cary’s death came as Sixpence None The Richer was experiencing one of its most active periods since its original run. Leigh Nash and Matt Slocum reunited with original drummer Dale Baker in 2024 for a 25th anniversary tour, while the band subsequently expanded its international touring plans. Jon Radford has performed live with the group since 2025.
The Australian shows will follow the band’s European tour, which is scheduled to cover 24 cities in 2026. In 2025, Sixpence None The Richer toured Latin America and joined Toad The Wet Sprocket and The Jayhawks for a United States summer tour.
Sixpence None The Richer was formed in New Braunfels, Texas, in 1992 by Slocum and Nash. The original recordings established the band within the alternative and Christian music scenes before its sound moved into the mainstream.
The Fatherless And The Widow was released in 1994, followed by This Beautiful Mess in 1995. The band signed to Squint Entertainment in 1997 and released the self-titled Sixpence None The Richer album that year. “Kiss Me”, initially released in 1998, transformed the group’s profile, while subsequent singles included The La’s cover “There She Goes”, “Breathe Your Name” and the band’s version of Crowded House’s “Don’t Dream It’s Over”.
The commercial success was accompanied by two Grammy Award nominations, including Best Pop Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocals for “Kiss Me” and Best Rock Gospel Album for Sixpence None The Richer.
The group disbanded in 2004 before reuniting in 2007. That reunion produced the EP My Dear Machine in 2008 and the Christmas album The Dawn Of Grace later that year. Lost In Transition followed in 2012, marking the band’s last album of new material until the later reunion period.
The enduring strength of “Kiss Me” has given the reunion an unusual catalogue advantage. The song passed one billion Spotify streams, while its RIAA certification reached triple platinum in July 2024. Its continued appearance on streaming and social platforms demonstrates the way a late 1990s hit can acquire new listeners decades after its original release.
Ella Hooper brings her own multi-generational Australian rock history to the tour. She first gained national attention as the teenage frontwoman of Killing Heidi before developing a solo career encompassing synth folk, country and Americana. Hooper became the first woman and youngest recipient of APRA Songwriter Of The Year and has released three solo albums.
For Sixpence None The Richer, the Australian tour is the latest stage of a return that has extended well beyond nostalgia. Nash has described the band’s renewed creative period as a point where the members have continued to develop their respective craft. The Australian shows will place that newer work alongside the songs that established the band internationally more than 25 years ago.
Tour Dates
March 2, Canberra, Canberra Theatre
March 3, Thirroul, Anita’s Theatre
March 4, Newcastle, King Street
March 5, Sydney, Enmore Theatre
March 7-8, Port Fairy
March 11, Tweed Heads, Twin Towns
March 12, Brisbane, The Tivoli
March 13, Melbourne, Palais Theatre
March 16, Adelaide, The Gov
March 18, Perth, Astor Theatre
Ticket Details
Tickets go on sale Thursday September 10 via David Roy Williams.
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