2022 marks the 20-year anniversary of Timor Leste’s Independence from Indonesian occupation, and the formation of one of the leading voices of activism, the Dili Allstars. With their spirit and art rooted in resistance, their music speaks of peaceful protest in the struggle for liberation.

The band formed in the early 1990’s, with founding members, Paulie Stewart (Painters & Dockers) and Gil Santos, coming together to record a song as a form of protest at the capture of East Timorese resistance leader Xanana Gusmão, by Indonesian armed forces in the early nineties. Both Santos and Stewart and all subsequent band members had a shared involvement with the East Timor struggle, as they had all lost family and friends, homes and security in the Indonesian invasion of 1975.

The band expanded and hit the road, touring extensively both in Australia and abroad, and recorded two albums; as well as music for the ARIA award-winning Balibo soundtrack, and the Australian Canadian tele-movie Answered By Fire.

The Dili Allstars anthem, ‘Liberdade’ was picked up by Mushroom and appeared on a compilation (also titled 'Liberdade') which the band helped to assemble. The album also featured MidnightOil, Crowded House, and Yothu Yindi, and went on to raise $100,000 for East Timor. On the back of this commercial success, the Dili’s were invited to perform at the Tour Of Duty Benefit Concert in Timor in front of 150,000+ people, and shared the stage with the likes of John Farnham and Kylie Minogue, and have since played with some of Australia’s greats.

These days, the band is keeping the music, culture and art of Timor Leste alive through storytelling, social engagements with the community, and mentoring the youth. All band members are involved in projects that shine a light on next generation