Steven Oliver has been lighting up stage and screen for years now. A proud descendent of the Kuku-Yalanji, Waanyi, Gangalidda, Woppaburra, Bundjalung and Biripi peoples, he’s popped up on ABC TV’s Black Comedy. Hosted Faboriginal on SBS. And taken the stage as a poet and a playwright.

His own story has been told in song, in Bigger and Blacker; a cabaret telling of his life. After traveling across the country with the show over the past three years, Steven brings it next to the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, and I invited him to Take 5.

His show is full of songs he sings, of his own experiences, but I was curious to hear the tunes by others that soundtracked his life. From Mariah to Janet to Yothu Yindi, this is a beautiful conversation about comedy as a messenger and the uplifting power of shakin’ your cheeks.

Always Be My Baby - Mariah Carey

It’s Not Right, But It’s OK (Thunderpuss Remix) - Whitney Houston

Rhythm Nation - Janet Jackson

Treaty (Filthy Lucre Remix) - Yothu Yindi 

Man In The Mirror - Michael Jackson