If you’ve spent time around Kiama’s pubs, festivals or folk gatherings over the past decade, chances are you’ve crossed paths with The Water Runners.

What began as a loose collection of local musicians has grown into one of Australia’s most respected folk-roots acts and most recently awarded Runners Up for The People's Choice Award for the Australian Folk Music Awards (Folk Alliance Australia).

Formed around 2016, The Water Runners have settled into a long-standing lineup since 2017, featuring Kiama local John Littrich on guitar and vocals, Neil McCann on banjo and mandolin, Danita Harris on fiddle, and Gerringong’s own James Turk on double bass.

“We’ve had a couple of people come and go over the years,” Littrich says, “but since 2017 we’ve basically had the same lineup. It’s been really solid.”

That stability has helped the band refine what many now describe as their signature sound – a lively blend of bluegrass, folk and roots music, anchored firmly in Australian stories.

It’s a style that’s even earned them a genre of their own.

“People have started calling it ‘bush grass’,” Littrich laughs. “We love the bluegrass sound, but we wanted to sing about Australia – our bushrangers, First Nations heroes, local history– not just American places we haven’t lived in.”

That approach has struck a chord well beyond the South Coast.

The Water Runners have now played folk and music festivals across almost every Australian state, from Tasmania to Queensland, with Western Australia the only one left to tick off.

They’ve just returned from Queensland’s iconic Woodford Folk Festival – one of the largest festivals in the Southern Hemisphere – and are barely pausing for breath.

“It’s been busy,” Littrich says. “We’ve got Illawarra Folk Festival this week, then Bulli, then straight up to Tamworth.”

The band has been a staple at the Illawarra Folk Festival since the early days, not only performing but also volunteering behind the scenes – helping with production, set design, and sound.

  “We're looking forward to that. But we have to keep a bit of petrol in the tank, both literally and metaphorically, to get up to Tamworth and do that,” he says.

Tamworth, of course, looms large this year.

While the Water Runners might joke they’re not “hanging out with Keith Urban,” they’re heading north with an impressive list of nominations across multiple award bodies — including the Tamworth Songwriters Association, Capital Country Music Association, Capital Country Radio, and the Australian Bush Balladeers Association.

Their latest album Shelter has picked up nominations for Best Song and Best Video, while tracks like Viking and Murrumbidgee continue to gain national attention.

The latter tells the powerful true story of a Wiradjuri man who saved around 90 people during the Gundagai floods of the 1850s.

“There are so many songs about Ned Kelly,” Littrich explains, “but not many about our First Nations heroes. When I saw the statue in Gundagai and read the story, I thought – "this guy needs a song.”

That sense of storytelling is central to the band’s connection with audiences, especially at regional festivals.

“When you play somewhere like Majors Creek or Braidwood and you sing a song about that area, locals really latch onto it,” he says.

“It helps you connect in a much deeper way.”

Despite touring nationally, Kiama remains home base and creative hub Littrich speaks about with pride.

“We’re really lucky here,” he says. “You’ve got young bands like Pacific Avenue, The Terrys, Joan Montgomery – and then older, folkier artists like us.

There's a lot of artistic and musical talent in Kiama. I just hope a lot of these festivals that are sort of falling by the wayside can be resurrected, and we can capitalise on the talent we do have in the town.”

That local network feeds directly into the band’s work.

The Shelter video, which has been nominated for best video and song, was filmed in Jamberoo, shot by local videographer Blake Lauricella, with a cameo from Littrich’s son Dom – better known these days as a member of Pacific Avenue and part of The Inspired Unemployed circle.

The song itself came from a simple songwriting challenge while travelling around Australia with his wife Jane.

“She put words in a box and made me pull one out each day and write a song,” Littrich says. “There were threats of no beer if I didn’t.”

The result was Shelter, a song about finding warmth, safety and belonging, themes that resonate just as strongly back home as they do on the road.

Despite the long drives and packed festival schedules, the band remains grounded.

“We take each day as it comes, and there's a lot of work in planning these things,” Littrich said, “But it's really nice when you get nominated for these things, and you get a little bit of recognition, not that we're going to be retiring to the Bahamas anytime soon,” he joked. 

“Even if we don’t win, it’s just really nice to be nominated,” he adds. “You go along, rub shoulders with other songwriters, make a few connections – and that’s always good.”

For a band that’s been playing together for years, Tamworth is just another stop along the road. The Water Runners will head north, play their gigs, catch up with friends, and then return home to Kiama – doing what they’ve always done.