Mushroom 50 Live Concert Is A Ratings Smash Hit

Mushroom 50 Live captured the attention of a nation overnight, becoming a ratings boon for Network 7 after 830,000 thousand people tuned in to watch the broadcast – making it Sunday night’s #1 entertainment program.

Melbourne’s Rod Laver Arena came alive as a staggering thirty-six artists, including some of the biggest acts in music, united to celebrate fifty incredible years of Australia’s most iconic music company, the Mushroom Group, with all the action broadcast exclusively across the country on Channel 7 and 7plus.

The enormous concert featured several surprise moments that will go down in Australian music history – kicking off with a broadcast performance of Youth Group’s smash hit ‘Forever Young’. Youth Group was joined by Budjerah, Mia Wray and international superstar Sam Smith performing from the roof of Rod Laver Arena.

Jimmy Barnes lit the fuse inside the venue, with a fiery performance of ‘No Second Prize’ and ‘Working Class Man’ to a fervent crowd.

Some four hours later, Ed Sheeran and Mark Seymour brought the unforgettable evening to a close with a special remote duet of the generationally adored song ‘Throw Your Arms Around Me’.

In between, there were almost too many highlight moments to name, as dozens of iconic artists powered through a songbook of Australian classics without taking pause, including a surprise appearance by celebrated Australian band Yothu Yindi, that included a dynamic and high energy performance of the irrepressible anthem ‘Treaty’.

Legendary Skyhooks lead guitarist Red Symons made an unexpected appearance on stage with Ross Wilson for the band’s seminal track ‘Ego Is Not A Dirty Word’. Earlier in the night, Vika & Linda injected their signature sound for their take on ‘Living In The 70’s’.

Another considerable highlight of the night was Dan Sultan’s passionate and stunning tribute to Archie Roach’s powerful song ‘Took The Children Away’, moving the audience to a standing ovation.

Paul Kelly was also joined by original Sunnyboys guitarist Richard Burgman for ‘Alone With You’ and Amy Shark performed Kylie Minogue’s anthem ‘Can’t Get You Out Of My Head’, which was followed by a special broadcast appearance from Kylie herself!

Mushroom 50 Live also showcased the exciting future of Australian music, with incredible emerging artists including Gordi, Logan, Lotte Gallagher, Merci, Mercy, and WILSN – who all thrilled crowds with a mix of originals and covers.

On top of that, Mushroom 50 Live included birthday messages from stars such as Russell Crowe, Robbie Williams, Tim Finn, Delta Goodrem and many more.

The mega concert showcased fifty songs to celebrate fifty years of Mushroom music, with artists playing a mix of originals and covers of iconic Australia songs.

You can stream the blockbuster concert right now on 7plus.

Mushroom 50 Live was part of the ALWAYS LIVE 2023 program, a seventeen-day state-wide celebration of contemporary live music supported by the Victoria Government through Visit Victoria.