In these often socially and politically divisive times, some musicians may be reluctant to express a viewpoint, for fear of potentially creating division, or alienating sections of their fan-base.
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Folk musician Grace Petrie, who has described herself as "a socialist, feminist, lesbian, left-wing protest singer" has no such qualms.
"Obviously because I am gay and I am a woman, I think there's no hiding behind anything for me," she laughed.
"The things that I'm taking a stance on are things that directly affect me.
"If I was less vocal about LGBT rights or feminism, for example, I would still be just be as vulnerable to being persecuted as a woman and as a gay person. I guess it comes with the territory of the way I identify."
Petrie is a young folk singer, songwriter and activist from Leicester, England.
She has racked up tour supports with Billy Bragg, Josie Long and in 2019 supported Frank Turner on his UK arena tour.
Her unique takes on life, love and politics have won over audiences across the alternative, folk, political and comedy scenes, including on recent support dates with Hannah Gadsby.
"Musically, I fall somewhere between folk and maybe punk," Petrie said.
"In terms of live performances, I've been lucky that I've been able to work in comedy quite a lot, so a lot of what I've learned from my colleagues and friends in stand-up comedy has fed into my live performances.
"I wouldn't describe myself as a comedian, but hopefully people will find stuff to laugh at in between the songs."
Petrie's been writing, recording and touring for ten years, but is only now making her first trip to Australia.
"I've been lucky that I've been on The Guilty Feminist podcast quite a few times.
"(Host) Deborah Frances-White is huge in Australia and New Zealand, so I think that's really helped things along for me.
"A few years ago I definitely wouldn't have said that I had an Australian fan-base at all. But since being on the podcast quite a few times, I have picked up quite a few followers on Facebook and Twitter from Aussie folks."
-Petrie will perform on Friday, February 28 at the Heritage Hotel, Bulli.