The Sydney Opera House will reverberate with the soul, gospel and storytelling of a headline performance at the 2013 Deadlys by iconic Indigenous singer/songwriter Archie Roach, backed by a 20 piece gospel choir.

Archie will perform the joyous and uplifting Song to Sing, taken from his new album Into the Bloodstream, and the live shows he has been touring with across Australia this year to promote the album.

Into The Bloodstream – and the life affirming live shows of the same name – are about, “finding strength” and then expressing it.

Making Into the Bloodstream was a healing journey from the grief and pain of losing his lifetime partner, and subsequent illness that would have normally kept anyone down. But not Archie Roach.

Another major driver was to ‘share’ his music. “I was brought up to share whatever you had, whether it’s food or something else. What you give, you get back and sharing with someone else makes me feel good. Pass it on.”

“I have learned to look at pain differently. I know that pain can make you sick, very sick! Pain can also bring about change in one’s life for the better, we can choose to ignore the pain until it becomes unbearable or we can do something,” he says.

“I used to think that letting go of the pain was the only way of getting better but that may not be necessarily so. You see some events in my life I will never truly get over and the pain will always be there but I can do something about it.”

Into the Bloodstream helps us to talk about the pain, Archie says, but he stresses that his songs are joyous and uplifting too. Song to Sing has the backing of a choir, and the Deadlys’ performance features renowned actor Uncle Jack Charles as a recently bereaved man who finds his way back to friends and community, and joy.

“Performing them [the songs] makes you feel you want to get up and clap your hands. I suppose I have taken a gospel sound which is a different sound for me, and the songs are uplifting,” he says.

The Deadlys are on at the Sydney Opera House on 10 September. Tickets are on sale through the Opera House booking office (02) 9250 7777 or head to http://www.sydneyoperahouse.com/whatson/the_deadlys_2013.aspx

The Deadlys® 2013 will air on SBS ONE on Sunday 14 September at 9.30pm and repeated on NITV on Wednesday 18 September at 9.30pm. You can keep up to date with all the Deadlys® news at facebook.com/vibeaustralia and through Twitter @Deadly_Vibe #deadlys. You can also head to deadlys.com.au and subscribe to Deadly Vibe Wire at www.vibe.com.au