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Treaty ’18 Lyrics by Yothu Yindi

2018

[Intro: Yothu Yindi]
Nhimanhe gaya' nhe, nhe gaya' nhe marrtjini, walangwalang nhe ya
Nhima djatpa nhe walang gumurr-djarrk yawirriny'
Treaty yeah, treaty yeah (Oh-oh-oh)
Gaya' nhe marrtjini gaya' nhe marrtjini
Treaty yeah
[Verse 1: Baker Boy]
Torres Strait Aborignal people
Yolngu, Balinda mununpun'mirr, standing in equal
All the Elders talkin' treaty on the microphone, lethal
Baker Boy's the next epsiode of the sequel
We need to find a way to be really proud, spiritually loud
End up high in a cloud I'm like a bird lookin' down
Every woman, every man, nhama ngarra ga, repu-mala Clan, connected to thе land (Treaty yeah)
Limurr treaty djama, dhuwal nhaburrung wanga
Dhuwal nhumalung wanga nhaburr da'dhirr dharra dhiyak wangaw (Oh-oh)
Rеspect to the Elders that passed on
Left us a legacy, a song to carry on
Let's make a treaty let's get it on
Follow old man keep the fire burning strong
[Pre-Chorus 1: Dhapanbal Yunupingu]
Well they heard it on the radio
And they saw it on the television
Back in 1988, all those talking politicians
[Chorus: Yothu Yindi, Baker Boy, Yirrnga Yunupingu, Dhapanbal Yunupingu]
(Hup wei)
Treaty yeah (Hup wei), treaty yeah (Hup wei, oh-oh-oh)
Treaty yeah (Hup wei), treaty yeah (Hup wei, oh-oh-oh)
Nhaburr munupun'mirrnha (Hup wei), mirrnha (Hup wei)
Nhaburr munupun'mirrnha (Hup wei), mirrnha, mirrnha (Hup wei, mirrnha)
Treaty yeah (Hup wei), treaty yeah (Hup wei, oh-oh-oh)
Treaty yeah (Hup wei), treaty yeah (Hup wei, oh-oh-oh)
Nhaburr munupun'mirrnha (Hup wei), mirrnha (Hup wei)
Nhaburr munupun'mirrnha (Hup wei), mirrnha, mirrnha (Hup wei, mirrnha)
[Verse 2: Baker Boy]
Nhaburr warrpum munupun'mirr take a stand
All languages tribes lores and clans
Two moieties just like ying and yang
Promises can dissapear into the sand
We gotta put all differences aside
Forty thousand years we have survived
Through the forced assimilation and the genocide
Can't cry anymore 'cause our tears are dry (Treaty yeah)
All clans side by side, it's so critical
People say this would take a miracle
Way too political, parties all cynical
It's about something more spiritual
Dharruwa Yolngu Malale end up jailngur
Walu marrtji repu-dhirrnha
Nahburr marrtji repu-dhirrnha
Yothu'ngur ngarra nhangal marrma
Olman nha mundane mada gan marri dhiyak wangaw
[Pre-Chorus 2: Dhapanbal Yunupingu]
Words are easy, words are cheap
Much cheaper than our priceless land
But promises can dissapear
Like writing in the sand
[Chorus: Yothu Yindi, Baker Boy, Yirrnga Yunupingu, Dhapanbal Yunupingu]
(Hup wei)
Treaty yeah (Hup wei), treaty yeah (Hup wei, oh-oh-oh)
Treaty yeah (Hup wei), treaty yeah (Hup wei, oh-oh-oh)
Nhaburr munupun'mirrnha (Hup wei), mirrnha (Hup wei)
Nhaburr munupun'mirrnha (Hup wei), mirrnha, mirrnha (Hup wei, mirrnha)
Treaty yeah (Hup wei), treaty yeah (Hup wei, oh-oh-oh)
Treaty yeah (Hup wei), treaty yeah (Hup wei, oh-oh-oh)
Nhaburr munupun'mirrnha (Hup wei), mirrnha (Hup wei)
Nhaburr munupun'mirrnha (Hup wei), mirrnha, mirrnha (Hup wei, mirrnha)
[Bridge: Yothu Yindi]
Nhimanhe gaya' nhe (Hup wei), nhe gaya' nhe marrtjini (Hup wei), walangwalang nhe ya (Hup wei, hup wei)
Nhima djatpa nhe walang (Hup wei) gumurr-djarrk yawirriny' (Hup wei, hup wei, hup wei)
Nhimanhe gaya' nhe (Hup wei), nhe gaya' nhe marrtjini (Hup wei), walangwalang nhe ya (Hup wei, hup wei)
Nhima djatpa nhe walang (Hup wei) gumurr-djarrk yawirriny' (Hup wei, hup wei)
[Verse 3: Dallas Woods]
Yeah, if the world was colour blind
My enemy would be a friend of mine yelling, "Treaty"
Need an agreement no secret
This time let's do it right and we make sure we keep it
Can't change the past but we can stem the bleeding
Equality, acknowledgement, is all we are seeking
One land, one mob, that's all we believe in
This needs to happen now, do we really need a reason?
Not here to take over or here to take back
Written all over your face brother man face facts
For centuries my people felt trapped
And to think a piece of paper could've changed all that
But as it stand the paper's blank
It's not okay to be okay with that
Let's rewrite history, spirit, mental and physically
Still no treaty it's killing me
[Chorus: Yothu Yindi, Baker Boy, Yirrnga Yunupingu, Dhapanbal Yunupingu]
Treaty yeah (Hup wei), treaty yeah (Hup wei, oh-oh-oh)
Treaty yeah (Hup wei), treaty yeah (Hup wei, oh-oh-oh)
Nhaburr munupun'mirrnha (Hup wei), mirrnha (Hup wei)
Nhaburr munupun'mirrnha (Hup wei), mirrnha, mirrnha (Hup wei, mirrnha)
Treaty yeah (Hup wei), treaty yeah (Hup wei, oh-oh-oh)
Treaty yeah (Hup wei), treaty yeah (Hup wei, oh-oh-oh)
Nhaburr munupun'mirrnha (Hup wei), mirrnha (Hup wei)
Nhaburr munupun'mirrnha (Hup wei), mirrnha, mirrnha (Hup wei, mirrnha)
[Outro: Dhapanbal Yunupingu]
My dad wrote this song (Treaty yeah, treaty yeah, oh-oh-oh)
Twenty five years ago (Treaty yeah)
Treaty (Treaty yeah, oh-oh-oh)
Yet still we are waiting for our treaty
Where is our treaty?
We want out treaty now

About “Treaty ’18” by Yothu Yindi

Read the complete lyrics to "Treaty ’18" by Yothu Yindi in 2018. On Lyrks you can follow along with the full text, explore the artist's discography, and discover related songs. The track is often categorized under Aboriginal Music, Pop, Indigenous.

"Treaty ’18" is performed by Yothu Yindi. in 2018 This page provides the full lyric text for fans who want to sing along, study the songwriting, or compare versions across releases. Lyrks organizes lyrics by artist and song slug so you can bookmark and share a stable URL. Music lyrics help listeners connect with emotion, narrative, and rhythm in a track. Whether you are learning English, researching a favorite chorus, or preparing for karaoke, having accurate line breaks and section labels (verse, chorus, bridge) makes the experience easier. We link to the official artist profile on Lyrks where available, including biography snippets, top songs, and chart placements when we have that data. If you enjoy "Treaty ’18", explore more songs by Yothu Yindi using the links below. Chart and trending pages on Lyrks highlight what listeners are searching for this week. For copyright or correction requests, see our DMCA and contact pages.

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