Beyond the headlines and growing audience, what makes this collaboration meaningful, is Lottie’s genuine affinity with Australian country culture and music heritage. A longtime fan of Slim Dusty, she represents a younger generation continuing to celebrate the stories, characters and landscapes that helped shape Australian identity.

For decades, Slim Dusty’s music documented life on the land, from the outback highways to small country towns, earning him the title of Australia’s King of Country Music. His songs became part of the fabric of rural Australia — and that same spirit continues to inspire artists like Lottie Rae today.

The new Akubra Slim Dusty Hat is more than a hat. It’s a tribute to Australian country music, bush storytelling and the enduring legacy of one of the nation’s greatest cultural icons. Seeing it worn by someone like Lottie Rae, an artist proudly championing regional Australia through modern creative expression, feels like the perfect continuation of that story.

From music festivals and regional galleries to dusty paddocks and country pubs, both Akubra and Slim Dusty have long represented authentic Australian culture. Lottie Rae brings that same energy into a new era: fearless, creative and unmistakably country at heart.