Luke Steele
Class of 1996
Class of 1996
Musician
Luke was not a music student at Mount Lawley Senior High School, but loved his time studying drama at the school.
Soon after leaving Mount Lawley, Luke formed his own band, 'The Sleepy
Jackson'.
From a musical family, Luke's brothers Jake and Jesse both played in 'The Sleepy Jackson', his sister, Katie is a singer in her own right, and his father, Rick, an accomplished Blues musician.
'The Sleepy Jackson' met with some national and international success, but Luke's next collaborative project,
'Empire of the Sun' catapulted his career to another level.
Their first album contained the singles 'Walking on a Dream', 'We Are the People' and 'Standing on the Shore' helping the band to international success.
In 2009 'Empire of the Sun' took home 4 ARIA Awards from 6 nominations, including album of the year, best pop release, single of the year and best group.
'Empire of the Sun' mixes music, art, drama and fashion into a stylish mix of live performance and stunning visuals.
In 2018 Luke established another band, DREAMS, with Daniel Johns, releasing a single and an album.
He released a solo album, 'Listen to the Water' in 2022.
During his career to this point, Luke has also recorded with Silverchair, Pnau, Jay-Z and Usher, and written and produced for Beyoncé. He also scored the film 'Dumb and Dumber 2'.
In honour of their achievements and involvement in the school, one of our Music rooms honours the Steele Family.