First Nations and Pasifika artists are bringing music, visual art and storytelling to Muloobinba/Newcastle as New Annual returns for 10 days of events across the city.

This year's program includes Sāmoan-Australian artist Angela Tiatia and Yuwaalaraay storyteller, singer and composer Nardi Simpson, alongside Gomeroi artist Kobie Dee, Worimi Elder and artist Auntie Debbie Dates, Ngaiire and Tongan-Australian artist Latai Taumoepeau.

Ms Tiatia, who has lived in Newcastle since 2022, will present Muse at Newcastle Art Gallery, the first major survey of her work.

The exhibition brings together 20 years of video, photography and installation exploring climate, capitalism, colonisation and the impact of global power structures on Pasifika communities.

Her practice also spans performance, moving image, painting and sculpture, with the ocean featuring across a number of works.

Ms Tiatia said presenting 'Muse' in Muloobinba had particular meaning after making the city her home.

"It means so much to me to share my work in Muloobinba," Ms Tiatia said.

"I have been living here since 2022 and it has been a place where I feel the most embraced by community and Country.

"Muloobinba is such a special and beautiful place, and we are so blessed to be close to the ocean."

Ms Tiatia said art allowed audiences to engage with culture, Country, community and lived experience in different ways.

"It is a different mode or medium of expressing ideas in a visual and poetic way," she said.

"Art and performance is another mode to encourage further understanding and learnings of culture, Country, community or lived experience to bring us closer to mutual understanding and appreciation, regardless of our differences."

Ms Tiatia hopes audiences leave the exhibition with a connection to the ocean and the themes running through the work.

"I hope they come away feeling connected to the beauty of the ocean and the collective human experience in these contemporary times," she said.

'Muse' opens alongside New Annual's First Night Art Party from 5pm to 9pm on Friday, September 25, on Laman Street outside Newcastle Art Gallery.

The opening event will be headlined by Ngaiire, with Aleksiah, Djanaba, Pasifika artists and roving performers also appearing.

Ms Simpson will perform 'Stories of Water and Earth' with Ensemble Offspring, combining chamber music, storytelling and Country.

Her work draws on Yuwaalaraay language and freshwater stories, with the performance continuing Ms Simpson's practice of carrying those stories onto other homelands while recognising local mob, story and culture.

Ms Simpson said sharing cultural work on another Country created opportunities for different stories and communities to connect.

"It is always a gift to share Yuwaalaraay language and story as part of my making," she said.

"It keeps me connected and strong as a freshwater woman but that gift amplifies when I take my cultural work onto other homelands.

"I always share placing local mob, story and culture as priority."

Music is central to the way Ms Simpson shares those stories with audiences.

"Music is a very powerful medium... it asks people to connect through ears and bodies," she said.

"As a First Nations musician and composer I know music holds incredible power- it is the cultural coolman that holds all our sacred things."

Ms Simpson hopes audiences leave with a stronger sense of connection and openness to the people around them.

"I hope people leave feeling connected to the people and places they cherish," she said.

"I also hope that music and storytelling helps people feel strong in expressing openness and acceptance of the diversity around us."

New Annual runs across Muloobinba/Newcastle from September 25 to October 4, with 40 events across music, visual art, theatre, dance and storytelling.