Darren Hayes envisioned himself as a renowned pop star, using this dream as a means to escape the traumatic family violence that marked his childhood.
The frontman of Savage Garden and successful solo artist honored his beloved mother, Judy, who fostered his passion for music and his aspirations of stardom, as he received the Support Act’s Excellence in Community Award on August 25th of 2026 for his remarkable career and mental health advocacy.
In his acceptance speech, Darren shared the painful truth about the abuse his estranged father, Bob Hayes, inflicted on his family, which inspired the name of their family WhatsApp group: “Is he dead yet?”
The Affirmation star learned last year, during the same week as his mother’s passing in January, that his father had also died.
Darren shared the following at the event…
“I can sing because of her. We didn’t have a lot of money. There were times in our lives when we did live in a trailer park. She was married to this monster of a man who beat her senseless most nights and my sister and I, we thought that our job as children was just to keep her alive,”
“But somehow in the midst of all of that chaos, my mother imbued in me this love of music by playing records by people like Olivia Newton-John.
“Becoming a singer was an attempt to save my life.”
Darren, who has returned to Australia after spending over 25 years abroad, also honored his ex-wife Colby, who joined him at the gala alongside the superstar, his family, and partner Heriberto.
He expressed how Truly Madly Deeply, which was recently added to APRA’s Billions List for achieving that streaming milestone, was born from his deep longing for his wife while he and Savage Garden partner Daniel Jones were in Sydney working on their debut album.
Originally, the song was titled … Magical Kisses.
Hayes shared the following which, elicited laughter from the audience…
“We had crafted a song that featured the same verses you’re familiar with, but the chorus went ‘Cuz I’ve got all your magical kisses’ and it just kept repeating that,”
“I had kept putting off recording it … I was due to sing it the next day and then I was going home to Colby who I missed so much. I went and sat down at the Baywater Brasserie in Kings Cross – and I thought about all of the music that had been inside me since I was a child and knew I had write something simple, so I wrote this plea about returning to this woman who I missed so much.
“And this is going to be super f…ing gay but the next day after we recorded it, I said to Daniel and the producer Charles Fisher that we couldn’t put it on the record because it was too personal.
“They told me that I was crazy and it was totally a No.1; I’ve never been good at picking singles, so thank you to Daniel, and thank you to Colby.”
Darren revealed that this recognition followed a challenging period in his life. He experienced the loss of his mother, which came after his divorce from Richard Cullen. Additionally, he faced a lengthy recovery from a broken jaw that resulted from an unexpected fainting spell when he attempted to rise from bed one day.
He noted that he shared the APRA Billions award with his former Savage Garden co-writer, with whom he no longer maintains direct communication. During the event, fellow artists such as Tania Doko, Meg Mac, Electric Fields, and Michael Paynter performed both the duo’s classic hits and his solo pieces.
Darren humorously claimed that the Music in the House trophy belonged solely to him.
“Daniel and I went on to win lots of ARIA awards. I still don’t have any, by the way, I think he has them all. But I have this.”
The renowned singer and songwriter contributed framed, handwritten lyrics for I Knew I Loved You, Affirmation, and Poison Blood to help raise funds for Support Act, the organization that provides crisis relief for artists and crew.
Source: Savage Garden star Darren Hayes reveals music was his escape from childhood horror
Kristin’s thoughts: I can relate to how music has been a sort of refuge for Darren, just as it has for me; listening to his songs has helped me through many tough times in my life. In fact, I know someone who is very near and dear to me, a gifted singer, who has shared that music brings him solace. That same man has done some wonderful covers of some Darren’s songs as he too is a fan. Anyway, it brings me great joy to see Darren overcome so much trauma in his life and use his talent to uplift not just himself but also many others. So, kudos to him!
