Underground Australian band Hiatus Kaiyote are the Grammy nominees you probably haven't heard of Hiatus Kaiyote (L - R)... Paul Bender, Perrin Moss, Nai Palm and Simon Mavin. Hiatus Kaiyote are the little band that can, joining internationally acclaimed Australasian artists including Lorde and Tame Impala to contest the Grammy Awards next week. The independent Melbourne act is a shock inclusion in the Best R'n'B Performance category which was dominated by Ray Charles, James Brown and Aretha Franklin before it was discontinued in 1969. Great albums went unnoticed No hiatus for Melbourne band It was resurrected in 2012, won by British songstress Corinne Bailey Rae and then by Usher last year. The band toured throughout America and Europe last year, winning fans and critics with their genre-defying future soul. Frontwoman Nai Palm's liquid vocals and the band's virtuosity on their debut record Tawk Tomahawk also impressed artists including Questlove, Erykah Badu, Q-Tip (who guests on the American version of the track Nakamarra) and Prince. Palm said her most prized email came from the legendary musician who has invited the band to perform at his iconic Paisley Park creative hub. How crazy is that, right? He's a very unpredictable character so maybe we will get picked up at 3am and taken in a purple van to his lair," she joked. Now in Los Angeles to prepare for the Grammys, the band have come a long way for an independent act who formed only three years ago. The frontwoman said it was bizarre for an Australian band to crack a nomination in a category which has dominated by African American artists. "It is mind-blowing to be so welcomed by people over there who have pioneered this style of music," she said. I think as long as you are sincere with the music you make, people accept it for what it is. I may be Australian and white but from birth I was brought up on Stevie Wonder and Aretha and Otis Redding and they are ingrained in my creativity. Hiatus Kaiyote join an eclectic field of Grammy nominees from Australia and New Zealand with Lorde, Tame Impala, Keith Urban, the Greencards, the Australian Chamber Orchestra, and The Great Gatsby composer Craig Armstrong. The awards will be announced next Monday.