SOLOMON CROOK 'LOVE JUICE'

Solomon Crook is a 20 year old who creates blends of honest songwriting and soulful vocals, to form heartfelt music that is relatable and unique. 

Solomon writes most of his music from his childhood home, hidden from distractions, on the beautiful Coromandel. He then spends the rest of his time in Wellington - studying, writing and collaborating.

Solomon has recently assembled a band around him to front the release of his EP, Abandon Adolescence, and his first single LOVE JUICE is released 13 April.
 

See Solomon Crook live:

20 May, Opera House, Wellington, support for Thomas Oliver

25 May, Powerstation, Auckland, support for Thomas Oliver

JULIA DEANS 'THE PANIC'

Julia Deans has released the visual story of her song The Panic
 
The Panic video was both animated and edited by Greg Page, one of Julia’s long-term collaborators.  The clip is over 6,000 frames of art, which took over two months to create. He had a little help from his 8 year old daughter Peggy, who drew the white puppy at the beginning and end of the clip, and Minnie, their English Bull Staffy cross who enthusiastically posed for all of the drawings.
 
The concept of The Panic video follows a small girl who gets a puppy.  Unlike the usual pet stories, this pupper is not a pet, but a black panic dog that the little girl now owns for life.
 
As she grows up and her awareness of the dog increases, the larger it becomes until eventually, rather than letting it consume her, she takes charge and breaks the big panic dog into smaller manageable pups.
 
Of the clip Greg states: “I deliberately kept it loose and the black and white was a conscious decision to set the story in a dream or memory where colour is scared to go.  The rough scratchy style was me drawing honestly and without worry. I feel the scratchiness is the perfect accompaniment to that kick ass beat and bass line.
 
Julia invested a lot of trust not only that I would complete the clip, but in the concept which grew organically and slowly over time.”
 
Julia filmed herself singing, which was originally meant to be a reference for Greg to animate her movements into the video.  However, he liked the footage so much he simply added that to the frames and The Panic video was born.
 
“I am proud to have made 'The Panic' and felt like Julia gifted me one of the best songs to be inspired by.”
 
Julia says;  "The Panic is about learning to live with our fears & anxieties – with depression. It’s about recognising that all of us harbour these feelings in our own varying forms and, at one time or another, we have to work out how to keep them in check & reign them in before they take over."

 
The New Zealand Music Foundation has a free Wellbeing Service for people involved in the music community. It is a 24/7 online, on the phone & in-person counselling service, open to people in the music industry and those who have concern for their loved ones. The Wellbeing Service is available via 0508MUSICHELP (toll free) and www.nzmusicfoundation.org.nz/wellbeing

2018 NEW ZEALAND MUSIC MANAGERS AWARDS FINALISTS ANNOUNCED

The NZ Music Managers Forum,
with support from the NZ Music Commission, Recorded Music New Zealand, APRA AMCOS, JLT and
NSL distributors of Shure & QSC in NZ,
is proud to announce the finalists for the
2018 Music Managers Awards. 

Now in its 14th year the NZ Music Managers Awards continues to celebrate the importance of the people who are shaping the careers of New Zealand’s artists, working hard to strategise and build an artist’s career in the ever changing and evolving landscape of the modern music industry, whether they are behind the scenes or self managing.

Judged by a panel of over 50 NZ music industry personnel , the awards honour not only our experienced managers and self managed artists but also the up and coming managers who are the future of our industry.  Categories include

NZ Manager of the Year, Emerging Manager of the Year, Breakthrough Manager of the Year, International Achievement, Self-Managed Artist of the Year, Best Independent Tour.

Also awarded on the night is the Industry Champion Award, Best Small Venue and Best Large Venue as voted for by MMF members, as well as the Mentoring Achievement Award as voted for by the MMF Mentors.

The NZ Music Managers Awards will be held at The Tuning Fork in Auckland on Wednesday 9 May.

The finalists for this year’s awards are: 

Recorded Music New Zealand Manager of the Year

Alastair Burns (Marlon Williams, Julia Jacklin, The Weather Station, Phantastic Ferniture)

James Southgate (Devilskin)

Julie Foa’i(Te Vaka, Opetaia Foa’i, Olivia Foa’i)

Emerging Manager of the Year

Chris Chetland & Callum McDougal  (Rei)

Milly Tabak (The Miltones)

Pennie Black (Hex, Echo Ohs)

Breakthrough Manager of the Year

Niel de Jong (Alien Weaponry)

Nicole Thomas and Paula Yeoman (Theia, Andrew Papas, Chores)

Rikihana Douglas (SACHI, Montell2099, Matthew Young, LA Women)

NZ Music Commission International Achievement

Alastair Burns (Marlon Williams, Julia Jacklin, The Weather Station, Phantastic Ferniture)

Julie Foa’i (Te Vaka, Opetaia Foa’i, Olivia Foa’i)

Niel de Jong (Alien Weaponry)

APRA AMCOS Self-Managed Artist of the Year

Mel Parsons (Mel Parsons)

Nick Atkinson (Hopetoun Brown)

Tana Tupai and Avina Kelekolio (Tomorrow People)

JLT Best Independent Tour

Diaz Grimm ‘All Together’ NZ Tour (Diaz Grimm)

Mel Parsons ‘NZ Tour w/ Full Band’ (Mel Parsons)

Nick Atkinson ‘Round The Horn’ Tour (Hopetoun Brown)

Best Small Venue

Neck of the Woods, Auckland

Leigh Sawmill, Leigh

The Tuning Fork, Auckland

Best Large Venue

The Civic, Auckland

The Powerstation, Auckland

Villa Maria, Auckland

Achievement Award

Diaz Grimm - self managed

Kendall Elise - self managed

Pennie Black - HEX, Echo Ohs

Also presented on the night is the Industry Champion Award sponsored by NSL distributors of Shure & QSC in NZ

The awards would not be possible without the support of our incredible sponsors, who recognise the key role that managers play in the success of New Zealand music. In 2018 our major sponsors are The NZ Music Commission, Recorded Music New Zealand, APRA AMCOS, JLT and NSL/Shure/QSC .

SONGHUBS AUCKLAND: NASHVILLE STARS HEADING SOUTH TO WORK WITH KIWI ARTISTS

They have made successful careers out of writing beloved songs for some of America’s biggest country stars, as well as sweeping ballads and runaway hits for TV shows like Nashville and Grey’s Anatomy. Now these three Nashville residents are coming to New Zealand this April to collaborate with Kiwi songwriters for a week a Roundhead Studios in a program known as SongHubs.

Co-writers, producers and collaborators are the secret weapons of top selling artists and TV stars. Many of the world’s most popular songs are written by songwriters whose names you may not know, but whose musical influence runs far and wide.

SongHubs Auckland brings this experience to New Zealand, bringing songwriters with Emmy wins, and #1 singles under their belts, to sprinkle their songwriting wisdom among local talent.
We’re very pleased to announce the three international guests for this year’s SongHubs Auckland program are Kate York, Marc Beeson, and Heather Morgan.

KATE YORK
Primetime Emmy award winning song-writer Kate York is a versatile artist-writer who has penned music for a diverse range of artists from Little Big Town to Fall Out Boy.
She’s also written songs for numerous hit TV shows and films including Grey’s Anatomy, The Fosters, New Year’s Day, One Tree Hill, Hart of Dixie, and countless songs for the show Nashville – one of which won her an Emmy for the song ‘Nothing In This World Will Ever Break My Heart Again’.

MARC BEESON
This Illinois native and 25 year Nashville veteran has had over 100 cuts including songs recorded by Reba McEntire, Jason Aldean, Garth Brooks, Martina McBride, Billy Currington, Blake Shelton, Lady Antebellum, Carrie Underwood and Chicago, among others. He's won 10 ASCAP awards including both Country and Pop Song of the Year for his #1, ‘When She Cries’.
As an artist, he's recorded for Warner Bros., BNA and Curb Records. He has served on the Board of NSAI; worked as a mentor in the MTSU music business program and is on the NARAS educational committee. He co-wrote Billy Currington's #1 single, ‘We Are Tonight’ and more recently, the title track of Ashley Monroe's Grammy nominated record, ‘The Blade’, Blake Shelton's ‘She's Got a Way With Words’ and Josh Turner’s #1, ‘Hometown Girl’.

HEATHER MORGAN
Heather Morgan grew up in Richardson, Texas before moving to Nashville, where she signed her first publishing deal with Warner Chappell Music. Her songs have been featured on the television show Nashville, recorded by Keith Urban, Sara Evans, Martina McBride, Maren Morris, Cole Swindell, A Thousand Horses, The Eli Young Band, Dierks Bentley and Brett Eldredge among others.
A staff songwriter for Sony ATV Music Publishing, Heather celebrated her first #1 in 2014 with Brett Eldredge's song, ‘Beat Of The Music’ which also won her BMI's 2015 Country Song Of The Year. She co-wrote five songs on Brett Eldredge’s self-titled record (released Aug. 2017) and is also enjoying the release of her own artist project in 2018.

Kate, Marc, and Heather will combine with different configurations of local songwriters and producers each day, to write a brand new song. The aim is come to the end of the week with many new songs written and recorded, and new friendships forged.

“Having this calibre of international artists come together to share their talent, knowledge and experience with our songwriters is a huge opportunity” says APRA’s Director of NZ Member Services Victoria Kelly.  “We’re incredibly excited about the music that will come from these collaborations, and the relationships they’ll build.”

We’re also very pleased to announce the list of impressive local writers, performers, and producers who will be working with York, Beeson, and Morgan:

Julia Deans
Alex Wildwood (producer)
Madeleine Bradley
Simon Gooding (producer)
Tom Healy (producer)
Jol Muholland (producer)
Tami Neilson
Jenny Mitchell
Woodes
Marley Sola
Seth Haapu
Taka Perry (producer)
Fraser Browne
Nick Dow
Jamie McDell
Kaylee Bell

We had 150 excellent applications for these 16 places, and were delighted to hear about many great music projects going on across New Zealand and Australia.

In light of the quality of the applications, we decided we would also create a producer internship position this year, in order to give an up and coming producer the opportunity to be involved in the valuable learning experience of SongHubs. For this program, the producer intern will be Maude Morris.

Please contact APRA AMCOS for info and biographies on all participants.
Participants have been selected by SongHubs Auckland curator, producer Greg Haver (Manic Street Preachers, Catatonia, Pluto)

SongHubs is an APRA AMCOS initiative, supported by the Federal Government of Australia. In addition to APRA AMCOS, SongHubs Auckland has been made possible with the support of NZ On Air, Auckland Council, Recorded Music NZ and the New Zealand Music Commission.

THEIA 'BYE BYE' (VIDEO)

Theia (Nicole Thomas & Paula Yeoman) has released the highly-anticipated video for her new single ‘Bye Bye’, co-written in Sydney with the legendary Mike Elizondo, Australian hip-hop artist L-FRESH The LION and Kiwi singer-songwriter Vince Harder.

The video brings together the work of three of New Zealand’s brightest young stars - Theia, fashion designer Tia Feng and photographer Frances Carter.

All fans of each others’ work, the three young women came together over coffee in early 2018, and began planning their vision for a series of images and this video.

Emails and ideas bounced backwards and forwards for weeks until they met again - this time in a studio tucked away in central Auckland.

Throughout the shoot, ‘Bye Bye’ blasted at full volume. The bass-heavy anthem, written for anyone who’s ever had to fight to be taken seriously, is particularly poignant, because it comes at a time when women in entertainment are coming together to stand strong in the wake of the #metoo movement.

It’s this song, ‘Bye Bye’ - fuelled by anger and a need to express it - that beats at the heart of Theia's collaboration with Frances and Tia.

The vision was to create a series of images and a video that captured Theia and her music at a critical moment in time, whilst holding up a mirror to the talents of Feng and Carter. Like the song, the images convey a powerful message - there is beauty in anger. They also demonstrate the combined power that women in the creative industries hold, as they stare down the barrel of a revolution.

TIKI TAANE, RIA HALL & LAUGHTON KORA FOUR SHOWS IN NORTHLAND THIS JUNE

Tiki Taane, Ria Hall & Laughton Kora are set to combine for the Tipi Haere Tour, a special run of four shows in the Northland region. These shows will see all three artists perform solo sets from their own bodies of work, and undoubtedly some special collaborations only to be witnessed in person.

This run of shows will be the first Northland performances in some time for each of these artists. They are no strangers to working together, with both Taane and Kora playing a part in the making of Hall’s album Rules Of Engagement.

Tiki Taane will be showcasing his amazing one-man-band set, which he has been perfecting over countless festival performances across Australasia. He is set to release new material later in 2018, and these shows will offer a preview of this, along with tracks from his epic back catalogue.

“I’m so excited and amped to be playing back up North for these shows, and with great friends too!” says Taane of the tour. “I have so much love and respect for Ria and Laughton, and every time we jam together, it’s always off the Richter.”

A big 2017 saw Ria Hall release her much-anticipated debut album Rules Of Engagement. Described as an album about “culture and colonization, conflict and compromise, love and war”, it represents over five years of hard work from Hall. These shows will be the first time Hall performs her work in the Northland region.

Hall will perform live with Iraia Whakamoe alongside Laughton Kora, who will also perform his own solo set. Famous for his days in Kora, he is hard at work on new material, which will be the first under his own name.

Thursday 14 June – Butter Factory, Whangarei * 
Friday 15 June – Turner Centre, Kerikeri
Saturday 16 June – Te Ahu, Kaitaia
Sunday 17 June – Opononi Hotel, Opononi
*(without Laughton Kora)

Tickets are available from https://eventfinda.co.nz/tour/2018/tipi-haere-tour

TEMPIST FUJIT SINGLE LAUNCH/RELEASE

Sat 31st March – Mangawhai Tavern - Mangawhai - 8.30pm-11pm -Special Guests Moondogs Blues.

Tempist Fujit (Doug Gordon) are back after a brief stint in the studio over the summer to launch their second single “Daynes Song” at the Mangawhai Tavern. After the success of the release of their debut single “Midnight Train”, this hard-hitting 4 piece rock outfit is a must see for lovers of great music and live performance.                                                                                    

The single is a dedication to the story of the bands nephew & cousin Dayne McCallum, who after an accident involving fire at the tender age of 13, showed incredible strength and adversity while recovering from 3rd degree burns to his face, hands and body. Dayne is a true warrior and has overcome all challenges put in front of him to continue living a life of love, happiness and prosperity. Dayne will feature in the music video to be released on the 31st March via online platforms YouTube and Tempist Fujits Facebook page.
Along with tracks from their soon to be released debut album they will also play some of your favourite classics to showcase their set. Special guests on the night will be Moondogs Blues, a two piece rockabilly duo who in performance are possessed heartfelt and real. Tickets to the shows are available from www.eventfinda.co.nz

Tickets $10 from www.eventfinda.co.nz

Track will be available on iTunes/Spotify and all major online retailers from the 31st March 2018

Video will be released on YouTube/Facebook from 31st March 2018

"THE RUBBISH RUNNER" BEACH LITTER CAMPAIGN A DISAPPOINTING SUCCESS STORY. VIDEO RELEASE

Can 10,000 pieces of litter be collected from one New Zealand beach by one person in only 70 days? Sadly it has been depressingly easy.

This week sees the release of a collaborative video project between two Canterbury artists Matt Akehurst and David Thorpe which highlights the ‘disappointing success’ of Matt’s beach litter campaign.

Matt (aka the “Rubbish Runner”) has been running a 4 kilometer loop most days and picking up litter on the way. His aim was to pick up 7,000 pieces in 70 days... this goal was exceeded on day 47. Matt was also collecting pictures of the litter he found and posting them on his Facebook page. That’s when he bumped into David who suggested making the images into a video. David wrote and produced a soundtrack for the video to link it all together.

“We are just two blokes with the same goal” says Matt, “we humans make a mess, we are all responsible and need to make changes and do our bit.”
Matt and David are just two average Kiwis on a similar mission – to create awareness of our litter problem and set a better example for our kids.

Thank for reading this.

Matt and David.