ASHY signs Worldwide Co-Management Deal

An incredibly successful SXSW experience for ASHY was sealed with the signing of a co-management deal between herself and the much-respected boutique US management company, Arcana Management. 

This worldwide deal is already set to firmly establish ASHY in international markets and continue to build upon the foundation that Ashy has set for herself alongside her manager Cary Caldwell of the 212 Music Group. 

Arcana CEO, Honora McCormack says, "As someone that has been working in the dance music realm for some time now, I am thrilled at the opportunity to work with a powerful force like ASHY in the world of pop music."
SXSW saw Ashy and her new backing band, Emily C. Browning and Phoebe Hurst, perform 8 shows during the event. These performances have led to talks with US & EU industry which will ultimately lead to substantial international opportunities.

Somebody Do Something’s highly anticipated debut album ‘As Rome Burns’ is here!

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Ōtautahi band ‘Somebody Do Something’ hits the ground running this autumn with their debut album, ‘As Rome Burns’, released Friday 14th April; an ecstatic showcase of the bands versatility and musical prowess. Independently recorded and produced by Jacob Patchett, the album features ten unique tracks that range from R&B grooves to anthemic rock hits. ‘As Rome Burns’ is genre-bending and innovative, drawing on an array of musical influences ranging from heavy metal to classical, resulting in a blend of songs that are both emotionally powerful and technically impressive.

Formed in 2020, Somebody Do Something is a six-piece unit with a soul-fuelled jungle of sound. Since formation they have been making waves in the Aotearoa music scene with their unique alt-rock bangers and dynamic live performances. After their recent nation-wide tours, RDU Live-to-Air, recurring top ten features on RDU 98.5FM weekly Te Ahi Top 10, and being featured on the NZ Music Month ‘Celebrating Wahine’ playlist, Somebody Do Something are beyond excited to share their highly anticipated debut album with the world.

The sound of Somebody Do Something is characterised by the interweaving of the saxophone and violin with a traditional rock quartet. This brings to the mix a diverse range of textures and melodies, adding an almost orchestral quality to the rhythmic funk-rock sound-world of Somebody Do Something.

‘As Rome Burns’ was a true labour of love for the band, who spent the past one and a half years crafting the album. The recording process was partly funded by the band’s 2021 Boosted NZ Campaign, where with the help of their supporters they generated 110% of their $8000 fundraising goal. ‘As Rome Burns’ is available now on all major streaming platforms, as well as on CD.

Meghan Meraki releases debut R&B/Pop single, Good Riddance

Sassy, self-producing RnB artist, Meghan Meraki is stepping into her own in the Christchurch music scene. With a strong belief in self-love and appreciating yourself, listeners can expect to feel a boost of confidence after listening to Meghan’s music. 

Writing and producing her own music means Meghan is able to make her music connect and flow. Meghan uses music as her cathartic outlet which allows her to turn sometimes negative situations into positives. 

Good Riddance, both written and produced by Meghan Meraki, is all about saying good riddance to all the things in your life that are no longer serving you any good. It’s a reminder that it’s okay to get rid of things that are weighing you down and that you will feel so much relief when those things are gone. Meghan wrote Good Riddance whilst in a bad place and made the decision to get rid of the things that were weighing her down and stopping her from being at her best. With so much anticipation for her first ever release, Meghan can’t wait for Good Riddance to be out for everyone on April 21st!!! 
Through development and working on her musical craft over the past couple years, Meghan has been able to find out who she is, who she wants to be and what message she wants to send to people listening to her music. Meghan has spent the past few years at Sole Music Academy where she has developed in terms of songwriting, production and overall artist development. Through Sacha Vee and other mentors at Sole Music Academy, Meghan has been given guidance in the music industry and a pathway forward in her music career. 

Recently, Meghan Meraki performed a 20 minute set at Wunderbar in Lyttelton where she received great feedback and was able to broaden her audience. Meghan also had the opportunity to talk with Liam Donnelly from RDU and sing an original of her own, live on air. 

Make sure to follow Meghan’s socials, linked down below, to keep up with her upcoming shows and single releases. Meghan Meraki is one to watch for sure. 

Connect with Meghan Meraki: INSTAGRAM FACEBOOK 

THE RVMES NEWEST SINGLE SAY SOMETHING

Fresh off the road from their Simple Things album tour, The RVMES (pronounced ‘The Rooms’) announce their new single ‘Say Something’. The track is a soft conclusion to their tour and this year’s questionable Summer before they disappear into the Winter mist to start planning the next one.

Giving off a warm and sweet mood of reggae, Say Something sings about how easy it is to hang on to every word and every moment of a new love or a new lust. Richard Moore lays down a complimenting bed of smooth jazz chords on guitar for his debut release with the band, and as a cherry on top, the whole track was run through tape for some extra warm tonality.

Say Something was recorded in Huntly with Casey and John Messent from the upcoming Wardrobe Studios, mixed by legendary and recent free-lancer Jamie Crerar and finally mastered by Luke Finlay at Primal Mastering.

FOLLOW The RVMES: FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM | YOUTUBE | SPOTIFY | SOUNDCLOUD | BANDCAMP

Warming up these autumn days! Valley Kids release summer soaked single + fun video ‘Otherside’

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The wait is over! Valley Kids have today released their new summer-soaked reggae single + video ‘Otherside’.

A feel-good song designed to uplift, ‘Otherside’ started life as a jam that lead singer Nai McGregor started playing out of the blue at a writing session. “It basically wrote itself!” says Valley Kids - which is made up of Nai (Te Atihaunui-a-paparangi, Ngati Maniapoto) - vocals, Peter Riley (Ngaruahine, Ngati Manuhiakai) - bass, Daniel Sugrue - guitar/vocals, and Ihaka Tukapua (Muaūpoko, Ngati Kahungunu) - Keyboard/Vocals. “‘Otherside’ is a song about the positive emotions that uplifting music can give you and that when you’re feeling down, there is always a different way to view your situation in a more favourable light.”

Following on from their 2021 debut single ‘Money’, sophomore ‘Make Me Feel’ (produced by DJ Mu a.k.a Fitchie, Fat Freddys Drop at Bay's Studio) and te reo Māori adaptation ‘Moni’,  ‘Otherside’ is yet another single that showcases the bands range, skilful songwriting abilities and musicianship. Made with the support of NZ On Air, it was recorded at ‘HiViz Jamz HQ in Upper Hutt/Wellington, then mixed and mastered in-house by Thomas Te Taite.

The video for ‘Otherside’ was directed by Will Wrag, edited by Lee Gingold and is a fun must-watch. “We found that with a lot of Aotearoa-based summer reggae songs, the video concepts were based around cars and/or road-tripping with friends. We wanted to do our own spin on that and include our individual, comedic personalities within the video treatment.” The video succeeds in capturing the light-heartedness and positive message of the song but also the quintessential Valley Kids essence of not taking themselves too seriously.

Formed by Daniel and Peter in late 2020, Valley Kids have already made a significant splash on the Aotearoa music scene with their full and energetic arrangements which move over solid soul, RnB, reggae and rock grooves. They’ve released 3 singles, multiple live material and performed shows all across Aotearoa. Fans are also familiar with seeing Daniel (Tomorrow People, Sons of Zion, 1814), Peter (AJA, NLC, Creative Natives) and Nai (Creative Natives)  performing with other Aotearoa standouts. With more writing and recording in the works, there’s still lots more to watch out for - so make sure you’re following Valley Kids!

FIND VALLEY KIDS

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Emerging pop star Ben Horlock releases emotive new single ‘This Ain’t The End’

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WATCH HERE

Up-and-coming Aotearoa pop artist Ben Horlock (Ngati Porou, Te Arawa) has today released his latest single ‘This Ain’t The End’ - proving once again to be an artist to watch!

This exciting new single from the 19-year-old singer and songwriter has a driving beat, catchy chorus and includes pop perfect shifts from emotional to hopeful and uplifting. “To me it's kind of like a motivational song for anyone feeling really down,” says Ben, who worked on the song with grammy nominated producer and songwriter Rory Noble (Kanye West, Burna Boy, Ruel, Claire Rosinfranz, BANKS) at Parachute Studios. “Rory and I had been working together for a couple days and just as our session was about to end I was messing about on a guitar playing this little riff and singing this melody. Rory asked what it was and I said ‘just a random idea’. It was enough for us to start a new song when we were meant to be calling it quits for the day. I even had a show I ended up being late for.”

Ben says the inspiration for ‘This Ain’t The End’ came from his own difficult experiences, as well as empathising with others stories. “I wanted to try to give anyone out there a message not to give up when things get dark. I'm not gonna lie, I got into a pretty dark place to write this and it has the vulnerability that comes with being a teenager, because we’re all just trying to figure out who we are.”

Also released today is a video Ben made with friends in his home studio (which also doubled as a bedroom when the car got “too much” to sleep in). The video shows Ben on his bed playing guitar, with a friend lying motionless next to him. “We wanted to keep the concept simple, just show what my life is like and try to get as much emotion from the song across. To me, it really captures the feeling of the song - about wanting to hold onto someone (or something) and the thought of losing them giving you the feeling of your mind falling into that darker place,” says Ben, adding that to be able to film in his room, he had to do a big clean. “Hopefully it’s not too clean though, as I still wanted to show what a crazy life I’ve been living these past few years.”

Whakatāne born, and now Auckland-based, Ben grew up in Dunedin where he began writing songs aged 12, after teaching himself guitar. Following on from winning regional Rockquest in 2018, he was quickly recognised as a talent to discover - being teamed up with some of Aotearoa’s best talent/studios (Roundhead/Parachute); landing spots as the youngest artist on the main stage at various Bay of Plenty summer festivals in early 2020; and more recently, headlining a concert with Lime Cordiale and Coterie.  Ben’s first unplugged releases gained him a dedicated online following - both in Aotearoa and overseas. With more music on the horizon, ‘This Ain’t The End’ is a great taste of what’s still to come from Ben Horlock - so be sure you’re following his socials!      

Midwave Breaks announce Special Guests for NZ Tour

43 Local Acts from around the country put their hands up to be part of Midwave Breaks NZ Tour in May!

The Tauranga Alt-Rock duo of singer-songwriter Bruce Conlon, and drummer Paul Russell, have had a resoundingly positive response to their ‘Special Guest Artist Search’ in partnership with Rockshop, helping to shine a light on Local Acts in support of NZ Music Month 2023.

“We’re pretty blown away by the response, we’re by no means an established band ourselves, so to have this level of interest from fellow musicians wanting to be involved is super encouraging!” Drummer Paul Russell

The selected ‘Local Special Guest Artists’ for Midwave Breaks NZ Tour 2023 are:

New Plymouth - The Black Daphnes

Wellington - Dash Ripshaw

Gisborne - Spikey

Auckland - The Boondocks

Christchurch - Imperial April

Hamilton - Pineapple Hedz

Napier - Say Or Do

Mount Maunganui - Whiskey Soho

Dunedin - IVY

Thanks to the legends at Rockshop, each selected Special Guest Artist receives a $200 Rockshop Voucher, plus (courtesy of Midwave Breaks) $150 cash and a double-pass giveaway for each member of the band.

Given the volume of responses and depth of talent displayed, Bruce and Paul have   since invited a number of other bands to join the show as well.

In total 15 Emerging Kiwi Artists will share the stage with Midwave Breaks across the Motu in celebration of NZ Music Month!

WASTE FREE WANDA - TERM 2 TOUR

With the support of the Queenstown Lakes District Council, Aotearoa’s environmental superhero Waste Free Wanda is preparing for a term 2 tour of the area.

The show, which has now reached over 13,000 tamariki, was launched in 2020 and brought to life with the help of the QLDC.

“This is the first time our community will be seeing the show in 3 years. It’s come such a long way since its humble beginnings. I’m really excited to share it in my own neck of the woods again”, said show creator and performer Anna van Riel.

The 80’s-inspired Waste Free Wanda show focuses on the very real and growing issue of eco-anxiety in children, and offers realistic and achievable solutions, which are taught through theatre, song and actions.
Young audiences become important characters in the one-woman show, helping Wanda to save her town and local river from an overwhelm of single-use plastic pollution.

“The show advocates for the arts, for the environment and for wellbeing in our tamariki. It’s funny with a strong Kiwiana flavour. The hooks in the songs are super sticky, and the actions help to lock in solutions that children can take home and share confidently with their families. It helps them to feel part of the solution around waste pollution”, said Anna.

The upcoming QLDC tour will visit a collection of local schools, ECE centres and libraries in the hope of making it easily accessible to tamariki aged 4-12. The QLDC Waste Minimisation grant supporting the tour was gratefully received through charitable trust The Wanda Foundation, whose focus is on inspiring environmental change through the arts.

With testimonials that liken the show to “Flight of the Conchords meets Captain Planet”, this is an opportunity to belly laugh, learn and understand how we can all be part of a positive change for papatūānuku.

For more information on Waste Free Wanda, and how to see a show in the QLDC head to www.wastefreewanda.com