Michael Gudinski Death Shocks Industry
The Australasian music industry has been rocked today with news that legendary Australian music entrepreneur Michael Gudinski has died at the age of 68. He died peacefully at home in Melbourne on the ...
READ MORE >NewTracks New Artist: Silas Futura
Moving along from his previous project Bobandii, Auckland hip hop artist and producer Silas McClintock emerged under the new name Silas Futura in 2017, and has since released two albums, featuring, among ...
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News
New Music Pasifika Funding January 2021 Decisions
NZ On Air has announced the New Music Pasifika Funding January 2021 decisions – supporting recording, video content and promotion of new songs by Pasifika artists. From 68 applications, the assessment panel made up of Aaron Pulemagafa (Niu FM), Nicole Rex (NZ On Air), Petrina Togi-Sa’ena (Pacific Music Awards Trust) and Tana Tupai (Tomorrow People), identified the following 21 new songs/artists that will receive funding support. The next New Music Pasifika round will open on June ...
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ISC 2020 Semi-Finalists Announced
The International Songwriting Competition (ISC) has announced the 2020 semi-finalists, a long list that includes over 40 Kiwi entries across the many categories, particularly present under Children's Music, Teen and Folk. Chances of a big local win look especially strong for Children's Music with six entries from across Aotearoa, including audience favourites such as 'Wonky Donkey Man' Craig Smith, Claudia Robin Gunn and Fleabite. One interesting semi-finalist is Te Vaka's We Know The Way in the ...
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Local Music On NZ Radio Hits New Peak
Local music play on NZ radio has hit the highest peak since record-keeping began, reports NZ On Air. According to the NZOA, the Radio Broadcasters Association and Recorded Music NZ, several records for radio airplay and chart placings were broken in 2020, in spite of the many challenges the industry faced due to the Covid pandemic. For the first time since 2005, commercial radio networks and stations playing contemporary local music collectively played more than 20% local music content in the calendar ...
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Creative Careers Service Launched
The Government has this week announced the Creative Careers Service, a dual partnered programme, with the Ministry for Culture and Heritage (MCH) and the Ministry of Social Development (MSD) combining to drive a pilot that’s now accepting participants in four regions. You may be eligible if you... Live in the pilot scheme areas of Auckland, Waikato, or Nelson. Are aged between 18-64 years. Have a recognised creative qualification or relevant experience in a creative field. This ...
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My Song
My Song: Renee Millner – Out Their Windows
Previously active as Renny M, Taranaki singer-songwriter Renee Millner decided to create music under her actual name after all, to avoid confusion. Staying true to her trusty acoustic guitar and folk-tinged tunes that tell a story, the first release from an upcoming selection of songs, Out Their Windows, shows a more mature side to her songwriting. Conveyed with aching intensity and a stunning soulful vocal performance, the single is a very personal contemplation on the fate of elderly people in ...
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Phodiso: Brimming With Talent
Phodiso Dintwe is a modern renaissance man with his fingers in many a pie. Yes, he is a musician, he raps and plays percussion, but he’s also a poet, an actor, a filmmaker, a dancer – the list seems to go on. After a cameo on JessB’s debut EP ‘Bloom’ in 2018, and winning the pop category of the inaugural Bubble Bop, a 24-hour music-making competition coming out of Massey University student initiative SomethingSomething, he finally followed up with a release of his own, EP ‘Act 1’, the ...
READ MORE >NewTracks New Artist: Corduroy
Coming off a tour and festival gigs, Corduroy is maintaining a busy schedule with the release of a new single Spaceships (If I Came Back Again) from their new EP 'Poor Mans Velvet'. The single before Spaceships was I'm So Bored; a colourful pop song that plays into the typically rummaging yet optimistic mind of the youth today. Even judging by the title their new single feels like a continuation of the previous narrative delving into the psyche of youth. NZ On Air Music featured Spaceships (If ...
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Hot Donnas: Would The Real E-Wan Please Stand Up
As someone quite famous once observed, it’s a long way to the top if you wanna rock’n’roll. Dunedin four-piece Hot Donnas don’t necessarily aspire to reach the top, but as frontman Jacob Sydney King tells Richard Thorne, they do most certainly wanna play rock’n’roll, and if following that musical path means spending time in Australia then so be it. Hot Donnas came together as a band of Otago University mates back in 2017, and for a relatively young, little known band, already have ...
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NewTracks New Artist: Ainslie Allen
Having started well before her obligatory appearance at Smokefree Rockquest with her high school band, and, among other things, a small role on cult TV show The Tribe, the driven and talented Ainslie Allen has been around for a while and is on her way up. You may not know her name still, but the independent country artist has an album ready to go in May, and her new single Done And Gone features on NZ On Air Music's NewTracks compilation this February. What's your given name, where are you from ...
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Fresh Talent: Chris William
Almost two years after releasing his first EP ‘Out Of Sight’, Christchurch artist Chris William is fresh off his NZ tour for the release of a new EP ‘Light Shines Above’. Influenced by singer-songwriters including John Lennon and Mac DeMarco, Chris stripped back from the electronic heavy sound toward a new acoustic folk-inspired style. “The first EP was more electronic sounding, it was quite synth-heavy and a lot of drum machine and it was quite in your face in that regard. But since ...
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NewTracks New Artist: Fyveyes
Young Hawkes Bay rock newcomers, three-piece Fyveyes, released their debut album 'Elephant Room' in November last year, named after a previously abandoned band project which they thought had a great name. Their latest single Get By, taken from the album, made it onto NZ On Air Music's NewTracks compilation this February. What's your full name, where are you from and what instruments do you play (if any)? The full name of each of our band members are Harry Young (Bass) Harper Champion (Drums) ...
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Event Guide
MMF’s Back to Basics 2021 Seminar To Be Held In Christchurch
The Music Managers Forum Aotearoa (MMF) has announced Back to Basics 2021, with the annual seminar to take place in Christchurch on March 23. Aimed at all who are new to artist management including self-managed artists, this seminar explores the fundamentals and inner workings of the music industry. Topics will cover: contracts – band, manager, live etc setting up a management business and the business of a band information on APRA AMCOS Recorded Music NZ’s Direct to Artist Scheme funding; ...
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2021 Auckland Folk Festival
Trevor Villers spent the weekend at the 2021 Auckland Folk Festival and shared his bounty of photos with us, documenting colourful performers and crowds alike.
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Music in Parks Māngere, January 23, 2021
The latest instalment of Music In Parks in Auckland was staged at Māngere's Waterfront Reserve on January 23. Presented by the Pacific Music Awards Trust the line-up featured performances by Silika, La Coco Band, Lepani, Tree, and Church & AP. Photographer Trevor Villers headed out and brought back some summery pictures for us to enjoy.
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