Lauren Blakey’s musical pathway to Lavender began with busking and has included grabbing the opportunities provided by Smokefreerockquest, Play It Strange, Youth Arts NZ events and other public celebrations including the Women’s World Cup in 2023. 

A Covid wave at the start of her first year of study for the Pop Music degree at Auckland University left Lauren holed up in her room for a chunk of 2021, and that’s where she wrote the songs on her late-2024 four-track EP ‘types of infatuation’. (She explains the use of lower case just felt more romantic.)

“I roughly demoed the songs on my laptop using Logic Pro, then asked Nathaniel Selway to produce them. I had also worked on most of them at uni so was able to get feedback and pointers about the directions of the songs. Being able to demo a track as the songwriter has been a huge help, it means I’m able to create a basic idea of the song that my producer can then flesh and make actually sound good!”

She met Selway through a uni friend and he later reached out to see if she wanted any help.

“We recorded in his home studio and also at Tom Broome’s studio KDrums. Nathaniel did a great job at bringing the sassy energy to life with this EP, as well as the more delicate feel of I Hope You Do. I’ve been working on it for so long (nearly four years!), and I’m so excited that the music will finally be out there and everyone can hear it!”

Lauren rates her satisfaction with the EP to be about 7.5.

“At some point it definitely was a 10 for me, but I guess as artists grow and change so does their view on their older material. But I still think these songs are really fun, and all I can hope is that they will be a 10 out of 10 for anyone listening!”

Born and raised in Tāmaki Makaurau, the city’s university was also where she adopted the artist name Lavender, which she says has no crazy meaning behind it.

“But I think it reflects my personality and music well as I am generally quite a calm and reserved person – music is a way for me to come out of my shell. I also love the imagery that comes with it. It’s a great colour and beautiful flower and I’m sure I can have some good fun with the concept in future projects!” 

Though she learnt classical piano for several years when younger, Lavender claims nothing much of it has stuck. The guitar is her favourite songwriting tool and instrument.

“I think guitars add a certain magic and interest to songs that nothing else quite captures.”

Already working on the next batch of music with producer Ben Woolford, she promises to be playing more gigs and releasing more music in 2025.