A wicked run of new year’s shows saw drum and bass artist PONZ kick off 2025 in style, performing at Rhythm and Alps in Wanaka on December 30, Famous Last Words in Tauranga on the next day, and following that with the Coro Classic in Matarangi on January 4. PONZ is songwriter, vocalist, DJ and MC all in one, and NZ On Air Music included her recent dancefloor banger Shifting Seas on the March 2025 NewTracks compilation.
Lauren Pondes. I’m from Ramarama in Auckland (it used to be rural Auckland but the city has slowly crept in). My music career kickstarted when I learnt to play the recorder at five. I quickly learned that I loved learning how to play instruments so over the next 10 years I tackled the piano, guitar, flute and saxophone (alongside singing). After learning to play a few instruments it’s a lot easier to pick up new ones, so I’ve messed around with some other instruments like the drums and piccolo for fun too!
Probably not… although the true OG’s will know me from my high school band Breakeven!
I was in a bunch of bands in high school and have been writing music since I was 12 years old. I went to university and I did what so many people do and stopped making time for the hobby that I loved so much! Then in second year, my best friend sadly passed away and I fell back into songwriting as a way to process all of my feelings and emotions that were too big and scary to let out in any other way. I posted a video of one of the songs I had written on Facebook and one of my mutual friends reached out and asked if I wanted to sing on a drum and bass track he was working on. From there I was thrown into this amazing world of electronic music. I kept writing, taught myself to DJ, played shows all over the country, released a bunch of music and honestly became the happiest I’ve ever been.
My last name is Pondes and when I was about to be featured on my first song I had no idea whether I wanted to use my normal name or create a different brand. One of my friends, Teresa, actually came up with PONZ and I felt like It fit so well! I also love having PONZ as a bit of an alter ego.
When I first started out I worked solely within the drum and bass genre. My long-term plan was always to branch out to include a whole range of electronic music genres and I finally decided to make the jump after I released my debut EP ‘Can We Go Back?’ I started working on my next project – which is shaping up to be an album! Opening myself up to a range of genres really freed my songwriting up in a way that I didn’t realise I needed. I really do think I’ve gone from strength to strength in the writing space, and a lot of that is to do with both practice and with feedback from my producer Ben.
My biggest highlight so far would be going on a national tour with Hybrid Minds last year. I played the largest, most enthusiastic crowds of my life and the production on all of the shows was next level. It really lit a fire in me and I can’t wait to be the one selling out shows like that one day!
It’s got this euphoric, nostalgic feeling to it which I’ve tried to encapsulate in a lot of my upcoming music. To me, it feels timeless.
In 2024 I released my debut EP ‘Can We Go Back?’ That project was heavily based on retrospect and showcased a time in my life where I was really focused on the past. Shifting Seas showcases a shift in mindset for myself and for the next era of PONZ. It’s about living in the moment and looking toward the future, in almost a direct response to Where We Were which featured on the EP.
My favourite lyric is probably, “I should break reality”. That for me is the core of the song. It’s all about realising that you can literally wake up and decide you want to be someone that you weren’t yesterday. (Hopefully someone better and happier.)
I wrote the song with my producer Ben Hollamby. The song actually had a completely different bridge in the initial demo which we then took and used to create a whole new track called I Can’t Change You, which will be coming out later this year. So Shifting Seas kind of birthed a twin, which is fun!
To try your best to enjoy the little things in life and live in the moment! It can all be taken away so quickly. And that every day is an opportunity to reshape and change the way you see the world for the better.
Ben Hollamby is my producer and we’ve worked together for a couple of years now. I’ve got an amazing management team – Mitch Lowe, Oliver Kraemer and Harry Martin. I’ve also been working with Let Them Cook Records which is an NZ-based record label. I made the cover art and canvas with Jared Tinetti and his partner Zara Staples. They are always so fun to work with and I have so much trust in Jared behind a camera.
I don’t want to speak too soon because it’s not entirely finished but… I have been working on a large project with the goal of it being an album! I’m only two songs away from finishing and have loved the journey so much. The plan is to drop a single a month until August/September this year when the whole project should come out. I have decided to make the move over to the UK to progress my music further and have been planning some epic leaving shows, so look out for those too!!
Pirapus: Lost With U
REPAIR, Mikeyy: Lose it All
[IVY] feat. Elipsa: First Time
Yes! Back In Time was back in December 2023.
NZOA funding really does change the game and I am beyond appreciative for the funding rounds I have received in the past. It’s given me the opportunity to film with people and work with PR teams that I never would’ve been able to otherwise. Once you’ve hit the criteria it is actually a pretty simple process to apply!
I’m definitely still trying to figure it out! I really do think that all you can do is put your best foot forward every time there is a funding round open. And then if you haven’t hit the criteria yet, actively making steps towards hitting that goal.
This link has everything: linktr.ee/ponz
in particular:
spotify.com/artist/
facebook.com/ponzmusicnz
instagram.com/ponz_music/
