Following a stint under the stylised name TiGER independent R&B/soul artist Daniel Ly has rebranded as the artist Tiger Lotiss. Blending familiar retro tones with current musical influences he produces atmospheric R&B soundscapes to carry deeply personal and resonant messages. Deceptively upbeat, his latest single Tiger in the Garden adresses the cost of fruit and the quiet grief of putting dreams on hold in order to survive. It featured on the August NewTracks compilation from NZ On Air Music.
Born and raised in Auckland – and living in central Auckland now. I am of Chinese Cambodian descent
I play keys badly… I’m really just a singer/amateur producer.
I used to take vocal lessons during my high school years and I studied pop music for a year before I dropped it and switched degrees. I loved writing and performing, but having ADHD meant that it was really hard for me to pull myself together enough to study theory well.
After switching degrees I spent a long time trying to be someone who I was not. I was afraid of pursuing music due to the lack of stability and unpredictability that came with this path. My typical immigrant Asian mother didn’t want me to be anything like my father who was also a singer/artist.
I was never in the right environment and had a lot of self-doubt. Being with the wrong romantic partners and going through two traumatic assaults left me mentally unwell and in survival mode for many years. I tried forming a band post Covid but it failed due to internal drama, and I was again left feeling powerless and empty.
It wasn’t until 2024 that I felt galvanised enough to change my life and live as authentically as possible. Music was always my place of power and healing. I felt incredibly behind in life (still do) and realised trying to live predictably the way my parents always wanted was getting me nowhere. When you have sunken to a very low place it’s actually quite easy to find clarity and strength, because you feel as though you have nothing to lose.
My ex-fiance had called us off in a matter of weeks post proposal and all of a sudden I had all this space and time to myself. I wanted to prove to him and myself that we didn’t break up for nothing and that I would prevail and grow from the person he thought I was. Some friends back from my pop school days reached out and helped get me back on my music path. My song Corset Me Free was my first release. Soon I empowered myself to learn more about producing and managed to produce 3 Days on my own.
Once Chameleon was funded by NZOA, that’s when things really started moving in 2025-early 2026 and I learnt a lot. Produced by my friend Bray Jeffrey, Chameleon was the oldest serious song I ever wrote, and I felt it really represented the kind of Artist I was. Now we are here in August, with Tiger in the Garden, a song that I produced. One that I’m super proud of and reflects my style and vision. I still don’t have a permanent band yet, mainly because it’s incredibly hard to find the kind of people that will willingly invest their time and effort consistently, but mark my words it will happen. For now I will focus on attracting and building my catalogue and credibility.
I changed it to Tiger Lotiss this year. The catalyst was to make sure I was easier to find online.
I wanted to add Lotiss in reference to the Lotus flower, to balance the intensity of the name out. Tiger is a fiery name, Lotiss helps to soften and bring beauty to it. I wanted to show the marriage of power and vulnerability in my music. It only made sense to do the same for my name.
My real name, Daniel, is nice, but Daniel sounds like the boy next door. For a masking introvert like myself, being Danny from next door is not enough! I needed a name that I felt enabled me to be the more confident, and sassier version of myself. Lotus flowers also happen to be my favourite flower. They represent passion, rebirth, and growth in unconventional environments. And Tiger? Well no one messes with a Tiger.
My first release was very me-focused, but the current release is for and about everyone. The older I get the more insight I have, and the easier it is for me to reflect on the society we live in. Most of my songs are about heartbreak, and when you write that kind of music you kind’a have no choice but to go within, however this song is about collective struggle. Unfortunately, “money is the anthem of success” (Lana Del Rey in National Anthem), but most of us rarely feel we can put on mascara or a party dress given the current state of the economy.
It was the only upbeat song that I had/liked that was still authentic to me. Rhythmic and catchy, bright and deceptively bombastic. It sounds like a happy go lucky song until you really listen to it and you realise it’s not just loud, but layered too.
There were a culmination of moments leading up to the creation of this song. I had felt exhausted by the mundane rituals of life for quite some time. I felt as though I was going to punch the next person who said the words “key performance indicator” in the throat. I’m a Sagittarius so naturally I need change, novelty, and room to expand. Working jobs that I always eventually felt indifferent towards just to survive (but never thrive) was killing my middle-class spirit.
As a ’90s baby, I grew up believing that I could live the sunny sitcom kind of life the characters from Friends did. I thought I would be really busy, that my life would be filled with lots of movement in my career, or lots of healthy changes in romantic partners. Not the kind of change that leaves you comatose on an Ecosa mattress on the floor in the middle of a weekday. I thought I would be married with at least one house. I thought about many things.
This all led to one mango. People say when life gives you lemons you make lemonade, well in this case I made mangonade. Two to three years ago, I was at a New World doing my weekly grocery run in the fruit and veg section and came across a stack of mangoes. “I love mangoes,” I said to myself. I glanced at the price and to my horror it was $10. “What am I going to do with a $10 mango?” I debated whether or not I should put something else back, perhaps the eggs? Olive oil? No, I needed both. I ended up not buying the mango. Got me a Coke Zero to calm myself down instead.
I like the ending section. It goes like this…
“I love money! I love money!
I love money I work like a dog
I love money but don’t get none at all
Money buys me ice
Money buys me rice
I love money my greatest downfall”
I like it because it demonstrates the love-hate relationship I have with money. The way we work and work and work and still not seem to get anywhere or save any money. The way we have to choose between what we want (ice) versus what we need (rice). It’s a hamster wheel.
I want listeners to think about their lives, and about the people in power that impact our lives, especially during an election year. It’s important that we vote and participate in a process that many other countries are denied. Things like the cost of living, housing, etc, are impacted by those in power. I want people to be aware, and to shake off the feeling of being jaded. If we have learnt anything the past few years, it should be that our lives are easily impacted by the few, which is crazy considering we are the many.
There’s been a few really cool moments, for example receiving NZOA funding twice, getting featured in the Rolling Stone, having my moment on Seven Sharp news twice, as well as just forging and creating my own connections. I’m still quite far from where I want to be and people say it takes a decade for artists, well… I’m trying to cut that time down significantly and aggressively – being 30 years old in a few months time.
My mixing and mastering engineer is Sebastian Judd (aka Chequeredpatterns). Timeless Records is the label that works with me and manages my live performances. NicNak Media represents the publicity side of things.
Yes. I’m releasing a couple more tracks in August – they are two theme songs I produced for a short film during the 48 hour film challenge. Releasing it in a rush just to make sure it’s copyright protected before screen time! I’m then going to release another single from the album that I’m working on in September, followed by another in October, and another in November. By the time we reach December, my sophomore album will be released.
I won’t be touring – no band, no car, no money. This album is purely for me to let go of years of baggage, get some catalogue out, enter the Taite Awards and pitch for syncing. The album I’m going to release in December has been the thorn in my side for far too long.
Yes. Chameleon which was released in February 2026.
Made all the difference. No money, no honey. Like most artists, we all look for that boost, because it’s so hard especially nowadays to cut through. There are too many artists, too many options, not enough attention span. I’m able to work with various people that are just as hungry to create, the money helps make that transaction smoother. It gives credibility, and weight. Goodwill is sparse.
My Linktree contains all the links.
I worked with Lemontime Studios. Promise Akindeju and Zoe Roche are the founders and directed the music video. Arneth Murania shot the video with the help of Joaquin Delacey and Anna Brajkovich. Jacqueline Jimenez choreographed the dances, and Ajay Mistry edited the video. The dancers were Judie Zhang, Jaelyn Lelaulu, Dana Lee and Jacqueline.
I thought of the concept a while ago, but I shied away from the idea because I thought I wouldn’t be able to pull it off. Promise managed to convince me that I could, and I really wanted to capture Tamaki and for people to watch the video and say, “Oh my gosh I was just there.”
We shot most of the video in one day. It was so physically demanding moving from location to location, and dancing in my high heeled boots, that my legs literally gave out from countless times running up stairs. It was concerning but very funny. The team did so well considering we only started organising a few weeks before shoot. Getting the permits to shoot in public locations proved to be quite a learning experience.
Made with the support of NZ On Air
