Aotearoa’s indie star Rita Mae releases her addictive, final single ‘No God’, ahead of her forthcoming EP KISS THE SKY out November 15. G ritty, raw and to-the-point, ‘No God’ is no exception to her unique style of indie-alt rock ‘n pop she has been honing in on with previous singles ‘ Poster Child ’, ‘ Big Star ’, ‘ My Bad ’ and ‘ Kiss The Sky ’. Musically mirroring the lyricism of delving into big feelings, Rita says “‘No God’ is about the fear of feeling too deeply, a fear of jumping completely in.” She expands: “What if I fall too hard and never recover? Sometimes love can be so intense that you really think it could kill you.” Written by Rita Mae, Joel Jones, Harry Charles, who also produced the track, ‘No God’ captures a sense of being simultaneously cynical and hopelessly romantic, capturing the inescapable feeling of “drowning in love.” ‘No God’ is the final single to be released from Rita’s upcoming EP KISS THE SKY, out November 15. Her track record of success with the EP’s previous singles is undeniable, with ‘Kiss The Sky’ reaching #14 on the Hot 20 NZ Singles Chart, and ‘My Bad’ spending 5 consecutive weeks upon RadioScope’s Alt Chart. Her tracks have been shared by Rolling Stone AU/NZ, Sniffers, NZ Herald, Hype Medium, and more. Rita Mae has been making waves in Aotearoa’s alt-indie scene since she started releasing songs like the stirring ‘ The Secret's Out ’ in 2021 and then the effortlessly cool ‘ Candy’s House’ in 2021. In 2023 she unveiled her EP SUPERFEELING DELUXE , which featured ‘ Candy's House (Comedown Song)’ . The single was featured on the likes of Rolling Stone AU/NZ, Sniffers, Coup de Main, ZM and The Edge. In 2023, Rolling Stone AU/NZ magazine tipped her as “one of eight Kiwis artists tipped to take over” , saying “Music is in her DNA, and Rita Mae’s future as an artist in her own right looks very bright indeed…” Rita Mae’s new EP KISS THE SKY is out November 15.

Young Māori songwriter, producer and engineer Aubrie Mitchell makes a splash, with the release of her debut single ‘Secret’. ‘Secret’ is an uplifting slice of indie-electro-pop, which comes with a poignant message and introduces the world to one of Aotearoa’s newest rising stars. ‘It’s about admitting to myself that in order to reach my goals in life, I have to take risks and be open to failure,” says Auckland-based Aubrie (Ngāti Raukawa). The 22-year-old triple threat has been making waves in Auckland’s tightknit music community for some time. For the past 18 months, she’s been working as a producer and engineer at BIG FAN – the not-for-profit multi-purpose music space, which is the brainchild of Grammy Award-winning songwriter/producer Joel Little. However, today’s release sees Aubrie step into the light as an artist in her own right – a significant move, which is cleverly reflected in ‘Secret’. “I’m the type of person that’s apprehensive to try new things, and being an artist is one of them. It opens up so many opportunities to fail and that terrifies me. So this song is like an open diary entry into navigating my way through my insecurities in my musical abilities and my overall conclusion to just suck it up, get over myself, and try anyway,” says Aubrie. The self-produced ‘Secret’ was recorded at Aubrie’s home studio, mixed by Jeremie Inhaber (Lizzo, Post Malone) and mastered by Chris Gehringer(Rosalia, Rihanna) at Sterling Sound. Aubrie adds that the way in which ‘Secret’ came together, pushed her out of her comfort zone and helped her to create a track she otherwise wouldn’t have written. “I always produce and write as I go, but this was the first time that I actually wrote out the lyrics on paper before recording or producing anything. It felt super unnatural to write my feelings down before getting the initial vibe from a synth or drum beat, but it opened me up to somewhere I wouldn’t have gone.” It makes for an impressive artist debut from the multi-talented Aubrie, who has already proved her songwriting and production chops by collaborating with the likes of alayna, Troy Kingi, TEEKS, Chaii and Louis Baker. “I want my music to be uncompromised by any external pressures of fitting in because that’s how I feel artists can be truly authentic with their audience and their craft. Even if it doesn’t appeal to the masses. It’s a weird juxtaposition to be releasing a song about being scared to release a song, but it felt like a good introduction to how I am as an artist, songwriter, producer, and person.” Before working at BIG FAN, Aubrie completed a music degree, majoring in classical theory and music production at Auckland University. As a 12-year-old, Aubrie’s first major musical eureka moment was hearing the sleek, minimalist art-pop sound of ‘Royals’ by Lorde. Three years later, as a high-schooler, she had the opportunity to participate in a series of lunchtime Music Production Masterclasses before taking part in the New Zealand youth development programme IGNITE’s Music Production stream, where she had the opportunity to create a song with Benee producer Josh Fountain. Equally comfortable helping coax a deeper lyrical sentiment out of a collaborator, refining raw melody and harmony ideas, generating musical moods, or revelling in the textural elements of production, Aubrie is ready to step onto the international stage.

Lucian Rice has released his debut EP right now, forever - a sonic diary of the memories and daydreams that have rattled around in the rising artist’s head as he battles to ground himself in the now and cherish the day. “You can look back with rose-tinted lenses or look forward with hope, but you should appreciate what is in front of you right here,” says the New Zealand songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer. right now, forever is informed by the melodic sensibilities of 1960s top 40 song writing, the grit of 1990s college, and the brightly-rendered joy of 2010s pop; all coming together to create a seamless body of work that feels both brand new and nostalgic. And laden with meaning. “Each of these songs was a life lesson,” Lucian says. “They all represent how I felt about something at a certain moment. In a sense, it’s all the same theme, but there was time between when I wrote them, so my feelings changed.” right now, forever opens with the slow-building guitar pop of ‘brand new day’ and a Midwest emo-slanted singalong on ‘can’t you see’, as ‘FFS’ (the latest single) explodes into ‘Ninezero’, which was released as a single and received radio play on Hauraki, bFM, RDU, Radio One, The Most FM and Radio Control. From there, Lucian closes things out with the driving, fuzzy guitar figures throughout ‘Right Now, Forever’ and the breakbeat dream-pop of ‘spineback’ as he grapples with the paradox of the present moment being both fleeting and eternal. The EP was recorded over the last few years with long-standing collaborator Tom Verberne. Garrett Winston contributed to the writing, with Hugo Chan and Lucy Blomkamp adding production before the EP was sent to be mixed in London by Jonathan Gilmore (Nothing But Thieves, The 1975, Carly Rae Jepsen). Having spent time split between New Zealand, New York and Los Angeles, Lucianhas collaborated with a diverse range of artists, further expanding his creative horizons. Working alongside talents such as Nick Ward, carwash, and Molly Payton, Lucian demonstrates his versatility and prowess as an artist, producer, and songwriter. Lucian Rice is an ascending artist to keep a close eye on; he's just getting started.

GRAMMY-nominated NZ-born, LA-based singer and producer BAYNK has released his sophomore album, SENESCENCE, via Virgin Music Group. In the lead-up to the LP’s release, BAYNK (real name Jock Nowell-Usticke) shared videos for ‘ Grin ,’ ‘ Feel ,’ and ‘ Fool For You ,’ with a slew of visualisers for additional singles ‘Inches,’ ‘Blood,’ and ‘Mr. Jocko’ (all viewable HERE ). A spiritual successor to BAYNK’s GRAMMY-nominated debut album ADOLESCENCE (2022), SENESCENCE extends Jock’s talents to new territories and heights while looking to the future. Across 10 songs, SENESCENCE announces itself as a daring, dynamic fusion of pop, deep house, contemporary club, funk, and ambient. The future means many things to BAYNK — a newfound lyrical focus and depth, adapting to life changes ranging from personal loss to hearing loss, and living up to inspirations like Toro y Moi and Caribou. “It took a long time for my output to catch up with my taste,” Jock shares. “For a long time I felt like I was listening to as much music as possible and learning about how it was made and its history.” His name attracted new collaborators like Keone & Mari Madrid (Billie Eilish, Justin Bieber, Omar Apollo), who choreographed and directed ‘Grin.’ Their presence, along with longtime collaborator Spencer Graves (FKA Twigs, Kendrick Lamar, Harry Styles) highlights the emphasis on visual elements on the album, where each single arrived with a captivating visualizer if not a full-fledged video. One of the key evolutions for BAYNK is his improved songwriting. “This album’s a lot more focused on lyricism and stories as opposed to just being dance tracks,” he says. “The songs still have the DNA of dance music, but the album is mostly concerned with love, friendship, and death.”

Aotearoa’s ascending R&B/soul artist Reiki Ruawai has released his impeccable and greatly anticipated EP, THE MESSAGE. Lush blends of RnB, hip hop, soul and indie-pop are woven together, creating a laid-back aura emblematic of his West Coast Raglan roots. THE MESSAGE puts on full display Reiki’s undeniable songwriting talent, showcasing him as one of Aotearoa’s most exciting new talents. “THE MESSAGE brings a blend of my most recent style, as well as a discovery of new talents,” says Reiki. “It explores the soothing melodies I’m used to doing, but then also ventures into new genres like pop. On the other end is the sing-rap style I've been testing - which has always been a goal of mine to do, but I’ve just never had the opportunity.” “THE MESSAGE is a voice memo of a year of experiences compiled into different styles that tell different stories.” Featuring an array of exceptional creatives, the EP features the talents of Grammy Award-nominated artist Jordan Rakei and award-winning Aotearoa producer Joel Jones (Balu Brigada, Alayna). The EP’s lead single, ‘Love No Other’, was co-written with hit-songwriter and fellow kiwi artist Muroki, in a process that was “really special”. “I wrote ‘Love No Other’ alongside one of my best friends Muroki Pearsall, and Jacob Brown,” says Reiki. “It took me back to when we first started jamming and writing together, back in the old days.” Reiki’s career began with Masaya - a collaborative effort between the artist, his sister Kaea Ruawai, and celebrated Aotearoa talent Muroki. With their unique blend of indie-rock, groove, soul and roots, the group’s loyal fanbase quickly grew from their beachy hometown of Raglan, across the Tasman, joining both Katchafire and L.A.B on Australian tours in 2020 and 2023. As the artist ventured into a solo career, his early releases caught like wildfire, withsophomore single ‘ Express ’ racking up over 5 million streams on Spotify. Reikihas just returned from a trip across the Tasman, showcasing at this year’s Big Sound in Brisbane alongside some of Australasia’s brightest new stars. Exploring a wide breadth of genre and lyrical themes, THE MESSAGE is yet another testament to the layers of Reiki’s talent as a facilitator of sound and feeling - a reflection on where the artist has come from, and an exciting vision of where his music will take him.