New Zealand may have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to join Eurovision – so who would give us the best shot of a win? Eurovision enthusiast Robyn Gallagher has some thoughts. The Eurovision Song Contest – the annual music extravaganza that combines songs, performance, fireworks and always some weird stuff – usually only pops onto the radar … Read more
An Azerbaijani goth, a breakdancing Italian gorilla and a charming Australian teenager walk into a bar… Eurovision aficionado Robyn Gallagher picks her favourite entries ahead of Sunday morning’s Grand Final. This week the semi-finals of the Eurovision have been taking place in Kyiv, Ukraine. And this Sunday morning (New Zealand time), 26 acts will compete … Read more
What’s the deal with the lack of local music in the Top 40 this year? Robyn Gallagher looks at the handful of songs to make the grade in 2016 and asks – has the general public simply given up on New Zealand music? A strange thing has happened in the New Zealand top 40 chart … Read more
The year is 2001 and the music business is under existential threat from the latest teen craze: CD bootlegging. Its response involved draconian fines, an embarrassing txt-speak slogan and Dave Dobbyn made up to look like a burns victim. Robyn Gallagher explains. Cast your mind back 15 years ago, before the age of streaming and … Read more
The New Zealand Olympic team uniforms were unveiled earlier this week, and the sight of them sent Robyn Gallagher into a long spiral of sadness. She explains her profoundly negative reaction. Every four years the New Zealand Olympic team unveils their uniform, usually a combination of black and fern motifs, and you look at it … Read more
‘Good Night to Good Morning’ is a three part series farewelling the iconic TVNZ variety show. In part two, former employee Robyn Gallagher recalls how Good Morning once enthralled a nation. For three years in the late 2000s, I worked on Good Morning. It was easily one of the most enjoyable – but dramatic – … Read more
For this Music Monday, Robyn Gallagher samples the various global tunes on offer in this year’s Eurovision competition. The Eurovision Song Competition is massive. It’s like a cross between an Olympic Games opening ceremony, the Super Bowl halftime show and an American Idol final – all in aid of determining the best new song Europe … Read more
After a sorry week on X Factor, Robyn Gallagher heads way north to televised music comp perfection. // The Eurovision Song Contest is easily the greatest television musical extravaganza, but a couple of months earlier there’s another show that’s almost as good. It’s Melodifestivalen, the Swedish national competition to select their Eurovision entry – and … Read more
It’s due to hit our screens in early 2015, but already the search is under way to discover the next Benny Tipene or… whoever it was that won the first series of X Factor. Robyn Gallagher updates us with happenings land of the X. // Pre-auditions The pre-audition tour has just ended, which no doubt involved … Read more