This past weekend the five shortlisted songs for the 2020 Silver Scroll Award were announced. Here, exclusively for The Spinoff, the finalists discuss each other’s nominated songs. Benee on ‘Get the Devil Out’ by Nadia Reid This is a beautiful, poignant and moving song. I love its wistfulness and the depth of feeling her voice … Read more
Under Cover is a new series that brings musicians together via video link to bond, chat and play each other’s songs. The fifth episode features Troy Kingi and Warren Maxwell. Troy Kingi and Warren Maxwell have shared stages and many musical memories together. Kingi still cites opening for Maxwell’s band Trinity Roots at the Leigh … Read more
The 2020 longlist for the APRA Silver Scroll Awards – New Zealand’s premiere songwriting awards – have just been announced. Here’s the full list of the 20 finalists, with the songs themselves to listen to. This morning saw the announcement of the longlist for the APRA Silver Scroll, New Zealand’s most prestigious music award recognising … Read more
The winner of the Taite Music Prize for 2020 is Troy Kingi, for his reggae album Holy Colony Burning Acres. Troy Kingi and the Upperclass have won the Taite Music Prize, an award for artistic and creative excellence in New Zealand music. Holy Colony Burning Acres is the third instalment of Kingi’s 10-year plan: 10 … Read more
13 moments that prove the music awards are so much > than all other award shows BENEE cleaned up, every performance was somewhere between an eight and a ten, there was an unfeasible quantity of award presenter awkwardness and many nights ended very late. The music awards are over 50 and still absolutely rule. Here’s … Read more
The K Road festival, which turned five on Friday, has reached mainstream-level popularity without compromising its local acts focus. While the old-timers encamped in The Studio to sing the Flying Nun classics, Josie Adams went exploring. Not even the most determined and fleet-footed fan could hope to make every one of the 46 acts across … Read more
Last week, APRA announced the five finalists for the 2017 Silver Scroll Award. Today, exclusively for The Spinoff, the five artists discuss each other’s nominated songs. Ruban Nielson of Unknown Mortal Orchestra on ‘Laugh It Off’ by Chelsea Jade My friend put me on to this song when it first came out and I love … Read more
A series of Māori Futurist events take place this weekend (July 6-8) at Ellen Melville Centre in Auckland’s CDB. Self-identified ‘Space Māori’ Dan Taipua picks out some highlights from the schedule. In a few hundred years time the world will be washed into a new shape. Today’s islands will have disappeared from the the light … Read more
Kate Robertson talks to musical polymath Troy Kingi about his second album’s journey through space. Troy Kingi is two albums deep into a very ambitious mission. The musician and actor plans to release ten albums across ten genres in ten years. He kicked things off in 2016 with the 23-track Guitar Party at Uncles Bach, … Read more