Brooke Gabrielle Ligertwood better known by her stage name Brooke Fraser, is a New Zealand singer and songwriter best known for her hit single "Something in the Water", released in 2010. Fraser released two studio albums What to Do with Daylight (2003) and Albertine (2006) through Columbia Records before signing a recording contract with Wood + Bone. Her third studio album, Flags was released in 2010 and it is her most successful album to date. Her most recent album, Brutal Romantic, was released in November 2014 through Vagrant Records. She is one of the top selling and most popular New Zealand recording artists of all time: her albums were certified 15× Platinum.
Barbadian singer Rihanna has released eight studio albums, two compilation albums, two remix albums, one reissue, and 71 singles. Since the beginning of her career in 2005, Rihanna has sold over 280 million records and singles, making her one of the best-selling artists of all time. She has released seven Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) certified platinum and multi-platinum albums in the United States, that have totalled sales of over 10 million copies in the country. Fourteen of Rihanna's singles have reached number one on the US Billboard Hot 100, giving her the fourth most number-one singles on the chart. She is the only artist that produced number-one singles on the Hot 100 chart from seven consecutive albums.
The Phoenix Foundation is an indie rock band formed in Wellington, New Zealand.
American singer and songwriter Pink has released seven studio albums, three live albums, five compilation albums, 36 singles, and 33 music videos. In 2000, she released her debut studio album, Can't Take Me Home. It has sold four million units worldwide and yielded three singles, "There You Go", "Most Girls", and "You Make Me Sick". A year later, Pink recorded the Moulin Rouge! version of "Lady Marmalade" with Christina Aguilera, Mýa, and Lil' Kim. Later that year, Pink released her second studio album, Missundaztood, which has sold 15 million copies worldwide. The record was promoted by four singles, "Get the Party Started", "Don't Let Me Get Me", "Just Like a Pill", and "Family Portrait", all of which attended commercial success.
Baroness is an American heavy metal band from Savannah, Georgia whose original members grew up together in Lexington, Virginia.
American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift has released six studio albums, two extended plays (EP), four live albums, four video albums, fifty singles, seventeen promotional singles, and forty-four music videos. Her career began with a record deal with Big Machine Records in 2005 and the release of her eponymous debut album the following year. In the United States, Taylor Swift peaked at number five on the Billboard 200 albums chart and marked the longest stay on the chart by any release in the country in the 2000s decade. All of its singles—"Tim McGraw", "Teardrops on My Guitar", "Our Song", "Picture to Burn", and "Should've Said No"—charted within the top 40 in the United States and were certified platinum by the RIAA. Swift followed with the release of the EPs Sounds of the Season: The Taylor Swift Holiday Collection and Beautiful Eyes, which peaked at number 20 and number nine on the Billboard 200, respectively.
American pop rock band Maroon 5 has released six studio albums, three live albums, two compilation albums, one remix album, three extended plays (EPs), 27 singles, eight promotional singles, and 23 music videos. The group originally formed in 1994 as Kara's Flowers while they were still attending high school. With a line-up of Adam Levine, Jesse Carmichael, Mickey Madden and Ryan Dusick, they released their independent album, We Like Digging? in 1995. In 1997, they signed to Reprise Records and released an album, The Fourth World. After a tepid response to the album, the band parted with their record label and attended college. In 2001, the band regrouped and added James Valentine to the lineup, and pursued a new direction under the name Maroon 5.
Ella Marija Lani Yelich-O'Connor, known professionally as Lorde, is a New Zealand singer, songwriter and record producer. Taking inspiration from aristocracy for her stage name, she is known for employing unconventional musical styles and thoughtful songwriting. Born in the Auckland suburb of Takapuna and raised in neighbouring Devonport, Lorde expressed interest in performing at local venues in her early teens. She signed with Universal Music Group in 2009 and collaborated with producer Joel Little in 2011 to start recording material.
Virginia Claire Wigmore is a singer and songwriter from New Zealand. Featured on the Smashproof single "Brother" in 2009, Wigmore went on to release four albums Holy Smoke (2009), Gravel & Wine (2011), Blood to Bone (2015) and Ivory (2018), with the first three having been chart-toppers on the New Zealand Albums Chart. She is known for her high pitched and raspy voice.
English indie rock band Florence and the Machine have released four studio albums, two live albums, six extended plays, 24 singles, four promotional singles and 29 music videos.
New Zealand-Australian recording artist Stan Walker has released five studio albums, two compilation albums, one extended plays, twenty six singles—including three as a featured artist—and seventeen music videos. In 2009, Walker won the seventh season of Australian Idol, and signed a recording contract with Sony Music Australia. Walker's debut studio album Introducing Stan Walker, which contained selected songs he performed on Australian Idol, was released on 11 December 2009. The album debuted at number three on the Australian ARIA Albums Chart, and number two on the New Zealand Albums Chart. It was certified platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association, and triple platinum by the Recorded Music NZ. The album's lead single "Black Box" peaked at number two on the ARIA Singles Chart, and number one on the New Zealand Singles Chart, eventually being certified double platinum in both countries.
Unknown Mortal Orchestra is a Portland, Oregon-based New Zealand psychedelic rock band primarily composed of singer, guitarist, and songwriter Ruban Nielson, and bassist Jake Portrait. Nielson, formerly of The Mint Chicks, started the band in 2010. The band's first album was released in 2011 on Fat Possum Records; four subsequent studio albums have been released on Jagjaguwar, the most recent being IC-01 Hanoi (2018).
Broods is a music duo from Nelson, New Zealand, composed of Georgia Josiena Nott on lead vocals, with older brother and multi-instrumentalist Caleb Allan Joseph Nott on production and backing vocals. They released the single "Bridges", which went to No. 8 on the New Zealand single chart, and signed with Capitol and Polydor Records. They released their self-titled début EP, Broods, on 30 January 2014, which was followed by a full-length album, Evergreen, on 22 August 2014. The band has toured with Ellie Goulding, Haim, Sam Smith, and Taylor Swift. They have won ten New Zealand Music Awards. On 24 June 2016, Broods released their second album, Conscious. They released their third album Don't Feed the Pop Monster on 1 February 2019.
Jamie Lawson is an English singer-songwriter and musician. He was born and raised in St Budeaux, Plymouth, England. He was the first artist to be signed by Ed Sheeran's new record label, Gingerbread Man Records. Lawson is best known for his hit single, "Wasn't Expecting That", and his self-titled album which peaked at number one on the UK Albums Chart in 2015.
Guy James Robin, known professionally as Jonas Blue, is an English DJ, songwriter, record producer and remixer based in London who produces music which blends dance with pop music.
Over My Shoulder is Mel Parsons' debut album, released on 9 March 2009 on Cape Road Recordings. Parsons returned to New Zealand to start work on her debut album in 2007. The album was written by Parsons, and recorded with co-producer Shaun Elley and her backing band The Rhythm Kings, along with support from Don McGlashan, The Sami Sisters, Lisa Tomlins, and Neil Watson. Parsons created her own label, Cape Road Recordings, so she could release her album independently while using the New Zealand music firm Border Music for distribution. The album was nominated for the Tui NZ Music Award's Folk Album of the Year.
Drylands is Mel Parsons' third album, released on 10 April 2015 on Cape Road Recordings. The album was recorded in engineer Lee Prebble's Surgery Studios in Wellington, New Zealand. One of the songs Parsons wrote was a duet, and she decided to cold e-mail Ron Sexsmith to see if he would perform the other half of the song "Don't Wait", and he agreed. Along with Ron Sexsmith, the album showcases local and international guest musicians Anika Moa, Vyvienne Long, and Trevor Hutchinson. Another song on the album, "Get Out Alive", is the result of her writing about a dangerous car accident she was in where the car rolled four times and was totaled, but she walked out without serious injury, but found herself re-evaluating her life for a time.
Mark Perkins, performing as Merk, is a New Zealand singer-songwriter. In 2016 he attended the Red Bull Music Academy in Montreal. Merk won the Independent Music NZ's inaugural Auckland Live Best Independent Debut award in 2017.
