AoteaFM Presents - Sola Rosa

2019 Marks 10 years of our little station being on air. Never ones to shy away from a party, we have something very special happening over Easter weekend. A celebration of how we came to be and how we've grown over the decade. We'll have a photo exhibition, a panel discussion from some of our founding personalities discussing the trials and tribulations of setting up our station. Then we'll finish off the night with a live performance from Sola Rosa, one of NZ's premier live music acts playing outdoors at Claris Club with his 'sound system' show. We hope to see you all there.

Sola Rosa is one of Kiwi music’s most evolutionary and enduring acts.

With seven full-length albums, four EPs, a handful of hits, countless collaborations and numerous world tours, it’s been a near 20-year labour of love for the man behind the music, Andrew Spraggon.

And although it’s punctuated with twists and turns in the form of constant change and innovation, one thing has remained the same – Spraggon’s steadfast commitment to making great albums that seamlessly blend a myriad of genres, from hip-hop and jazz, to neo-soul, latin and funk.

The Auckland-based songwriter, producer and musician is constantly working on songcraft and despite his uncanny knack of finding the perfect vocal accompaniment – think Iva Lamkum on Turn Around, L.A Mitchell on Spinning Top and the aforementioned Kevin Mark Trail – he’s always searching for new artists to work with.

“I’m always looking to collaborate with others who are also artistically looking for challenges. And, Andy Morton – who is mixing the new material and has worked with Fat Freddys Drop, Nathan Haines, Dimmer and renowned Kiwi producer Mark de Clive Lowe – is really great when it comes to taking my production and making it sound so much more expansive. He’ll say what he does and doesn’t like and although, initially, I may be very protective of the tracks, once I sit on them for a while, I always tend to prefer his mix to mine.”

As a sought-out act on the European festival circuit, Sola Rosa is always striving to push the envelope with its sonic vibe. That said, Spraggon hasn’t caved to pressure to conform to musical trends and continues to make music that he himself loves to listen to.

And although he recognises we’re now living in the digital age of the single, he’ll keep making albums for as long as he’s making music. “I look at albums as a body of work, something tangible that represents a period in an artist’s life. An album is extremely more difficult to make than a single and that alone makes you work harder to ensure each track matters.”

It’s a resolve that’s reflected in the self-assured vibe that runs through Sola Rosa’s new tracks, as it is also proof that Spraggon truly is one of Kiwi music’s great battlers and he’s in it for the long haul.