A 95bFM Special Announcement! Reb Fountain is playing at the Hollywood Avondale on 9th November to celebrate the release of her new single Come Down. Listen back to Jonny and Reb yarn about the new single and some of the exciting things in store for Reb fans. 

Featuring the announcement of Reb Fountain's tour celebrating her new single Come Down, plus an interview with Reb herself, Ready Steady Learn thanks to Waipapa Taumata Rau/The University of Auckland, and a special announcement ~ Joan As Policewoman is returning to Aotearoa in May 2025!

PhD candidate Isurie Akarawita gives us the info on her doctoral thesis on Smart Chewing Robots ~ and how robots can help circumvent the emotional bias present in human studies on how we enjoy our kai. 

Thanks to The University of Auckland!

Oto talked to Tāmaki Makaurau singer-songwriter of Bangladeshi origin, Sabreen, just after the release of her most recent single: Countryman. 

Countryman is a song that takes listeners on a narrative journey through the life of Joe Kum Yung, a retired miner of Chinese origin who came to Aotearoa in the early 20th century, who was murdered by a white supremacist.

Oto talked to Sabreen about the process she went through in writing the song, as well as why Joe Kum Yung's story resonated with her.

This episode of WALAO! was dedicated to desi singer songwriters and the South-Asian independent music scene as Oto interviewed Tāmaki Makaurau artist, Sabreen, of Bangladeshi origin to discuss her musical journey and her latest single: Countryman. 

Hosted by PHILLIEE, featuring an extended Sound of Sydney, celebrating our man Carlos Avilés turning 50.

~ Universal Harmony ~

Oozing a grateful ora, massaging the creative mind.

A guest mix by Darion Squire featuring lo-fi trap and selected rarities - plus the new Floating Points and Yaeji.

The government has outlined its upcoming changes to the law to clarify whether a worker is an employee or a contractor. The changes would restrict contractors from challenging their status in the employment court. 

Uber appealed the decision, but were dismissed. Now the government wants to adjust the law to prevent this from occurring again. 

For their weekly catch up Producer Evie spoke to the ACT Party’s Simon Court about this change, and the concerns that have arisen around it. 

They also talked about the gang patch legislation passing into law, including last minute additions to the bill and how it will be imposed.

Around mid-August this year, senior management at the University of Auckland made an announcement saying that they were looking to cut a number of small postgraduate and undergraduate courses in the Faculty of Arts with less than 60 and 30 students respectively. 

The University said that the cuts were being proposed to “optimise” course offerings and address classroom spacing issues. They also said that the cuts came about as a result of a routine review of courses regularly conducted by the University.

The announcement resulted in widespread outcry and condemnation by the University of Auckland’s senior academics and lecturers, saying that the University gave them a limited timeframe to review and contest the changes, and the decision to cut courses such as Huarahi Māori will have an impact on marginalised communities.

Oto spoke to Nicole Wallace, an organiser at the Tertiary Education Union who works with lecturers at the University of Auckland to discuss the course cut proposal and its implications for senior academics and lecturers.

Last week was Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori, New Zealand’s annual celebration of Te Reo Māori. 

This is the 49th year that Te Wiki o Te Reo Maori has been celebrated in Aotearoa, three years after the Maori language petition was delivered to Parliament in 1972.

For their weekly catch up with Te Pāti Māori’s Mariameno Kapa-Kingi, Oto spoke to her about the important of Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori in platforming reo Māori.

He also spoke to her about gang patch legislation passing into law, and what the party’s thoughts are on this.

Finally, we discussed with her New Zealand supporting the UNGA resolution, calling for Israel to end its illegal occupation of Palestinian territory within 12 months.