Dr Kirsten Zemke chats psychobilly tracks on Travelling Tunes. Thanks to Drake Street Studios!

Holly Arrowsmith chats about Neon Bright, the second single from her forthcoming album. Whakarongo mai nei!

Grave New World: Writing Dystopia Today is an Auckland Writers Festival event that is happening on Saturday 18th May. Among the speaker is author of Ockham NZ Book Awards longlisted Turncoat Tīhema Baker (Raukawa te Au ki te Tonga, Ātiawa ki Whakarongotai, Ngāti Toa Rangatira).

From the AWF website: With wars raging, censorship on the rise and all manner of accepted human rights under threat both close to home and across the globe, how do fiction writers approach the dystopian genre when the line between fictional dystopias and our lived reality seems increasingly blurred?

Beth caught up with Tīhema Baker about the panel and the dystopia genre. They also spoke about another event Tīhema is chairing, We Can Be on Other Planets: Māori Speculative Fiction.

Otherhood is a book of essays that explores the little talked about experience of being childless, childfree and child-adjacent in Aotearoa. It is composed of essays by contributors across Aotearoa about identity, the oppressiveness of heteronormative values and the experience of otherhood.

Co-edited by authors Lil O’Brien, Alie Benge, and Kathryn Van Beek, Otherhood began as a conversation on Twitter and was released in book form yesterday, May 9th, two years later.

I caught up with Alie about the book, the process of putting it all together and upcoming events surrounding Otherhood.

Beth had a chat with author Tīhema Baker (Raukawa te Au ki te Tonga, Ātiawa ki Whakarongotai, Ngāti Toa Rangatira) about Grave New World: Writing Dystopia Today, an Auckland Writers Festival event that Tīhema is co-hosting. They also spoke briefly about another event Tīhema is chairing, We Can Be on Other Planets: Māori Speculative Fiction.

Beth caught up with author and editor Alie Benge about Otherhood, a book of essays that explore the little talked about experience of being childless, childfree and child-adjacent in Aotearoa. 

Nicholas spoke to artist Bena Jackson about her exhibition Urban Legend, which opens May 12th.

He also spoke to the Director of Auckland City of Music, Mark Roach about the  ‘Auckland City of Music’ series. They also spoke about the events they have planned for New Zealand Music Month.

Julien Dyne from Half Hexagon is chatting about The Method, the new track with an accompanying video.

Viewmaster Litia reviews a new film out of Aotearoa, The Moon Is Upside Down. 

Max Harris gives us some Political Commentary about the nation. Lucinda Bennett chats banoffee pie on Breakfast Food. Geneva AM is in the studio to chat about her new single Pikipiki and the launch for the track this weekend. Natural Ange answers your holistic health queries. We recap your Top Ten. Whakarongo mai nei!

The 2024 Auckland Writers Festival is kicking off next week, offering 200 events exploring literature, arts and culture and bringing together creatives from both Aotearoa and across the globe. Producer Jasmine Gray spoke to Festival Co-Curator Michael Bennett about this year’s programme, discussing incorporation of Te Reo and Te Ao Māori, alongside the importance of intergenerational relationships in this creative space. 

To learn more about programme events, head to www.writersfestival.co.nz