An in-depth chat with Suzanne Vega. We talk through her music career over a cappuccino at Wellington's Hotel Intercontinental just moments before she was to board a flight to Japan for more shows. I saw Vega in Sydney on her tour and then again in Wellington. As a lifelong fan it was the ultimate thrill to not only meet her but to have her sit down and answer questions, have a conversation...and here it is.

An in-depth chat with Chris Familton - a Kiwi based in Sydney, Australia for 20 years now. He's a music writer, behind the successful blogs Post to Wire and Doubtful Sounds, he's a DJ, a musician - now in the band Charlie Horse, back in New Zealand and back in the early/mid-90s he was a member of Thorazine Shuffle. He's also a stay-at-home dad. We talk about all of this and general passion for music.

An in-depth chat with Wellington-based guitarist, guitar luthier, conservationist, former City Councillor and newly instated board chair for Wellington Orchestra. We talk art and culture, oh and that time Ray Ahipene-Mercer saw The Beatles in Wellington as a teenager. Oh, also that time he was asked to be a guitar tech for Led Zeppelin. Ray Mercer has a kind heart, a deep soul and a huge bag of stories. We unpacked a lot of that during this wonderful conversation.

An in-depth chat with Wellington writer Helen Heath. We talk about her poetry volumes 'Shaft' and the brand new 'Are Friend Electric'. We talk about her Masters in Creative Writing and PhD completed at Victoria University's IIML, her life in Wellington and life online; we talk about the "horrors" of the internet, the impacts of being connected to and through devices. And we talk good old concept albums of course...

An in-depth chat with Wellington-based, English-born guitarist, singer and poet Russell Self. Russell has lived in New Zealand for a quarter of a century before that his home was in various places in England and France - he's been a busker, had many jobs, has released an album of poems and music, has performed around the world and continues to think up and recite poems as well as learn the songs of others. We talked about all of this and some favourite writers and musicians too.

An in-depth chat with writer and musician Bill Direen. We talk about his upbringing, his early interest in music and his movement between writing for the page and the stage; travel, scholarship, commitment and craft. We talk about motivations and aims - and then the actual work. So much of it. There's no end-point, there's no chance he'll stop creating until he has to.

An in-depth chat with Christchurch based singer/actor/producer Ali Harper. We talk about her current show, "Songs For Nobodies" which is set to debut its month-long circa season right at the time of this recording. She's touring it around the country and then taking it to America. Ali has a quarter-century's experience acting and singing, including working as a vocalist on Dancing With The Stars, appearing in lead and chorus roles in touring musicals and running her own production company. We talk about her life dedicated to theatre and singing and she previews the current show.

An in-depth chat with Wellington writer Pip Adam, winner of the Acorn Foundation Prize at the 2018 Ockham Book Awards. Writer of two novels (The New Animals, I'm Working On A Building) and a collection of short stories (Everything We Hoped For). Pip is also a podcaster (Better off Read) and creative writing teacher. We talk books, obviously. But also her upbringing and experiences, we talk shared love of movies, TV, music. podcasts - and Pip reflects on the recent prize win and on the criticism her writing has faced.

An in-depth chat with Barry Saunders, songwriter, lead singer of The Warratahs and solo artist too. Barry's a poet, and musician - he's written songs about the New Zealand landscape and mindset that are now seemingly a part of both. We talk through some of his solo records, The stop-start nature of The Warratahs, his early experiences as a rock'n'roller and adventurer and his latest project, a collaboration with Delaney Davidson.

An in-depth chat with Sam Cutler, author of the book "You Can't Always Get What You Want", former Tour Manager for The Rolling Stones (1969) and The Grateful Dead (early 1970s). We talk about Altamont and Europe '72, the aftermath of dealing with The Stones, life on the road, so many colourful stories...Sam lives in Australia now and has several books on the go, both fiction and non-fiction...https://samcutlersbooks.com/