BENEE launches record label, announces team and first signing

BENEE is proving to be one of the busiest artists in the world right now.

Amidst a sold-out national tour in New Zealand, all while preparing for the announcement of her debut album, the 20-year-old has somehow found the time to launch a record label.

The announcement of Olive comes alongside the reveal of first singing Muroki, a 19-year-old Raglan artist who is accompanying her on tour this month.

The Kenyan-New Zealander caught BENEE’s ear with his self-released debut ‘Better or Worse’ last year. Muroki’s new single ‘Light Me Up’ is out now via Olive.

“I was listening to the track every day at one point. I love his voice so muchhhh – it’s so smooth and soulful. Then I met him at 121 Festival in March,” the Supalonely singer said.

“Muroki’s such a sweet and genuine guy, just the sort of artist I’d like to work with,” she explains, “and already I’ve loved being able to connect Muroki with people.

“I playlist his song whenever I can and played it to Elton John when I met him on his radio show.

“It’s great to bring him out on tour in front of my supporters, cos I know they’re gonna love this guy, his band and his music.”

Behind the scenes on Olive, BENEE is building a tight-knit team with a fresh approach to music.

Joining BENEE are label manager Trieste Douglas, formerly A&R for Universal NZ, and Poppy Tohill, from BENEE’s management team at CRS.

“The Olive team is already packed with some hard-working, badass women and I feel this is an important time for us in the music business to come together and make some really cool shit happen,” she said.