Meet Muroki, a Soulful Singer With a Big Year Ahead
When you catch the eye of the legendary Elton John and legend in the making BENEE, it's hard to not be watched. This is exactly the case for Muroki, with just 3 tracks to his name the young singer-songwriter has rocketed through the New Zealand indie scene.
Coming from the small East Coast town of Raglan, Muroki spends his days surfing and skating. Much like the town, Muroki's a laid-back guy who's adjusting to his newfound fame in stride. Whether it’s the small shows or the big shows, it's all the same to him, he's in his element. Songwriting comes naturally to Muroki, who describes his sound as a blend of jazz, funk and soul. Taking influences from the likes of D'Angelo, Frank Ocean, GoldLink and Kaytranada, Muroki's music has a soothing effect on listeners. Perfect for those late summer evenings, golden hour lighting shining down, Muroki is the soundtrack for those times.
While he's been writing songs forever, he was left inspired after meeting BENEE at 121 Festival in Wellington. As the two swapped tracks back and forth during New Zealand's first lockdown, Muroki became part of a bigger plan. Months later he would be joining BENEE on her sold out arena tour across the country and was the first signing of BENEE's record label, Olive Records. Muroki even got a nod from the living legend Elton John when BENEE played his track 'For Better or Worse' on John's Apple Music radio show.
Despite releasing just one track ('Light Me Up') and one feature (on BENEE's 'All the Time') in 2020, Muroki's been turning heads nationwide as he played multiple festivals over New Zealand's summer. Although he's taken the stage many times with various bands over his musical career, he's always been off to the side, never fronting his own performance. Now he's taking center stage and promises to bring the same level of energy to his shows, be they big venues or small.
It's seemingly all green lights in 2020 for Muroki, going from planting trees for studio equipment to playing sold out shows across the country. However, Muroki still finds the time to skate and surf in his hometown, taking inspiration from his surroundings. Now as 2021 is in full swing, Muroki has been writing more than ever and promises a lot of new music before the year is over.
