Episode 15: CHAII

If you’re not across Iranian-born, New Zealand-raised artists, you’re not only doing yourself a disservice, but you’re missing out on the magnificent CHAII.  Ever since the Persian musician moved to Auckland at eight years old, she’s been a firm fan of hip-hop, and as her creativity flourished, so too did she become involved within the world of music, crafting her own unique blend of beats, lyrics, and aesthetics. Alongside the classic tenets of hip-hop, you can find CHAII dropping in flavours of her own cultural identity, whether it be by way of the Persian time signature, samples, and other elements not usually heard within western music. Together, they combine to create an artist who is as unique as she is arresting, and as energetic as she is brilliant. Since she dropped her first single under the CHAII name back in 2019, she’s been rising through the ranks ever-so quickly. She’s released her Lightswitch and Pineapple Pizza EPs, and exceptional singles like ‘WOW (Look At Me)’, ‘Oh Nah Yeah’, and ‘Fun’, including a collaboration with Tones And I and Young Franco that came out last week called ‘(Can’t Get You) Off My Mind’. What I’m trying to say here, is that if you’re not listening to CHAII just yet, well, that’s something you need to be changing very soon. Thankfully, you’ve got a perfect opportunity, with CHAII getting ready to release her debut album next month. This week, I was lucky enough to be joined by CHAII for a lovely chat where we discussed her musical history, her sound, and her rising global fame.