Q&A: Reiki Ruawai
At aged 10 he was performing with Cornerstone Roots on their Europe tour, and now Raglan-based Reiki Ruawai is the lead singer of the band Masaya and has just dropped two new solo tracks “Miller” and “Express”!
He talks to us about the stories behind his new music, why Bob Marley & Fat Freddy’s are his biggest influences, and more.
We’d love to know a little bit about your musical journey so far from when you first started singing and performing!
It started actually yoooonks ago haha. I picked up the guitar at a young age (around 6-7 yrs old) then was introduced to performing live with my parent’s band Cornerstone Roots at age 10 when they were going over to Europe for an 8 week tour. So thrown in the deep end at a young age haha. I only just recently over the past 2 years have been creating and writing my own songs.
Your laid-back debut single “Miller” is an amazing summer surf anthem making you want to kick back and relax, with smooth, powerful vocals mixed in with so much filthy kick and bass. What inspired the concept of this song, and what was your main highlight working on this track?
It was a “classic” lockdown project - initially I wrote it on the guitar on a really shocking day, just literally talking to my girlfriend on how sick the summer was that had just gone. It’s about pretty much missing the summer sun and good times but longing for summer to come back around again.
My main highlight would’ve been when I introduced the song to my dad, we had a think about it and came to the decision that we flip the whole thing and change it to a more “bass heavy” track. Also when my dad did a solo on the guitar at the end, then looked at me and said “let’s reverse it” and that was pretty sick!
You’ve also recently released another self-produced song “Express”, which is about you being open to express your own thoughts and feelings, and wanting others to feel comfortable to do the same. Can you tell us a bit more about what this song means to you?
Express is a strong song to me, because I think that everyone needs to look out for their friends who are going through tough times. Here in NZ our suicidal rate is really bad and that can be changed just the slightest if you give your time and energy to your mates or let alone anyone. I wrote this song when one of my closest friends wasn’t feeling the best and I was glad that I was there to pull him back around just by spending 10 minutes sitting and listening to what my bro had to say. The littlest things CAN make the biggest differences.
Being the lead singer for “Masaya”, which can only be described as an incredible, groovy indie/roots/funk/soul band, what would you say are the main differences between your own solo music and your band’s music?
Uuuuuum I definitely try to keep these two as different as they can, but what I think that really distinguishes the two is definitely the “band sound”. When I’m writing a song for Masaya I always think “shitchea this will sound sick live” haha. I’m not saying my solo stuff wont sound good live, it’s just that’s the first kinda thoughts I have when writing a Masaya song.
We’re looking forward to hearing more of your music! What can you tell us about your upcoming album?
I don’t wanna give out anything just yet but I will say that I’m cooking up some new sounds ;)
Who are your biggest inspirations in music, and biggest influences on your sound?
I’d say that Bob Marley would be a huge influence to me because the man is a LEGEND! But not only that, it’s the way Bob writes and how he performs. He puts at least 110% into any kind of music/art he does whether performing or writing a song. Fat Freddy’s Drop and any kind of kiwi reggae from 2002-2010 would definitely be an influence in my music because thats literally what I grew up on.
If there’s anything you could change about the current music industry, what would it be and why?
I wish that the music industry could work on more artists who actually make BEAUTIFUL MUSIC. A lot of music that is “popular” at the moment is really easy to make, and if they spent more time getting artists who are musically talented then the music industry would be insane.
Who are some of your favourite NZ artists right now and are there any songs in particular that you love or connect with?
Probably Freddy’s “OneFourteen” because its a different sound of Freddy’s, but still drives the hell out of the bass and kick which really gets me pumped up to go for a skate or somethin haha.
What do you love most about living in New Zealand? Do you have any favourite places to travel to or local spots to visit?
Raglan by far my favourite place. Why? Cause it’s sick! The waves are sick! The skate scene here is sick! And we have one of the funnest venues in NZ!
What are some of the biggest lessons you’ve learnt in your career so far?
That having a plan and spending time on not only your music but a lot of planning when it comes to releasing music or booking gigs. There is a lot you have to do and planning definitely takes a HUGE load off.
Lastly, if you could say one thing to every person in the world, what would it be?
CONTRIBUTE TO SAVE THE ENVIRONMENT. TAKE TIME OFF YOUR PHONE. LIVE YA LIFE TO THE FULLEST!
Some wise words! Make sure to keep up with Reiki on Instagram (@reiki.ruawai), Facebook, Spotify & Apple Music.
