Cokefridge.co.nz :: Brooke Fraser

Brooke Fraser is quickly becoming the sweetheart of New Zealand music.  With the looks to match her amazing sound and attitude she has cemented her place within our musical portfolio with her debut album, "What To Do With Daylight", which recently sold over 30,000 copies!!!

Brooke grew up with as the daughter of All Black great, Bernie Fraser, but unlike her father she did not veer towards the sporting field.  Instead she began playing classical piano at seven years old and when she was sixteen got her first taste of performing at Parachute festival.  Four years later and Brooke Fraser is now a successfully self taught guitarist, mature singer/songwriter and a double platinum selling artist.

Brooke admits that "(playing) live is what I love and (playing) live is why I do it", and she certainly has played some amazing live shows.  Not only has she played around New Zealand with bands such as Eight and Op Shop, she has also performed to a sellout crowd at Wellington's Westpac Stadium, opening for David Bowie's only New Zealand date.  She also toured Australasia recently with John Mayer.  Brooke's philosophy on playing live is that it's "where the rubber hits the road"; the crowd hears the real performance without all the bells and whistles that can be adding during a recording session.

Not only has she opened for one of the most reputable and experienced musicians in the world today, David Bowie also took the time out to introduce himself and give her positive feedback on her album.  It has also been said that whilst in Australia John Mayer was heard wandering around backstage humming one of Brooke's tunes.

Brooke Fraser is a New Zealander and like the rest of the country is aware of how much momentum our homegrown music is gaining.  Brooke is "stoked and privileged to be part of our musical scene at the same time as guys like Scribe, who is setting records all over the place, and other great kiwi acts".  Music is clearly Brooke's passion and although the financial gains are currently not extravagant in New Zealand she is playing and writing out of this passion, simply put, "we are all (New Zealand musicians) doing this cos we love music and love what we do".  Along with the fun working with her passion Brooke is aware of the responsibilities that come with being a public figure and is proud of our New Zealand music scene.  "I don't take it for granted and I think it will keep growing and pushing the boundaries - at the moment we are on the brink of doing some really big stuff but at the same time still very grounded."

This same passion keeps her grounded and when asked about her favourite shows she does not answer with the expected David Bowie opening slot but instead surprises me with: Parachute 2004.  Having grown up musically at a festival that now pulls in over 20,000 punters each year she feels extremely comfortable playing there to an audience that she refers to as "like a family".  Parachute also nurtures a lot of bands that Brooke holds in high regards both musically and personally, such as The Lads and Mums Dollar, and sees it as a great way for New Zealand Christian music to get heard.  "Parachute is so familiar to me and so much like home.  I almost felt like it was a home town celebration with 20,000 people singing the words.  It wasn't a brand new place, it has been such a big part of my life for the last few years and they are the audience that has been with me for a long time, long before I signed or anything."

So with a double platinum album in New Zealand, opening for David Bowie and touring with John Mayer, the next step for Brooke was to take her heartfelt tunes across the Tasman and release the stunning, "What To Do With Daylight".  Having never played public shows in Australia she was thrown into the deep end with her first show being at the Sydney Entertainment Centre for John Mayer, with a capacity of almost 12,500.  The John Mayer tour was an excellent opportunity for our Trans-Tasman neighbours to be introduced to Brooke and with her album being released during the tour and singles to follow it won't be long until her double platinum status is raised.

At the tender age of twenty, Brooke Fraser has climbed the New Zealand musical mountain and is being hailed as the next Bic Runga but when this is put to her she seems to retreat back to a shy teenager.  "I think to be compared to Bic is pretty crazy because she is amazing and a real national treasure.  I am not trying to take her place at all".  The comparison between the two may be based on the fact that both are female singer/songwriters, but Brooke is open and excited about following Bic's path and taking her voice and guitar to the world.

If constant touring, recording and promotional work was not enough to keep Brooke Fraser busy she is also a devout Christian who has sponsored a child in Cambodia, Pros, for the last two years and is part of Artist Associates programme for World Vision.  Through this programme Brooke visited Cambodia just weeks out from her debut album launch.  "It was really good timing for me because I got back two weeks before the album came out.  I went there knowing that I would come back and be in the midst of a media storm but being there and seeing what's really going on in the world was a great experience.  The people, compared to us have nothing possession wise but they just take hold of life, just do it and have a good time and are really living".  This attitude is what makes Brooke Fraser not only a great person but an inspirational lyricist and musician that we as New Zealander's should be proud of.