Experience the smooth tunes of South Auckland’s own Jordyn with a Why. An artist who draws inspiration from her Māori and Samoan heritage in creating bilingual, 1980s tinged R&B music.

Jordyn with a Why places creativity, storytelling, justice, and humour at the heart of her work, using music as a platform to explore themes of language, reclamation, identity, and cultural heritage. Catch her energetic stage presence and dynamic performance under The Pavilion, featuring an R&B-soaked, neo-soul blend of pop.

About the Artist

Growing up in the suburban-scapes of South Auckland, Jordyn has quickly impacted the Aotearoa music scene with her bilingual (Māori and English) soulful sounds. Descending from Whāingaroa, Mulifanua Lalovi, Falelatai and Vaimoso, the stories from these places are woven throughout her music.

2024 saw the release of Jordyn’s debut album, Hibiscus Moon, Love & Justice, ranked as number 47 in Rolling Stone Australia NZ’s ’80 Best NZ Albums of the 2020s So Far.’ A reo-rua (bilingual) sonic love letter to the realities of urban indigenous.

Warmly embraced by Aotearoa New Zealand’s music industry, Jordyn was awarded the 2023 Māori Music Awards Best Female Artist and the 2024 APRA Silver Scroll Maioha Award. In 2025, she was a finalist in two categories at the Aotearoa Music Awards and three categories at the Pacific Music Awards, where she took home Best Pacific Music Album for Hibiscus Moon, Love & Justice.

Audiences have praised Jordyn’s dynamic stage presence, nestling into the soulful vibes somewhere between R&B and neo-soul with the occasional pop bend. Jordyn’s ‘why’ is in and through her music - she tells the stories of language reclamation, identity and cultural heritage.

 

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