Music grads mission to record live songs all over the capital

The duo, who established their own music promotion company Strawberry Jam after completing their Bachelor of Commercial Music at Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa Massey University in 2025, are working with Radio Active.FM to record, produce and air 31 live music videos this NZ Music Month.

They began recording the songs in early April and will continue through until the final shoot on May 17. Recording shoots have been held in locations all over Wellington from central city barbershops to supermarkets, cafes and brewpubs. Ryan Kenton says because many of the shoots are being done at local businesses, the recordings are being shot in less than two hours, including set up and shooting time.

The 31 songs recorded during the project will begin being played daily at 10.40am on Radio Active.FM and via Strawberry Jam and Radio Active.FM’s social media accounts from May 1 through New Zealand Music Month. Ryan says the final videos will be very diverse in genre and scenery.

In the past year the pair, who are both 21, have organised more than eight gigs across Wellington.

Ryan says Strawberry Jam specialises in creating festivals and gigs where audiences can access original local music for very little, to no cost.

“Being in bands and being musicians ourselves, we know how hard it can be to get yourself out there. We wanted to create something that would bring people together, and make it a really easy route for musicians to start gigging together.”

Connor Matthew says Strawberry Jam is not just a passion project, it’s become a full-time job for them both.

“This is my first year making a living from music. It’s challenging, but incredibly rewarding.”

He says Massey’s Bachelor of Commercial Music was a great preparation and introduction to the commercial realities of the music business.

“The music industry is definitely a sector where you can't just be good at one thing. You have to be very multifaceted. So do as much as you can, learn as much as you can, and keep as many doors open as possible because that's how you're going to get employed,” Connor says.