Boh Runga is going solo

She is one of New Zealand's best-known and most successful musicians. Now Boh Runga has moved to Hollywood and recorded her first solo album. She talks to JULE SCHERER of NZPA about life without her band Stellar, leaving her comfort zone and designing jewellery.

Being Boh Runga is not bad at all. She fronted a highly acclaimed band for more than a decade, worked with successful songwriters in Los Angeles and designed her own jewellery line.

And yet, a couple of years ago the singer started to feel restless and realised it was time for a change. So she packed a suitcase and followed the invitation of her American-based music publishers Chrysalis to stay a while in Los Angeles.

Runga spent time working with successful songwriters but most of all she re-discovered her own voice and recorded her first solo album Right Here. It was made over six months in Hollywood with producer Marshall Altman, who is also responsible for Brooke Fraser's Albertine.

"The good thing about LA is, that it is such a different environment from being in the safety of New Zealand. Being out of my comfort zone is actually quite good for me. It is quite inspiring and the weather is really wonderful," the 39-year-old says.

The songs on her new album often take their inspiration from travelling, searching and longing.

Compared to Stellar's music her solo work sounds more organic.

"With Stellar we had quite a bit programming. Right Here has a different kind of feel to it, there's more acoustic guitar present," she explains.

"I think it is a quite eclectic sounding album as well," Runga says.

"Stylistically I think it is different because I am taking a few more vocal chances, the songs are still pop songs but they're made different."

Boh Runga is the oldest of three remarkably gifted sisters. The daughters of a Chinese Malaysian lounge singer and a Maori soldier grew up in Christchurch with youngest sister Bic embarking on a successful solo career at a tender age and Pearl who sang in several bands.

Boh formed Stellar in 1994 and recorded three albums including her most recent, For A While in 2006. Successful singles were Violent, Taken, Undone, Part of Me and Whiplash.

"We haven't officially broken up and we would probably play again if the right thing came up but at this stage everybody is doing their thing and I am concentrating on this album and songwriting," she says.

Stepping out solo for the first time was quite exciting for the seasoned songwriter.

"It's different because I don't have the same security that I used to have with my relationships with the people in Stellar.

"It was a real team effort and now that I am doing the album myself I'm very much responsible for everything. I am making decisions whereas before I had three other people in the band and we would talk about stuff."

But it was great being able to do all the songs she wanted to.

"I am doing more ballads than I would have done on a Stellar album which is quite good fun for me.

"I'm performing as a different sort of singer on certain songs," she says.

Although she was working on a solo album, Runga was far from alone. She got support from friends in Los Angeles. Most notably, Serj Tankian from metal band System of a Down features as a backing singer on one of the new album's songs.

"He is a friend of mine and he is such a honey," she says.

"He lives near a friend of mine in Santa Monica and I was doing a writing session in Venice Beach and I was supposed to go to Serj's place afterwards.

"So I went around to his house and said: `I just got this new song, I just finished.' I played it to him and he liked it and I said `I kind of think it would be good to have a male vocalist in it' and he offered himself up for it. And I didn't say no.

"A couple of month ago he was in the country when I was doing a NZ On Air showcase and he came up and sang the song with me.

"People were quite shocked when he got up and sang. He is a great performer and vocalist and I am really lucky to have him on the album."

Runga was also introduced to a diverse number of songwriters during her first stint in LA in 2003.

"It was an amazing experience being thrown into a situation where I would be in a room with a complete stranger with amazing musical credentials and hold my own. By the end of the day we would normally have a great pop song, or at least the basis of a great pop song," she recalls.

"I got to sit down with Wendy Melvoin (Prince and the Revolution) and record our song in Frank Sinatra's old studio. I wrote with Kevin Savigar, Rod Stewart's songwriter. And I penned Whiplash with Shelly Peiken who write Bitch for Meredith Brooks and also Genie in a Bottle for Christina Aguilera."

Runga not only worked on her solo material but wrote and co-wrote songs with her American colleagues. These songs are put into a pool of songs that get put in front of other people.

"I have got a few projects where I had been asked to write for things," she says.

And clearly music is not Runga's only passion. Last year she released her second jewellery collection, The Messenger Stories.

The pieces for NZ Mint have been as well received as her first line Birdland in 2007.

"I am quite into jewellery in general and have always collected jewellery," she says.

"And when the opportunity came along to design I was really keen and excited."

"It does give me something else to focus on at times. Writing music and designing are quite complementary things to do and it's actually a lot of fun, so I am lucky," she says.

So what's next.

"I tell you what. Shoes would be good. If I could design my own shoes, I would be so happy," she laughs.

Right Here is out now.