Auckland singer-songwriter Paige is stepping into a new era. Her new single ‘Hypocrite’, out now, marks her first release as a fully independent artist and a deliberate pivot toward R&B, a sound she says she’s wanted to explore for years. It’s also, in her own words, an exercise in owning her own contradictions: the song leans into the messy, imperfect parts of being human rather than smoothing them over.
Paige isn’t short on runs on the board to back the reset up, more than 70 million streams worldwide, a Platinum certification in South Korea and a Gold one at home, four Aotearoa Music Award nominations, and sold-out headline shows across three countries (full stats and the songwriting session credits are in our news piece on the release). Ahead of the release, Paige sat down with Music and Gigs to talk about the song, the R&B pivot, and what it’s actually like going independent after eight years with a label.
Let’s start with ‘Hypocrite’: where did the idea come from, and was there a real moment of contradiction or hypocrisy that sparked it?
Funnily enough, the idea sparked from a Taylor Swift hoodie I was wearing, and the idea that she’s someone who appears to be a perfect person because the good parts of her are the only parts she allows people to see. I reflected on that in my own life, and how I wanted to write about leaning into the darker parts of who I am and know that none of us are perfect. At the end of the day, everyone’s a hypocrite, or’s been one before.
You wrote it at APRA SongHubs with Joel Jones, Mi-kaisha and Shungudzo. What was that session actually like, walking into a room with people who’ve written for Little Mix, Kylie Minogue and Victoria Monét?
It was really fun! At the time I really didn’t know anyone’s past writing history, only afterwards did I find out. I enjoy getting to know people creatively in my own sense instead of having a preconceived idea of their capabilities based on writing credits, I think it makes the process more fun, and allows me to be open to any kind of creativity that enters the room.
Did the song change much from that first session to the version coming out, or did it land pretty close to how it started?
It landed pretty close! In the final stages we just added a bit of guitar and vocal doubles to make the production sound bigger, and more cohesive with the other songs paired with it… 👀
NZ audiences know you for soulful, polished pop, this feels looser and more playful. Was that a deliberate reset, or just where you were at when you wrote it?
Yes! I love what I’ve made in the past, and I’ll always have moments of revisiting those sounds, but I’ve always, always wanted to have a go at doing an R&B project, and I’m glad it’s finally happening.
Growing up in Auckland, was music always the plan, or did you fall into it a different way?
Always. I have never given myself the option of doing anything else, because from an early age I knew I loved making music, and I never want to do anything else, because I know that would be a life led without fulfilment.
Who or what were you listening to as a teenager that still sneaks into how you write now?
I’ve always really loved Michael Jackson growing up, along with Kehlani, Ne-Yo, Usher, Craig David, Alessia Cara, Ariana Grande, so I’ve been hugely influenced by the pop/R&B world.
This is your first release as a fully independent artist. What’s been the biggest adjustment, creatively or just logistically?
Yes! I think it’s an adjustment that will present itself later in the process. For now, I’m really loving the idea of just dropping whatever kind of music whenever I want. The financial struggle will be a challenge for sure, but for now I’m open to all that’s to come with it.
Was independence something you’d been building toward, or did it happen faster than you expected?
Not really, I think more-so it was something I expected to happen eventually. I was with my label for eight years, and the projects I made took much longer to release than expected. I think being with a major label in Aotearoa commonly seems to be a very quick journey, so I’m grateful for my time there.
How did the people around you, friends, family, react when you decided to go it alone?
They were excited for me to start a new journey. I think it’s always important to keep things interesting and not stay in the same spot for too long. Keeps you building, and learning more about yourself and your capabilities.
What’s something about being messy or imperfect that you’re finally comfortable putting into a song, that you might not have a couple of years ago?
Maybe everything I speak about in ‘Hypocrite’. It’s a vulnerable thing to admit how negative you can be at times, and how attention-seeky I can be, how I’ve been a liar at times, and I think the beauty of the song is that I talk about things that are a common experience that people are too afraid to admit.
Outside of music, what does a normal week look like for you at the moment?
To be honest, not a lot else, haha. I hang out with my parents and my sisters every other day I’m not making music, but that’s very much it, haha.
Is there a side of you that doesn’t come across in your music but your friends would say is very ‘you’?
Maybe that I’m hella neurodivergent, hahaha, and I don’t think people realise until they’re in my very tight-knit circle. I’m very awkward to be around most of the time, but I kind of love that part of myself, haha.
What’s a contradiction about yourself, a hypocrisy even, that you’ve made peace with?
Maybe that I give other people advice that I don’t take on myself. And I appear like a cheerleader to my friends and then knock myself down constantly in private, lol, not to be depressing, hahaha, which is quite funny ’cause the song itself is me trying to own these dark parts of who I am without hating myself and yet… hahaha.
What do you want people to feel the first time they hear ‘Hypocrite’, before they’ve read a word about it?
I want people to own all the parts of who they are, the good, the bad, the ugly, and realise it’s human. And it’s also a little c*nty in the best way, lol.
What does the rest of 2026 look like for you, more music, shows?
Gonna be doing some summer shows, and releasing more fun music. Woo!
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