From her hometown in Auckland, New Zealand, breakthrough popstar Stella Bennett, aka BENEE, seems unfazed to the success coming her way since releasing her debut EP last summer.
As of now, her tale is one of eye-watering statistics and achievements – close to ten million TikTok videos made to her latest single, hundreds of millions of streaming numbers, the most added song on U.S. Top 40 radio and a collection of platinum records in her home country.
Not even six months since the release of her second EP of 2019 STELLA & STEVE, it has garnered knockout reviews. Breakthrough track ‘Supalonely’ is a slice of upbeat and original pop – like its creator, a little exotic and cheerfully odd. The song hits like a ray of sunshine, jammed to the hilt with personality and punctuated by BENEE’s verbal tics.
“I had broken up with my boyfriend,” recalls BENEE. “I wanted to twist the fact that I was sad and irritated about the relationship ending, so I wrote the song poking fun at myself.” Self-deprecation comes naturally to BENEE, expressed through her playful personality both on stage and online, an explosive riot of randomness that makes her all the more intriguing. However, if we can’t pin Stella down, who is this STEVE?
“From as early as I can remember, Steve is the name I’ve always given weird objects or things that I’d find or animals,” she laughs, recalling growing up in suburban Auckland, where she still lives in her childhood home. “And Steve is the name of my car!” BENEE stands on top of Steve on the artwork for her latest EP.
In general, she’s a beacon of positivity, even in the darkest of times. She’s a homebody – as chilled in person as her music; the cool girl with her bandwagon of Steves who’s quietly taking over the globe.