BENEE returns with cruising new single ‘Green Honda’

BENEE has shared her first solo release in nearly a year, a new single entitled ‘Green Honda’.

The song, released today (February 9), was recorded in Los Angeles with producers and co-writers Evlira Anderfjärd and Luka Kloser – marking the first time the New Zealand artist has worked with either. In a press statement, BENEE noted that the collaboration was “such a refreshing experience” – particularly on account of “writing with two other young women”.

“There is so much that you just don’t need to explain when you’re working with your true peers,” she said. “It’s intuitive. They just get it, and that’s amazing.”

BENEE went on to describe ‘Green Honda’ as “light-hearted”, but also “a song about knowing where you’re at, and what you need to say, and not being afraid”. Its title stems from her actual car, which she has christened “Steve”.

“[It] was my first car, passed on to me by my grandmother when she gave up driving,” she explained. “He’s on the cover of my ‘STELLA & STEVE’ EP. We’ve had lots of adventures together.”

The release of ‘Green Honda’ has come with an accompanying music video, directed by Eliot Charof and a director known only as “AA”. It was filmed on location in Lancaster, in LA’s northern county, and depicts BENEE joyriding in “Steve” as well as walking two dogs and wandering through a car yard. Watch it below:

BENEE’s last stand-alone release was her ‘Lychee’ EP, which was released in March 2022 and flanked by the lead single ‘Beach Boy’.

The rest of the year saw her remain active through a series of collaborative tracks. Artists that enlisted BENEE to feature on their songs included Sub Urban (on ‘UH OH!’), Deaton Chris Anthony (‘Good Buy My Old Life’), WizThemc (‘Fck Love’), easy life (‘OTT’), HEAVY CHEST (‘Sunday926’), Finn Falcon (‘Light’), Johnny Orlando (‘fun out of it’) and Jeremy Zucker (‘I’m So Happy’).