Simon Spire
Hear it Now
Channel One News has a confession. We are collectively in crush with Simon Spire. Who wouldn't adore such a polite guy fascinated by Ellis Island with a foreign accent? We know we shouldn't play favorites, but this New Zealand import is such a sweetie, we've all moved on from the goofy guys of Flight of the Concords. We asked if he gets tired of references to Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement from the hit HBO series. "No, not yet," said Spire, 26, in an interview, "I'm proud of those guys." With a laugh he added, " I think they're hilarious."
Though the hilarious comedy-music duo share the same New Zealand to New York City move as Spire, his transition to The States involved packed crowds at clubs and Jewel's mom as his mentor. Before we get ahead of ourselves, here's a little background
Simon Spire has always been a musician. As a child, he played the piano, but at 13-years-old, he took up the guitar after listening to Nirvana.
After hearing a classmate play "Come As You Are," Spire said, "I saw that the music I loved could be recreated on my own - on the guitar," and so his career as a singer-songwriter turned in a new direction. Spire began playing in the high school jazz band and with a cover band that played everything from The Beatles to Ricky Martin.
"It wasn't always music I'd listen to on my own, but it was just kind of fun to play those pop songs," said Spire.
After growing up in Auckland, New Zealand and getting his degree in finance at the University of Auckland, Spire received his big break when his father coincidentally met Lenedra Carroll, the mother of pop-folk artist Jewel in Los Angeles. Spire is now a member of Ms. Carroll's artist development project Artist Advantage.
Now Simon Spire is touring in the U.S. and New Zealand and working on his second music video. He relishes in performing in front of fun crowds at his shows, "The more packed the club, the more exciting it is," noted Spire. He also enjoys the art and culture scene in New York. Despite his growing success and long flights between the two countries, Spires remains grounded by spending a few moments before shows to "be silent and peaceful" and when he's away from the city, he likes taking hikes in nature. No doubt he'll never be short of a hiking partner with his growing fan base at Channel One News.
To hear more stories from Simon Spire, listen to his interview in the Music Library or check out his photos and music lyrics in the gallery below.
—Christa Fletcher
Share this on: