GENA (Liv.e And Karriem Riggins)

Gena, one of the most dynamic and brilliant collaborative projects on the planet, has just announced an Auckland show for later this year, playing Neck of the Woods on Thursday 1 October.

The energetic duo that binds drummer and producer Karriem Riggins and singer-songwriter, rapper, and producer Liv.e, Gena recently dropped their debut album The Pleasure Is Yours, praised by Pitchfork for its cosmic experimentalism and amorphous funk.

Their collaborative debut as GENA (short for “God Energy, Naturally Amazing,” and loosely inspired by Gina from Martin), The Pleasure Is Yours (out 2/27/2026 via Lex Records), feels like a playful, soulful conversation between two kindred improvisers: Liv.e’s smoky, unpolished vocals glide through Riggins’ warm, percussive universe. Rooted in jazz, soul, and hip-hop as living language, the Dallas-born Liv.e brings a raw, experimental approach to R&B, while Detroit native Riggins—known for his work with Common, Erykah Badu, The Roots, Madlib, and a close kinship with the late J Dilla—extends his lifelong dialogue between jazz improvisation and beat science. Together they create a world that’s analog and ethereal, percussive and poetic, bridging eras without ever settling in one; The Pleasure Is Yours is the sound of Liv.e and Riggins bringing each other’s music to life and finding a new language together—one rooted in rhythm, vulnerability, and exuberance.