Watch Erny Belle's Video For New Single 'Unchained'

Oh to be an infant tucked into the corner of a bus, carefully serenaded below Erny Belle’s watchful gaze. Finalist for the 2023 Taite Music Prize and Auckland Live Best Independent Debut Award, Aimee Renata (Ngāpuhi) today gifts us her first single of this year ‘Unchained’ via Flying Nun Records — a cathartic alt-folk lullaby recorded by De Stevens at Roundhead Studios. Belle hops on a small-town bus towards Northland’s Ruawai during a bewitching golden hour, in her accompanying video made with the support of NZ On Air. Also a visual artist, she dons her co-director veil with Matt Hunter to work alongside featured aunt Lisa Renata and filmmaker father Fred Renata. A special mention goes out to Tiare Kelly who features onscreen, having recently wowed the crowd with her sitar skills at Belle’s recent Hōtoke Tour. The reassurances that ‘Unchained’ provides in its lyrics — "you’ll know, someday" — and acoustic instrumentation offer a calmer outlook on the mystery of the future. Watch the video below, as Belle waves a shaker like a baby rattle and the low-angle shots of the singer invite us to recline and let the breeze take us where we’re supposed to be…

“It’s about releasing myself from feeling unworthy and incapable of getting what I deserve. The wisdom of knowing that certain things will make sense eventually, so there’s no need to worry.”

'Unchained' is out today on major streaming platforms.