30 May 2025
In an industry built on creativity and connection, SoundCheck Aotearoa is asking a vital question: what would it take to make music safe for everyone?
We spoke with Anna Loveys (Ngāti Raukawa ki te Tonga), General Manager of SoundCheck Aotearoa, about the organisation’s vision and kaupapa.
“We want our music community to feel safe, supported, and backed to be able to show up as their full selves, whether that’s at mahi, at home, or in the wider communities they move through,” says Anna.
SoundCheck Aotearoa was born out of a need for meaningful systemic culture change in our music community, a need identified in Amplify Aotearoa - a 2019 report by APRA AMCOS NZ and Massey University.
SoundCheck Aotearoa began in 2020 as a volunteer-powered action group. Since 2023, it’s operated as a charitable trust, focused on their mission which is working with, and for, the Aotearoa music community to make our industry safer and more inclusive. Nicky Harrop, Teresa Patterson, Lydia Jenkin, and Ninakaye Taane-Tinorau are on the board of trustees.
The early mahi centered on addressing sexual harm, recognising it in wider patterns of harm, because people in their community, especially women and gender-diverse people, were speaking up and not getting the support they deserved.
“It's not just about policy or process, it’s about how we show up for each other every day. Music is our common ground, our great connector. That very special connection and the magic of what that means is uplifted when we look after each other,” Anna says.
“Creativity and involvement shouldn’t be repressed by fear and uncertainty. To get there, we must continue to mahia te mahi, one foot in front of the other, to endure the time it takes to really change culture.”
“That’s where our mahi began - listening and building tools that help our community prevent and respond to sexual harm. This isn’t about rushing to tick boxes. It’s about moving at the pace of trust, staying grounded in our community, and responding to what’s actually needed.”
One of the organisation’s most significant milestones has been the launch of the SHAPRA service (Sexual Harm Prevention and Response Advisor) in 2023. Our SHAPRA is Melanie Calvesbert. This free and confidential service offers specialist support to anyone affected by sexual harm in or connected to the music community - from artists and crew to audience members and whānau. SHAPRA is the first of its kind for the Aotearoa music community, and in the music industry internationally.
“In just two years, SHAPRA has supported over 250 unique cases. That’s an average of 2 to 3 new cases each week, alongside ongoing care and follow-up, the need is real and growing. Tailored community support like this shouldn’t be rare - it should be the norm.”
SoundCheck Aotearoa’s kaupapa goes beyond crisis response. It also provides prevention-focused tools and education, including the Professional Respect Training programme, created by Independent Sexual Harm Prevention Specialist, Rachel Harrison. The workshops have been tailored to different music industry contexts, reaching over 500 people so far, from artists and managers to venue staff and community leaders.
Current initiatives include developing a Community Restorative Framework, which is a guide to support people, groups, businesses and organisations in responding to harm in ways that are grounded in care, accountability and transformation.
“It’s about moving away from silence or punishment as the only options, and building pathways for healing and repair, which is a major need within our community.”
They are also working in partnership with the Māori Music Industry Collective to co-develop the Project Mauri Ora workstream, which was launched as an early pilot of wānanga last year addressing sexual harm from within a Te Ao Māori context.
“This mahi was developed by Māori, for Māori of our music community, every step of the way, centering our values as tangata whenua.”
SoundCheck Aotearoa is now working on a five-year plan that will guide where they go next and plans for how they uplift and grow their influence.
“Our music community is hearty, resilient, hardworking, creative and ingenious. Most live as the kumara - doing the mahi without needing to shout about it.”
May is Music Month and Creative New Zealand is marking it with music stories on our website every week.
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