Tess Liautaud

The music of Franco-American-Kiwi, Tess Liautaud can not be easily defined. It hangs in the balance of her voice, warm like honey; it carries a depth of raw emotion, delivered with melodic grace and country soul. Her songs are easy listening, in that Jackson Browne, dreaming of Laurel Canyon, Americana sort of way, so it would make some kind of sense that she’s found a home on the east side of Ōtautahi, among the folk singers and the rock'n'rollers. Her album “Blue Mind” was released in October 2024, through Flying Nun/Leather Jackets distr. and reached #6 in the New Zealand Top 20 Charts, and #4 in Independent NZ charts. As well as leading her own band Tess sings and plays with Adam Hattaway & The Haunters, The Eastern and The Jessie Shanks & Tess Liautaud duo. In Paris she has been invited on stage to sing with Glen Hansard and Bruce Springsteen and back home in Aotearoa has shared stages with artists such as Flora Knight, Adam McGrath, Delaney Davidson, Barry Saunders, Marlon Williams, Dave Khan, Emily Fairlight, Holly Arrowsmith, Ryan Fisherman, Al Park and Pony Baby. Tess cut her teeth in the Paris music scene for the better part of a decade, honing her live performances and endearing herself to the hearts of audiences and fellow musicians alike. She has toured in Ireland and places beyond and eventually curiosity led her to Aotearoa in 2019. Burgeoning friendships and collaborations swayed her to stay and now two albums and six years deep she has become an endeared part of our musical landscape. "Tess Liautaud found her people in Ōtautahi, she nestled in and quickly became a part of the region's wider story of folk'n'country rock'n'roll. Her new album Blue Mind, is an assured work of rootsy Canterburycana (a genre title we're workshopping), featuring familiar Christchurch cohorts like Adam Hattaway, Elmore Jones, and Jessie Shanks, the shining star here is Tess Liautaud's warm and heartful voice, riding high over her fantastic new set of songs". - Flying Out