Lorde-backed Lume aims to celebrate full albums - not playlists
Friday, 22 May 2026
A new local music app, backed by pop star Lorde, aims to bring fans even closer to their favourite artists.
Called Lume, the platform will allow fans to buy - and own - full albums along with bonus audio, video, artwork and photography.
“We call it the world of an album,” co-founder Duncan Greive told The Post.
“The whole way it’s designed is about encouraging people to listen deeply, and right through an album.”
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Greive is joined as co-CEO by Tim Harper, one of those behind the Great New Zealand Songbook, who said there has never been anything like Lume before in the digital space.
“We want Lume to become the preferred format for all artists around the world. I mean, it's a very, very big ambition. We want literally every artist in the world to think about Lume when they think about releasing albums,” he said.
Unlike streaming platforms like Spotify or Apple Music, Lume will not operate on a subscription model. Instead, users will purchase individual ‘Lumes’ for artists of their choosing. The content will then be owned by the buyer forever.
Greive, who also co-founded The Spinoff news website in 2014, said about 20 to 25 local artists will be on Lume from launch date - expected to be in June.
Among the debut line-up will be household names like Fur Patrol and Tiki Taane along with up-and-comers including Womb and Geneva AM, winner of best independent debut at last month’s Taite Music Prize.
'When you make an album, there are a lot of pieces that are created but aren't used,” said Geneva AM in a statement.
“Little relics from the process that you have to shave away in order to create the product. Sharing them on social media, it doesn't feel like something that I want to relinquish in that way.
“Putting everything together into a very careful and well considered package, for an intentional audience, is very appealing to me. I really like the concept behind the platform.'
While Lorde is a financial backer, her work will not be available on Lume at launch - though the company is planning a rapid global expansion that could see international artists added to the platform.
Co-founder Justin Warren, ex-head of strategy for Universal Music New Zealand, said plans were already under way to bring Australian artists onboard, followed by the UK and US.
“I think as soon as we're in market, the conversations with Australia are going to ramp up significantly,” he said.
Other financial supporters of the platform include Substack co-founder Hamish McKenzie and Letterboxd co-founder Karl von Randow.
“Lume allows an album to be more than just a playlist - recapturing something we had lost in the online age,” said von Randow.
“The Lume team has such incredible understanding of music, the music industry, and our connection to it; we are so proud to support them to bring Lume to life.”
Lume’s app, designed in-house, contains a number of “novel features”, the company said in a press release. That included “nesting” multiple versions of a song - live, demo or acoustic - and the ability to add music as an album cycle progresses.
The service is also eligible for inclusion in the Official Aotearoa Music Charts, with each Lume the equivalent of a vinyl or CD sale. The company has already built relationships with key labels and distributors including Flying Nun and Lil Chief, with Lume promising that “many more” are near signing.
Lume will be live in app stores in June.
Stewart Sowman-Lund was given more access to Lume and its backers than any other reporter. Read his in-depth feature this Sunday on thepost.co.nz or in the Sunday Star-Times.