Christchurch-based singer-songwriter Lee Martin is yet another example of the incredible talent produced in New Zealand.

She’s a highly acclaimed musician, both here and around the world, with multiple awards, millions of streams, and sold-out performances under her belt.

And soon Martin will be releasing her fourth album, Marlene, coming out mid-July.

“I think this is probably my best work yet,” she told Mike Hosking.

“I was listening to some of my old songs last night, and I’m like, there’s a massive change and a massive shift – so yeah, I am very proud of it.”

The shift is not only sonic, but stems from a change in Martin’s own mindset when it comes to the creation of her art.

“I think I’m being a little bit more true to my own sound,” she explained.

“I’m less shaped by producers or external factors – I'm kind of just doing what I really want to do.”

In the past, Martin admits to chasing approval when it comes to her sound.

“I was so, you know, desperate for, I don’t know, some kind of success.”

But as she’s grown both as a person and an artist, she’s stopped caring quite so much about if others think she’s going down the right path.

“I just want to put out my music, and I just want it to be what it is,” she told Hosking.

“I don’t want to just shape and form towards, you know, to what other people are expecting.”

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