Influencis et Collabis is a collection of original songs that Brazilian band leader Bobby Brazuka and Venezuelan front woman Jennifer Zea selected to be given the Latinaotearoa treatment, alongside a host of handpicked collaborators.

The new album consists of contemporary re-workings of classic material; ‘Leave It’ featuring the Portuguese narrative from Rio de Janeiro rapper Black Alien, the hugely successful bossa nova meets West Coast hip hop track ‘Jazzy Samba’, featuring Team Dynamite and an upbeat version of Raphael Saadiq’s neo-soul cult classic ‘Skyy, Can You Feel Me’, featuring Laughton Kora.

Other standout collaborations include ‘One Tree Bossa’ featuring jazz great Nathan Haines & the multi-talented Julien Dyne; ‘Luz y Fiesta’ combines forces with Auckland’s four piece electronic hip hop group Yoko-Zuna, and ‘Under the Sun’ features the rising West-Auckland rapper Melodownz.

The nine explorative tracks which make up Influencis Et Collabis blends distinct South American flavours with the innovative brilliance of some of New Zealand’s most talented musicians. The result is an album that redefines the boundaries of modern latin music, with Aotearoa being its new frontier.

The stunning cover art was created by Japanese psych-pop artist Tokio Aoyama and the album recorded at Studio 509 in Auckland.

Features are lined up with RNZ, NZ Musician and The Spinoff. These will run between now and December to coincide with the Summer tour dates about to be announced.