Stella Rose Bennett was born and raised in the suburb of Grey Lynn in Auckland. She grew up in a "really musical" family with parents who would expose her to the catalogs of Radiohead, Björk, and Groove Armada. From the age of eight, BENEE began taking guitar lessons in primary school before starting saxophone lessons in high school. Eventually, BENEE dropped all music in order to prioritize water polo. She claims it "was [her] life" and that she at one point hoped to represent New Zealand competitively. BENEE later became interested in writing and recording music at the age of 17, after deciding that she did not want to pursue a career in water polo. BENEE attended an all-girls Catholic school, St. Mary's College, where music was compulsory for four years.
BENEE began her music career by posting covers to SoundCloud and began making her own music in her final year of high school. After dropping out of a communications degree at the Auckland University of Technology after two weeks, during what she called "a quarter-life crisis", she decided to enter the music business professionally. Her music caught the attention of Josh Fountain, a producer and member of the band Leisure, with whom she produced two singles: "Tough Guy", released in 2017, and "Soaked", released in 2018. she earned her first career entry on the Triple J's Hottest 100 of 2018 with "Soaked" at #58.
In both 2019 and 2020, she consecutively won Single of the Year, Best Solo Artist and Best Pop Artist at the New Zealand Music Awards. BENEE initially gained local prominence with her singles "Glitter" and "Soaked", before her 2019 single "Supalonely" saw international popularity following its success on the video-sharing platform TikTok and YouTube. BENEE subsequently released her debut album, Hey U X, in November 2020.
Under the moniker of Bene, she made her solo debut with the 2017 single "Tough Guy", before later gaining prominence with her 2018 single "Soaked", which has been certified double-platinum in New Zealand. She released her debut EP, Fire on Marzz, with help from producer Josh Fountain in June 2019. Her second EP, Stella & Steve, was released in November 2019 and charted in the US, Canada, and France as a result of the international success of the EP's final single, "Supalonely". Since 2018, BENEE has earned five entries on the Triple J Hottest 100, three of which were in the 2019 list. She also released her third EP, Lychee, in March 2022 which charted at number 13 on the Official New Zealand Music Chart.
In an interview for The New Zealand Herald, Benee revealed that she has dyslexia. She also described her childhood experiences with songwriting:
"throughout school I struggled with writing....I liked creative writing, that was what I loved, but I was always making mistakes, and I was confined to this way that I should write....Songwriting for me was this place where I don't have to be grammatically correct. Learning the craft with [Josh Fountain], when he was sharing all his knowledge – something clicked, and I was just like, I love this. It's a great emotional outlet for me; I just love splashing what I feel on to a track."
Kua Kore He Kupu / Soaked
BENEE Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Wahangū ana te noho
Tē puta i a au he kupu
Haere ana a mahara
Tē taea te pupuri
I hē tāku ki a koeKoinei i roa ai
A muna kua tino ara
Tē aro ka pēnei
Kua kore he kupu
Mō rā kē atu
Puta ana he kupu, waipuketia atu ana
Kua kore he kupu
Tē aro he kupu
He āhuatanga tōu, e tōreretia nei, āe rā
He āhuatanga tōu, e tōreretia nei
Tiro mai koe anō i patua
Mahue ko ngākau marū
Nā, kua raruraru au
Miere ana te tinana
I hē tāku ki a koe
Koinei i roa ai
A muna kua tino ara
Tē aro ka pēnei
Kua kore he kupu
Mō rā kē atu
Puta ana he kupu, waipuketia atu ana
Kua kore he kupu
He āhuatanga tōu, e tōreretia nei, āe rā
He āhuatanga tōu, e tōreretia nei, āe rā
He āhuatanga tōu, e tōreretia nei, āe rā
I hē tāku ki a koe
Koinei i roa ai
A muna kua tino ara
Tē aro ka pēnei
Kua kore he kupu
Mō rā kē atu
Puta ana he kupu, waipuketia atu ana
Kua kore he kupu
Tē aro he kupu
He āhuatanga tōu, e tōreretia nei, āe rā
He āhuatanga tōu, e tōreretia nei, āe rā
He āhuatanga tōu, e tōreretia nei, āe rā
Ooh, ooh
The lyrics to Benee's song "Kua Kore He Kupu / Soaked" are in Maori, a language spoken by the indigenous people of New Zealand. The song starts with the line "Wahangū ana te noho," which roughly translates to "The seat is empty," setting a tone of emptiness and longing. The chorus repeats the phrase "Kua kore he kupu," which means "There are no words" or "I am speechless." The verses describe a feeling of being unable to express oneself or communicate with someone, even though there is much to say and feel.
The song's melancholic and eerie melody adds to the sense of isolation and emotional distance, making the songs feel like an "empty seat" itself. The line "Tē taea te pupuri" means "it can be held," hinting that even though the emotions present in the song are complex and difficult to express, they can still be felt and experienced. The line "I hē tāku ki a koe" means "I was wrong about you," showing a sense of betrayal or disappointment in someone close to the singer.
Overall, "Kua Kore He Kupu / Soaked" is a haunting and emotionally charged song that uses language and melody to convey a sense of emptiness, longing, and communication breakdown.
Line by Line Meaning
Wahangū ana te noho
The stillness of the environment is palpable
Tē puta i a au he kupu
Words come out of me involuntarily
Haere ana a mahara
Thoughts are flowing
Tē taea te pupuri
I can't hold them back
I hē tāku ki a koe
I was wrong about you
Koinei i roa ai
I have held onto this for too long
A muna kua tino ara
It has become a major burden
Tē aro ka pēnei
The feeling is like this
Kua kore he kupu
No words can describe
Mō rā kē atu
Beyond today
Puta ana he kupu, waipuketia atu ana
Words come out, washed away
Tē aro he kupu
The feeling is the word
He āhuatanga tōu, e tōreretia nei, āe rā
A state of being, being carried along
He āhuatanga tōu, e tōreretia nei
A state of being, being carried along
Tiro mai koe anō i patua
Look at you being defeated again
Mahue ko ngākau marū
Leaving the heart at ease
Nā, kua raruraru au
Well, I am troubled
Miere ana te tinana
The body is trembling
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Jason Lee P. Schoushkoff, Joshua Marc Fountain, Stella Bennett
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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on Supalonely
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