New Zealand singer and CMA winner Kaylee Bell on Keith Urban, CMAs and Rhythm and Alps

Many people start a new year with one goal — to make it the best year yet. Some do this by committing to workout goals, others bid farewell to bad behaviours, a few chase their dreams. For Kaylee Bell, she committed to the latter and the results are better than she could have ever imagined — even if she is humble about it.

Speaking to the Herald a day after touching down in New Zealand from her new home in the US, the star has a classic Kiwi response to her most recent success. Refusing to play it up or down, she chuckles as she confesses, “it all happened at once.”

Bell isn’t kidding — the past two months have been career defining for her and landed her the well-earned title of one of New Zealand’s most successful country music stars.

After relocating to Nashville in June, she has made major headway in the US music scene including hitting No 12 on the Billboard Chart for digital sales and winning a Jeff Walker Global Country Artist award at the Country Music Awards in the US.

Kaylee Bell. Photo / Sarah Burton

Reminiscing on her first red-carpet experience, she takes a moment, catches her breath and explains how incredible the experience really was. “I mean Post Malone was in front of me, Luke Combs was behind me. I was like this is the big leagues now,” she says, still slightly star-struck. “It’s something you see from afar and then you’re in it and it’s like ‘oh my God, this is wild’.”

But Bell’s success isn’t exactly wild, in fact some would say it is almost written in the stars. Ten years ago she won the Toyota Star Maker award, marking the first of many achievements she would add to her long list. Remaining relatively low key for the years after, her stardom reached new heights in 2022 when she became a fan favourite on The Voice Australia — even catching the ear of Keith Urban.

And while she was unable to join Urban’s team in the competition, he has since become a huge part of her success — or rather a song inspired by him has.

In 2021, she released the EP Keith and it quickly became a success with her fans, and now it’s blowing up in America. “It’s been wild to see Keith get discovered over there in the last kind of month or so, and just how that’s kind of blown up again and had another moment,” she says.

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The news hasn’t appeared to make it to Urban, though, as Bell admits she is yet to hear from the star, “It would be nice, wouldn’t it?” she says before jokingly adding, “Men.”

Bell not too worried, though, because she has other things to focus on like her huge summer coming up. Set to perform at the South Island Food and Wine Festival, Coca-Cola’s Christmas in the Park, and many more, there is one upcoming gig she’s very much looking forward to. Rhythm and Alps.

“I’ve never played it and I’ve always wanted to,” she says, further explaining why it’s such a special gig for her. “I know that sounds really simple, but it’s like being in this country over summer, R&A and R&V are the ones everyone talks about and especially coming from down south myself, I spent a lot of New Year’s around Wanaka-Queenstown area so to finally have the band playing our set, it feels great.”

The annual New Year’s festival takes place in the South Island’s Cardrona Valley and thousands of music lovers attend each year, as well as some major names hitting the stage. This year, Bell says she is excited to be sharing the stage with Kiwi singer Benee. “I’m a massive fan of female artists and particularly from New Zealand.

“I think I’ve always aspired to females that have gone and taken it on globally like she has so I’ll be bopping up there to her set.”

Kaylee Bell is a huge supporter of female artists, including her friend, Cassie Henderson. Photo / Instagram

And Benee isn’t the only female artist Bell will be bopping along to this summer. Kiwi singers Cassie Henderson and Georgia Lines also have shows planned for the summer, and the Red singer says it’s “really nice” to see a lot of female headliners this summer. “It’s a good time to be female in music right now,” she chuckles.

As for any summertime plans, Bell has had a huge year and 2024 is set to be bigger because she’s just announced her 12-date New Zealand tour, so she’s keen to make the most of any days off she has.

While the calendar remains empty for mosty of those days, she does have one plan. " I love the Onsen Pools,” she says, referring to the Queenstown attraction. “I feel like I’m due for a bit of rest.”

Lillie Rohan is an Auckland-based reporter covering lifestyle and entertainment stories who joined the Herald in 2020. She specialises in all things relationships and dating, great Taylor Swift ticket wars and TV shows you simply cannot miss out on.

LOWDOWN

You can catch Kaylee Bell at a multitude of Kiwi festivals this summer including Rhythm and Alps on December 30, or head along to her Nights Like This tour next year.