Born and raised in Aotearoa New Zealand, Niki Kennedy is an award-winning Pasifika (Cook Islands Māori) singer-songwriter and musician based in Vancouver. Grounded in roots and soul, she blends warm grooves and emotional melodies into honest storytelling with heart.

Her forthcoming album, The Space In Between (2026), explores themes of home, identity, and belonging. It’s a journey of reconnection through culture, nature, and story, integrating Polynesian elements into contemporary roots music.

A career performer, Niki has had the privilege of playing hundreds of stages, from large festivals to intimate rooms. She has participated in the SOCAN Foundation’s TD Incubator for Creative Entrepreneurship, a program “designed to identify, celebrate, and support the next generation of music creators that have demonstrated extraordinary potential”, as well as the Equity X Production I & II programs. She holds a Master of Music degree and is passionate about increasing the visibility of women and Indigenous peoples in music creation, and is excited to participate in the Toga da wôhnagabi residency at the Banff Centre in February.  

Through music, she shares openly, hoping listeners feel seen, heard, and held. Each note is a quiet invitation to meet ourselves and one another gently, in pursuit of a kinder world for all.