Swapping Nikes for gumboots: A country Western Guide to music

For many brown artists from West Auckland, breaking into the music industry can be a steep climb. But for The Western Guide, that journey is paved with red bands, a cowboy hat, and tattoos.

Aaron Pulemagafa is proudly rooted in the 685, born and raised in Tāmaki Makaurau. His unconventional musical sound has travelled from Sāmoan jams to reggae rhythms and Afrobeat grooves.

Now, he has found his niche in the heartfelt twang of country music.

“Well, I guess for me, a lot of my music is a reflection of what I’m going through at the time or what I’m listening to,” he says.

The former NiuFM host had early success with releases such as “Pe Moni Ea” and “Siva Mai”, which tapped into the sounds he grew up with and the cultural lens that shaped him.

But his latest work in country music marks both a sonic and personal reinvention.

Pulemagafa’s latest single, “Dive Bar”, is a classic heartbreaker track about drowning sorrows with late nights and pints.

The song is making waves - not so much in Aotearoa, but across the Pacific Ocean.

Released just one month ago, “Dive Bar” quickly secured spots on various Spotify and Apple Music country playlists and has raked in almost 45,000 plays.

“Dive Bar's been one of my most successful songs, numbers-wise, in the first month…Also, no one in New Zealand's listening to it, but all the Americans are,” he laughs.

“I’m from Aotearoa, right? Listen to me, brother!”

Set at the Patumahoe Rugby Club, the song was produced by Edy Liu (Edyonthebeat) and Christian Tjandrawinata, written by The Western Guide and Jeremiah Fale, and filmed and edited by Joseph Safiti.

Despite the growing success overseas, Pulemagafa remains grounded in his roots.

“If I ever did go to the States, I’d probably stay there for a few years. I would never live there forever... Aotearoa is my home.”

City-boy slowing down

The Western Guide’s foray into country music is more than just a shift in genre. For Pulemagafa, as a Sāmoan musician and songwriter, it feels like a return to something familiar.

“For country, I think I kind of dug a bit deeper,” he says.

“If you listen to the Tongans and the way they do faikava, the guitar [and] stories…that's already a country sound, but you won’t call it country it’s just Tongan faikava music.”

He adds that there are similarities between country roots and Sāmoan musicians like The Five Stars, Punialava’a, and Mr Cowboy.

“For me, it's how do I make this genre sound a bit more modern and sound a bit more like me, so that's where the kind of reinvention came from.”

Embracing the country life, Pulemagafa jokes about swapping his Nikes for gumboots, and adopting New Zealand farm life, albeit while being teased by his close friends and family

“Even just the way life's been and how kind of cruisy it is, just focusing more on the important things like my kid…she’s growing up.”

His storytelling now draws from real-life rural adventures, including learning to rope and ride a horse, and participate in a first-time goat hunt in Raglan.

Being New Zealand Music Month, The Western Guide lifts his gaze to the horizon once again and plans to drop his next song, “Burden”, on 28 May.

Having his sights set on retiring somewhere like the coastal town of Paihia, Pulemagafa says the relaxed pace of small-town Aotearoa life inspires the song.

“The story around it is, I was asking my mate down in Raglan…about her husband, and she's like, ‘oh, yeah, that burden’,” Pulemagafa says.

“I’ve never heard someone refer to their partner or significant other as a burden. But as an endearing term…they were laughing about it as a joke and I just thought that was interesting.

“The song is about being from a small town and dating a city girl... definitely targeted towards more of my small-town folk out there.”

As his sound continues to evolve, Pulemagafa’s mission remains clear - to focus on being a dad and enjoy life’s simple pleasures, no matter where the country road may lead him.

“Dive Bar” is available now on all music streaming platforms, and “Burden” will be released on 28 May.