Blog Layout
Making it Pop
Words Kim Newth

Jesse Ranson and Ash Topp are new arrivals on the local music scene, having released their first single in July 2021. We ask about their journey so far.


Sometime during his primary school years, growing up in Hinds, Jesse Ranson picked up a guitar and started learning to play. His love for playing music grew from there and by 16 he was writing his own material.


Home-schooled during his high school years while his parents travelled America, Jesse didn’t have the advantage of school music facilities, but made the most of ‘my bedroom, my guitar and my brain’. At 16, he jumped straight into studying music at Ara. 


‘Music has always been my biggest drive and the biggest thing in my life. I knew I wanted to take this all the way … I’ve tried to surround myself with as many like-minded creative types as I can over the last few years and met and played with some incredible people. I think I truly honed my creative side the most spending hours upon hours in the studio writing and creating with Ash.’


Jesse and Ash met at Ara Music Arts while studying in the same level-four certificate course before completing their bachelor degrees. ‘He told my parents the first time he met them that “I’m gonna make your son famous” and we’ve been attached at the hip ever since.’


The pair spent nearly two years preparing for their first release and making sure that first shot counted. Both had been in the same band at Ara, with Ash on drums. Jesse had been writing lots of music with an acoustic vibe and then bringing it to the band. Ultimately though, they realised the band wasn’t really what they wanted to be doing. Instead they decided to go it alone as a creative team of two, diving headfirst into pop to develop the sound they wanted.


Two men are sitting on a blue couch in a dark room.

‘We’re now at a point where creating comes quite easy to us and we know what we want and how to achieve it and if we don’t, we know how to get there. But there’s always going to be more blood, sweat and tears when you’re putting everything you have into something you love; we’re just getting better and better at handling it. The up sides destroy the downs every time.’


For Ash, who was born and grew up in Christchurch, a flair for music production has developed naturally alongside wanting to create the best-sounding music possible with Jesse. ‘My favourite to date has to be ‘Hey My Mind’,’ says Ash. ‘It was a special song to make and really opened the door in terms of sound and production. What I enjoy most about producing songs for Jesse is sitting down and talking through the concept for a song and the ideas that spark from those conversations.’


At the time of writing, they had just released the final single of their first 5-track EP and were hard at work on their second EP. Releasing music means getting it out across every major platform. Their music can be found just about anywhere including YouTube, Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music and other smaller platforms. ‘We have big plans for 2022 as we will be releasing our first full album,’ says Jesse. ‘We’re also getting the live show written and ready to get rehearsals on the way.’


Jesse started out writing in the indie/folk/acoustic genre but says the songs now definitely fit into the pop market. ‘I wanted to be making the music I listen to every day and the sound/vibe that my favourite artists create. So we worked really hard to find that sound while also making it our own.’


The song ideas come out of ‘just living and surviving life’. Jesse is a fan of taking a sad concept and turning it into a banger of an upbeat song. ‘I like to write about the complicated wasteland that is the human mind and I like to write about things that people can relate to and things we all struggle with.’


Both Ash and Jesse create original songs, sometimes starting with a simple voice recording of a melody or a groove on the phone. Then they dive into Logic Pro X or Ableton to build and develop the material. Much of the instrumentation is digitally derived but they still love to use real instruments like guitar, bass, keys and percussion too.


‘We have two of our best friends playing bass and guitar for us and we use them very often. Everything that has been released thus far has been recorded in Ash’s bedroom studio that we’ve built up over time.’


Gigging has not been the main focus over summer as they have been shoulder-deep writing for their new album, but expect to see more of them in 2022. ‘We’re finally releasing music and 2021 was our kick-off; we’re never gonna stop and 2022 better look out!’ 


Listen to Jesse and Ash's latest single 'Hey My Mind' here.

Recent stories

A cookbook is sitting on top of a wooden stand on a kitchen counter.

How to Make an Adjustable Cookbook Stand

By Klaudia Krupa • May 22, 2024
With its sliding base, this stand can snugly hold any recipe card, tablet or cookbook – no matter how chunky or slim. Choose your favourite colours to ensure it is the perfect match for your kitchen or as a great gift idea. Plus, when it’s not in use, you can easily store both parts flat! What you need: 1 x 300 x 230 mm sheet of pine board, 18 mm thick (backboard) 1 x 300 x 150 mm sheet of pine board, 18 mm thick (baseboard) 1 x 120 mm pine dowel, 12 mm thick 2 x 40 mm pine dowels, 8 mm thick Drill and drill bits Drop saw Drop sheet Jigsaw or reciprocating saw Measuring tape Paintbrush and mini roller Resene testpots – we used Resene Gold Dust and Resene Apache Resene Lustacryl semi-gloss waterborne enamel paint, tinted to your choice of colour – we used Resene Bokara Grey Resene Quick Dry waterborne primer Ruler Sandpaper Wood glue Step 1: Cut your wood to the sizes listed above. Step 2: Measure and mark out a 155 x 25 mm slot, positioned 40 mm up from the base of the backboard, as shown. Step 3: Drill a hole in each corner of the marked slot to give your saw a starting point. Then, use either a jigsaw or reciprocating saw to carefully cut out the slot. Step 4: Smooth out any rough edges with sandpaper. Step 5: To make the handle, drill two 8 mm holes in the 12 mm dowel. Each hole should be drilled three quarters of the way through the dowel, centred and positioned 20 mm from each end. Begin by drilling small pilot holes to guide the larger drill bit.
A dog is laying on a dog bed in a living room next to a couch.

Too Good to be True?

By Nathan Miglani • May 22, 2024
We are on the cusp of a once-in-a-decade influx of properties on the market. Nathan Miglani, Director of NZ Mortgages, explains. As we have discussed, in the aftermath of the election we saw immediate momentum in the market. Since March we have seen this start to drop as the reality of interest rates remaining high dampened buyers’ appetite. Petrol prices are high, the cost of living continues to increase and while the OCR is holding, and forecasted to hold for the next few months, people are hurting, which in turn sees the property market slow. But there is hope on the horizon – we are predicting that by September/October we will start to see interest rates slowly start to come down, but do not expect them to drop as quickly as they rose. We are seeing some banks offer as low as 5.99 per cent on a three-year loan, and while this might sound good now, my advice is still to only fix for a short term to avoid costly break fees. The most active market we are seeing right now is in the $800,000 – $1.3 million range with lots of buying and selling happening. This is set to ramp up come 1 July with the changes to the bright-line property rule when it comes to being taxed on capital gain – dropping from 10 years (or five years for a new build) to two. For many it will seem too good to be true, but it is! This is set to put in motion a once-in-a-decade influx of properties to the market from Mum-and-Dad investors who are currently hurting with the high interest rates, creating massive opportunity for both first home buyers and first-time investors. Other sectors of the market continue to feel the pinch and as an advocate and passionate developer it was important to me to be able to assist the construction sector, which sees the launch of our construction division, Construction Loans. This is for those who have decided to build their first home, right up to those developing a subdivision. It is about helping everyone achieve their goals – which underpins everything we do. For this sector, it is about ensuring that the finances are in order before it is too late. Arranging finance for building a property is different from securing finance on an existing home, and it is critical to consider the best way to structure repayments on the section and the build while maintaining lifestyle.  It is about empowering builders, developers and everyone to make informed decisions that work for their unique situations. There is no one size fits all, which is why it is imperative that you seek professional advice before it’s too late. We are here to help you avoid pitfalls.
A group of young boys are playing soccer on a field.

The Future of Happiness

By Dr Cheryl Doig • May 22, 2024
Dr Cheryl Doig explores why a holistic approach, when it comes to educating, parenting and governing should be considered. It’s a complex world that our young people are growing up in. Societal change, the impact of social media and technology are colliding with climate change, misinformation, disinformation, and warfare. Trust in governments has deteriorated and the world is more polarised. It’s no wonder wellbeing and happiness are such a focus in our schools, our homes and our businesses. The recent results from the 2024 Global Happiness Index showed that happiness in Aotearoa New Zealand has fallen significantly for all age groups, but by twice as much for the young as for the old. In 2021–2023, our young people were the least happy age group. Females under 30 have one-third more negative emotions than males. Our young people are not thriving. Contrast this with 2006–2010 results, when the young were happier than those in the midlife groups, and about as happy as those aged 60 and over. The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness by Jonathan Haidt provides some insight into what might be happening here. Haidt refers to our young people as ‘the anxious generation’ and outlines the following as contributing factors: Technology – constant connectedness and the facade of always appearing happy and successful on social media. The cult of safety – overprotective parents and risk aversion – not developing resilience nor the ability to cope with challenges. The loss of play – the decline of unstructured play and outdoor exploration, critical factors for social, emotional and cognitive development. The pressure to succeed – intense academic and extracurricular expectations. The loneliness epidemic – social isolation is more prevalent even though our children appear more ‘connected’. These are deep social issues that have no simple solution. What is needed is an holistic approach to parenting, educating and governing. A focus on literacy, numeracy and sciences alone is not going to lead to a wellbeing economy. Supportive relationships and acceptance of diversity matter more than ever. Creative and critical thinking, play and physical exercise cannot be forgotten. Futures thinking is one way of developing resilience, risk taking and autonomy, as it explores alternative world views and encourages anticipating a range of scenarios. Many of our teachers know this but struggle with the ever-changing pendulum swings of successive governments. They’re exhausted and not so happy in their work. Schools need that sense of community support. We are overdue for a bipartisan collective vision for education in order to create a future where our young people thrive, are hopeful and happy. It’s not all doom and gloom. We can make a positive difference! As parents, whānau and communities, my challenge to you is to consider one item from the bullet point list above. Lean into it and give your children a bit of space to be children and have joy in their lives. Don’t crowd them, cosset them and control them so much. Walk alongside and guide them. Let them learn from failure with you as their coach. Celebrate successes.
Share by: