Hawaiian singer-songwriter Fia will return to Australia and New Zealand in October 2026, bringing songs from his debut album Never Give Up. to theatres across Auckland, Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.
by Paul Cashmere
Hawaiian singer-songwriter Fia has announced a four-date Australian and New Zealand tour for October 2026, marking his first performances in the region since releasing his debut album Never Give Up.. The tour will take in Auckland, Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane and will give audiences the opportunity to hear material from the album performed live for the first time.
Watch the Noise11 interview with Fia:
For Fia, the tour arrives at a significant point in his career. Although he has been releasing music for years and built a substantial audience through streaming and live performance, Never Give Up. is his first full-length album. The record represents a culmination of experiences that delayed the project and shaped its themes of perseverance, healing and self-belief.
Born in California and raised in Hawai’i, Fia, who has Samoan heritage, has become one of the most recognisable artists in contemporary island reggae. A five-time Island Music Award winner, he built his reputation by blending R&B, soul and reggae influences, creating a sound that reflects both his upbringing and his musical influences.
Speaking with Noise11 ahead of the tour, Fia said he believed the timing of his debut album was ultimately beyond his control.
“Life took a toll a little bit and there was a delay on some of the plans, but I always believe in God’s timing,” he said. “It came whenever it was supposed to.”
The new material is expected to sit alongside the songs that first established his career. Chief among them is ‘Love Me’, his breakthrough recording and one of the defining songs of modern island reggae. The track has accumulated more than 42.5 million streams on Spotify and more than 28 million views on YouTube, remaining one of the most requested songs in his live sets.
The success of ‘Love Me’ was never part of the original plan. Fia has previously revealed that he wrote the song as a private reminder to himself and his wife during a period when music commitments were increasingly taking him away from home. Encouraged by friends, he eventually released it, and the song became the centrepiece of his career.
The themes running through Never Give Up. are equally personal. Songs such as ‘Fly Away’ and ‘Be Better’ emerged from difficult periods in his life, including relationship challenges and professional struggles during the pandemic years. Those experiences have informed much of his songwriting, which frequently addresses love, resilience and emotional healing.
Fia has also spoken openly about nearly walking away from music entirely. After spending two decades performing professionally, he said there was a period when the business aspects of the industry overshadowed his passion for singing.
“Music started to feel like a job,” he told Noise11. “It really put me in a place where I didn’t want to do it anymore.”
Today, however, he sees music differently and describes it as both a gift and a platform to connect with people through shared experiences.
The Australian and New Zealand dates will also highlight the breadth of his musical influences. Growing up in church, Fia sang in choirs from an early age and absorbed gospel harmonies that remain evident in his work. He has cited artists including Chris Brown, Calvin Richardson, Stevie Wonder and Luther Vandross among his inspirations, while his years in Hawai’i immersed him in island reggae culture.
For Australian audiences, the October dates provide an opportunity to see an artist whose career has developed largely through word of mouth, streaming and an increasingly international live following. They also mark the latest chapter for a performer who came close to abandoning music but instead turned those experiences into songs that continue to resonate with listeners around the world.
Dates:
Tuesday, 27 October, Auckland, Powerstation
Thursday, 29 October, Sydney, Liberty Hall
Friday, 30 October, Melbourne, Northcote Theatre
Saturday, 31 October, Brisbane, The Tivoli
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