This has been a good year for female artists, especially angry ones. Young women finally have more role-model options than the Spice Girls. Alanis Morissette exploded on to the music scene in 1996, and was joined this year by the likes of Jewel and Meredith Brooks.
'It's a good time to be a female singer/songwriter, more so than maybe five years ago,' said Bic Runga, 21, who with her debut album Drive is looking to have similar success.
The Christchurch native, recently in Hong Kong on a promotional tour, also believes that now is a good time for women of colour in the music industry.
Runga, whose parents moved to New Zealand from Malaysia, has, however, been subject to some stereotyping because of her ethnic Malay roots.
'I've had reporters actually say to me: 'Well, you're brown, how come you don't do R & B?' I appreciate that they're honest, but it's quite frustrating,' she said.
'I've seen a lot of cynicism towards me, being a minority from New Zealand. I'm wary of it, but at the end of the day the music is the most important.' Drive is a pop-folk-rock airy affair that has made Runga one of New Zealand's most popular singers. The album has already spawned the hits Drive and Sway, and has gone double platinum. But its sound bears little resemblance to the artists who inspired Runga.