Six60’s Ji Fraser has finally arrived back home in Auckland. After a world tour that has seen the band traverse the globe, Fraser is finally taking a moment to put his feet up.
Speaking to me from his backyard, the sky behind him is an opaque blue. The kind that looks as if it were freshly painted. For the first time in a while, Fraser looks at complete ease. The respite, however, will be short-lived. In just two weeks, Fraser and the rest of the band will be back on the road and thrown into the maelstrom that is touring the world.
To say it has been a wild ride for Six60 up until this point would be a major understatement. The band first met while attending the University of Otago, eventually taking their name from the street number of the Dunedin house they shared: 660 Castle Street. Fraser, who was studying design at the time, had always harboured ambitions of pursuing music but he never seriously considered pursuing it. “I knew I wanted to do something really special. I let that be my North Star,” he noted of his early ambitions.
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Six60’s ambitions began to balloon as they created more of a name for themselves in the local scene. “We’ve always been ambitious guys but of course, none of us ambitioned the colossal course we’ve been on,” he says, leaning towards the camera as if he were telling me a secret. He attributes much of the band’s success to the relentless work ethic that carried them from their early days in Dunedin to stages around the world. “There wasn’t a show we wouldn’t drive to or play. We really got after it. If you look at those foundational things about us, then a level of success is almost inevitable.”
Recently, Six60 were announced as the ‘most successful band to come out of New Zealand’. That sentence feels strange to even type down, let alone wrap one’s head around on account of your own achievements. When I put the description to Fraser, he seems momentarily unsure of how to respond. He turns his head slightly, wearing a puzzled expression, seemingly reluctant to dwell on the significance of the achievement.
“In no way did I think we would be doing all this. I didn’t have this vision in mind. Every year I think, ‘surely it’s over now’. Then we find something else to do,” he notes. In order to not sink with the thought of this in mind, Fraser and the rest of Six60 have also had to create other goals. “We haven’t hit all the milestones we wanted to. The goal has always been to be the biggest band in the world. Even though we were the biggest band in the world during COVID, I’m not sure I’ve fully realised that dream just yet. You always find new mountains you need to climb.”
There is, of course, a certain contradiction in constantly chasing the next achievement, particularly when the accomplishments already accumulated would be enough to satisfy most musicians. Fraser is well aware of this. “You find yourself never satisfied in some way. Every time you achieve a goal, the very next thought is the new goal. But perhaps that’s just the fire in me.”
That fire is still very much alive. If there were any doubt, Six60’s recent stadium performance in Christchurch offered a reminder of just how far the band have come and how much they continue to believe in the talent coming out of their home country. “They were pushing for a big star to come open it. But then pulled back and acknowledged the great talent coming out of New Zealand. We have the know-how to do it,” Fraser says.
Six60 will soon tour in Australia with dates booked in Melbourne, Perth, Adelaide and Sydney. Their Melbourne performance, at the Botanic Gardens, will mark a first for the group. The upcoming performance also marks a return to a city which holds great significance for the band.
“When we first started doing well and could get out of New Zealand, Melbourne was one of the first places we went to. We’ve been back and forth for years. We’ve been to quite a few Aussie rules games. We’ve seen Essendon play at MCG. So, we’re keen to come back. Everywhere we go, we become a mecca for Kiwi’s and Aussie’s,” he laughs.
For all the international touring and stadium performances, Six60 have clearly not forgotten where they came from. The band bought back the student house in which they first lived together and established a scholarship allowing four university students to live there each year. Earlier this year, they also held their own festival, which they hope to make an annual event.
For Fraser, and the rest of Six60, there is still plenty left to do. Even after all the success, the next mountain awaits. Perhaps that is the secret to Six60’s longevity: the ability to look back at everything they have achieved and still feel that there is somewhere else to go.
Six60 are performing at the Botanic Gardens on Friday 27, November 2026. Tickets can be purchased here.
