"I started recording cicadas a couple of years ago in New Zealand. They really sound like a New Zealand summer to me."
But she wouldn't reveal the name of the "secret" beach where she filmed the music video for Solar Power, though it's rumoured to be Cactus Bay on Waiheke Island.
The singer also spoke about her recent trip to Antarctica, revealing she'd come to "more of an understanding" of the work scientists are doing there.
"They're not trying to prove climate change, they're just checking out the science, taking the measurements, observing and telling us what's up."
It's partly this passion for the environment that inspired her to stop releasing music on CD - her newest album won't be available on CD.
"Everything that I make physically I want it to be something I would have in my house, and I don't have any CDs in my house," she told the outlet.
But the causes closest to her heart are those that affect her fellow citizens back home, she revealed.
"I'm passionate about things that affect New Zealanders. Child poverty, bettering the systems that protect Māori, and our climate legislation."
While she says it's important to "hibernate" in between records, she's back in the spotlight with her newest album, and she revealed the artist she most wants to collaborate with.
"I kinda wanna talk to Harry Styles," she said. Perhaps a collaboration in the near future?