Benson released his debut album The Awakening in 2008, through his own independent label Golden Retriever Records, following this up with Forest: Songs by Hirini Melbourne in 2010 and Zealandia in 2018.
[1] Benson's family has a long history in the area, and he is descended from Etienne Francois Lelievre, who immigrated from Normandy to Akaroa in 1836.
In his third year of university, Benson worked as a crew member on the film The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005).
During filming, Benson gave a demo to the actress Tilda Swinton, who was impressed in his work and advised him to leave Christchurch.
[2][1] During this time, Benson performed as a supporting act for alternative musicians including Casiotone for the Painfully Alone and Animal Collective.
[13] In 2015, the couple's Jack Russell Terrier Rupert received widespread media attention, after going missing and spending 13 nights lost in the Dunedin bush.