Aotearoa, young gifted and brown.

Tu Tangata, Issue 36, 1 June 1987, Page 30

Aotearoa, young gifted and brown.

NG A TAKE WAIATA

Aotearoa will never be as popular as a band as Herbs have become. That is if Aotearoa keep their kaupapa, positive music for young Maori,and if radio stations and television keep to theirs by not playing the music. That’s the attraction with this Maori band, Aotearoa, their large following amongst Maori youth may be partly due to the ‘underground’ nature of the message and elitism involved in the protest. But the larger part is the musical ability and dogged determination of the only founder member left, Ngahiwi Apanui. Two years or so on he admits to being only now able to relax and not overdo things, either in organising the band or worrying about how the message is being received. “It was sheer exhaustion at times but now I’m able to appreciate the support of bandmembers, just a word of thanks means heaps.” Aotearoa got started on the basis of having to record two songs, ‘Maranga’ and ‘Haruru ana’. Ngahiwi says they wanted to get the message out to young Maori people that it was OK to be Maori. He felt that although Maori

music was heard through the singing of Prince Tui Teka and the Patea Maori Club, young Maori preferred overseas reggae and funk music. Aotearoa’s aim was to use the reggae and funk beats and take out the overseas messages and put in positive Maori ones. He sees now that they had a very narrow view that later widened into a much more embracing perspective. Like they discovered that singing about Maori pride also encompassed not knowing Maori language or tikanga, and living with that.” He says they felt that it was a compromise because the Maori language was the major cultural component. “That’s what made it Maori, all the instruments and music influences were Western.” So Aotearoa decided to put their songs into a traditional context. Ngahiwi explains it. “When you look at Maori waiata, you see that they’ve either been composed to commemorate a certain event or express a feeling about certain things. We took these kaupapa and sang about them in English and people said, ‘Wow this is a new’. The only difference is that we were saying the message in English.”

‘Whakarongo’, ‘He waiata powhiri’ and ‘Maoritanga’ are all examples of this traditional waiata-a-rangi, says Ngahiwi. Only ‘He waiata powhiri’ has been recognised by record reviewers as being in the traditional mode, says Ngahiwi, which probably speaks volumes about the lack of musical understanding. “Many people not culturally competent have put down our music.” Aotearoa was originally, Joe Williams, Maru Goddard nee Tibbie, Mark Te One, Karlite Rangihau. Then came a steady succession of singers and musicians, Dina Fuli and her sister Lucy, John Wriggly, Tai Fuimaono and Ngapera Hoerara, Charles Royal and Karl Smith. Now Aotearoa boasts Keri Noda on keyboards, Kevin Hodges on sax and guitar, with Mark McGregor on drums and percussion, with James Ruwhiu on bass. Ngahiwi says James and Mark make a stunning rhythm section. With the strong emphasis on giving out the message of Maori staunchness, Ngahiwi is adamant that the band's message stays political because choosing to be Maori is a political act. “ ‘Maoritanga’ is about a person’s

right to be politically aware and motivated in order to push Maori take forward.” Ngahiwi believes Maori and Pakeha people who may be shocked by what they see as separatist songs should be aware that there is no turning back for Maori people. “The days of Howard Morrison joke songs like ‘Mori the Hori’ when Maori people shied away from identifying as Maori are gone.” “One of the criticisms that some Pakeha people have leveled at Maori people and Maori musicians in particular is saying, ‘There they go again, copying the Blacks from overseas!” He says when Pakeha people copy the ‘new wave’ style or ‘funk’ or something like that, it seems perfectly allright because it’s their own thing. But it’s not, cause they’re a Pacific people, where they live is part of the Pacific and the influences are different. Ngahiwi explains the Maori identification with reggae, funk and soul, as a positive replacement for a negative Maori image. “Our Maori youth see the videos and hear the music and go for the spark and pride that’s evident in being Black. He’s not favour of Maori youth living out a surrogate Black identity but would prefer to build up a Maori identity. “Aotearoa use reggae and soul styles of music to get this message across.” Ngahiwi sees it as transitional music that doesn’t further alienate Maori

youth by preaching from a great height, as he says many Maori leaders do. “Our first album had one very traditional song,‘Tihei Mauriora’, that spoke of Rangi and Papa. Our next album had three in similar vein, I would say the elements of tuturu Maori are slowly being put it there and people may not even notice them until they find Aotearoa in two years time has a completely different sound, one very much based on traditional structures.” He says Aotearoa aim to turn the overseas reggae sound until it stands firmly on Maori ground. With two singles and two albums released and album release in England timed for July or August, the band have moved fast. They’ve won a cultural fellowship exchange on a Commonwealth Youth Project Award with travel to Canada as the sweetener. As well, Black American woman, Makeda Dread of Prophet World Beat is interested in the band gaining airplay through a 100,000 watts F.M. station in San Diego. As Ngahiwi says, those are plenty of watts to get Aotearoa’s message heard on. From what started as a band with five bi-lingual highly motivated Maori people, Aotearoa are by Ngahiwi’s own words, now a band with varying degrees of cultural awareness. But you get the impression that Ngahiwi is learning to loosen up and let the message do the work.