Maisey Rika, Haami and Maara TK are the top three finalists for this year’s APRA Maioha Award.
The award recognises the art of contemporary Māori songwriting and honours composers who are telling their stories in the language of Te Ao Māori.
Waiata reo Māori champion Maisey Rika is a top three finalist for her waiata Waitī Waitā.
With Rika's delicate vocal runs and rich sonic soundscape, the waiata praises the two stars part of the Matariki cluster, Waitī and Waitā.
Waitī Waitā comes from Maisey Rika's Matariki-inspired album Ngā Mata o te Ariki Tāwhirimātea and sits alongside a Silver Scroll Award nomination for Hiwa-i-te-rangi.
Haami is a finalist for his uplifting waiata He Aio, which explores whakapapa and identity.
Haami expresses passion and wonderment for the whenua and Horouta, the ancestral waka that sailed the Pacific from Hawaiki to Aotearoa around 1000AD.
He Aio is a spirited anthem celebrating cultural identity and the beauty of this land.
Toroa is a standout from Mara TK's recent album Bad Meditations. Toroa/The Albatross is a poetic commemoration of Parihaka and the peaceful resistance to the confiscation of land.
Albatross feathers became an emblem of the people and Mara TK delivers this symbolism with an call to the great bird to return and bring peace to the land.
The judges for this year’s Maioha Award top five were Matai Rangi Smith, Ngatapa Black, Pere Wihongi, and Nadia Marsh.
The winner will be announced at the ceremony at Spark Arena on Thursday 14 October.
Top three finalists:
He Aio, written by Hamiora Tuari, Matthew Sadgrove, Sam Eriwata, and Tei Nohotima, performed by Haami
Toroa, written by Mara Te Kahika and Cory Champion, performed by Mara TK
Waitī Waitā, written by Maisey Rika and Seth Haapu, performed by Maisey Rika