Pao Pao Pao has been a platform to unite established and emerging Māori musicians to nurture musicianship through a tuakana-teina support structure. Their first album is due to drop this Sunday.
Established Māori artists have united to develop musicianship in rangatahi.
Mentor Rob Ruha says, "Over the last couple of years I've been involved with Pao Pao Pao as a mentor and giving our rangatahi some background of how they could possibly do it."
Pao Pao Pao is based on a tuakana-teina support structure, a vision of the late Dr. Hirini Melbourne.
Brother-sister duo Pere and Awatea Wihongi say, "It was actually the first time we got to meet the stars intimately, we had our own time with Ria Hall, Tama Waipara, Seth Haapu, now we're all goods but before it was like omg Ria Hall."
Emerging artists are encouraged to produce authentic and original music.
Emerging artist Sherydon Ngaropo-Te Tai says, "I guess they just taught me to not change cause I was so focused on changing, whenever I'd hear someone else sing or a new emerging artist I would be like "I gotta be like them" and they're like, no you gotta be like you so I guess that was the main thing that I took away."
Their album, Pao Pao Pao - Volume One, will debut in Auckland this Sunday.