Thousands of Rihanna fans were treated to a spectacular final performance from the pop star last night at Auckland Vector Arena, but behind the scenes, Te Kāea got up and close with the Barbados beauty.
Over 40 Māori stage workers and nine Māori warriors were given the rare opportunity to farewell her in true Māori style. Our reporter, Wepiha Te Kanawa, was one of the lucky warriors.
Rihanna was humbled by this small taste of Māori culture.
Tia Barrett who filmed the event says the star was in awe and completely mesmerised by the surprise performance
While it was hard for the Māori group to contain their excitement, the excitement on Rihanna's face also spoke volumes.
Barrett says the energy was electric and seeing the whole event take place made her even prouder to be Māori.
One of the performers Aron Henare says the response they got from the pop superstar added fuel to their performance.
Then came the moment all the lads were waiting for, as soon as the opportunity arose, it was every man for himself and who could get the dream kiss.
Mr Henare says some of the performers were lucky enough to greet her with a hongi.
Rihanna's renowned for her flamboyant persona and fascination for indigenous flavour.
So who knows, the Barbados beauty could adopt some Māori elements in her next video.