Twice a week, Evie Orpe, So'omalo Iteni Schwalger and Liam Brown serve up music, culture, laughs and the latest goings-on around Aotearoa.
Presenters of The TAHI show (left-to right): Liam Brown, Evie Orpe, So'omalo Iteni Schwalger Photo: Liam Brown
In this episode, So'omalo chats to Māori singer-songwriter TE KAAHU (aka Theia) about her two Taite Music Prize nominations, Evie asks if it's ever okay to spoil movies and we find out how the people of Huntly responded to their new pizza delivery drones.
Queen Fiapoto: switch, code, reverse
Queen Fiapoto is a Samoan women's artist collective whose name pays homage to the Queen Poto buses of Samoa Photo: Malae/Co.
So'omalo recently got a special private tour of his first-ever art exhibition by Malae/Co. - "a creative collective of incredible Samoan women".
Queen Fiapoto: switch, code, reverse, which is now showing in Tautai Gallery on Auckland's K Road.
switch, code, reverse explores the idea of Pasifika code-switching, So'omalo says, in which people adjust their self-presentation in different environments to make others more comfortable or get fairer treatment.
"Seeing some PI women doing their thing in town, in the heart of Auckland's CBD, it's really sick… as cheesy as it sounds, it's an experience."
Exhibition details:
Queen Fiapoto: switch, code, reverse is on in Auckland until 6 May
Tautai Gallery, Level 1, 300 Karangahape Road, Auckland
TE KAAHU
TE KAAHU Photo: Supplied
Māori singer-songwriter TE KAAHU (aka Theia) says it's a huge honour for herself, her whanau and her iwi to be nominated for two awards at this week'sTaite Music Prize.
Her 2022 album Te Kaahu O Rangi was a way of giving some "permanence" to her whakapapa and Māori culture.
"Something I was really surprised about was the amount of Pakeha and non-Maori who just absolutely embraced these waiata and the project.
TE KAAHU has pride in te reo Māori and sees herself as part of a multi-generational musical mission to reclaim and promote cultural knowledge.
"I'm just carrying on that history, I suppose."
Later this year, TE KAAHU is heading to North America, where she'll perform at LA's Pride Festival (as Theia) and at Folk On The Rocks and other Canadian folk music festivals.
What we're listening to:
So'omalo Iteni Schwalger: 'SIVA MAI' by Samoan-NZ musician Aaron Pulemagafa, aka TheWesternGuide
"It's almost like a Burna Boy record but it's Samoan, which is cool… it's got that reggaeton dancehall aspect to it, a bit of afro-swing, but it's in the Samoan language."
This month, the Pasifika musician told Music 101 about his mission to make Samoan music more "friendly" to non-Samoan speakers.
Evie Orpe: 'Broadway Junction' by NZ singer-songwriter Vera Allen (from the 2023 album Ideal Home Noise)
"I can't overstate how good this album is. It is, in my opinion, one of the great New Zealand albums.
"Her vocal choices are sophisticated… it tears your heart out, she stomps on it and then laughs at you for crying, it's so good."
Liam Brown: 'The Record' by the American all-women band boygenius (2023)
"It's the three saddest people in music ever to exist - Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus and Julien Baker - singing about really, really sad stuff."
TAHI FM presenters:
Evie Orpe (She/Her) is the pride of Lower Hutt (if you ignore all the other people from there). She's passionate about issues affecting women, neurodiversity awareness, lifting people up, and making room for everyone to win. She cares about fighting the plague of misinformation, but also admits she's been wrong about *many* things *many* times - so no judgment.
So'omalo Iteni Schwalger (He/Him) is a champion of Pasifika Peoples. He's as white as Samoans come, but don't let that deter you from his cultural pride. Always one to uplift and celebrate his community, So'omalo has been a long-time, prominent supporter of all things Pasifika & Indigenous, and has no plans of stopping any time soon.
Liam Brown (Tūhoe, Ngāti Kahungunu ki Wairoa) is a black coffee enthusiast, hat-wearer (you'll never see them without one on), and TAHI's resident, certified hater. If you or someone you know needs to be humbled, send them to Liam. The core of their passions lies within the ever-changing, ever-evolving queer landscape. From the triumphs to the tribulations, they're in it for the long run. If not there, they're probably shaking ass at a show on Karangahape Road. You never really know.
