Profile: Moana & The Tribe

New Zealand singer-songwriter and documentary maker Moana Maree Maniapoto has long been an advocate for the promotion and preservation of Māori culture, performing for the world as Moana & The Tribe, blending traditional haka with contemporary music. An inductee into the New Zealand Music Hall of Fame, her most recent project is also arguably her most ambitious. ONO: Six Songs, Six Nations, ONE VOICE is a concept album on which each song showcases the language and culture of one of six Indigenous women from across the globe. Sámi artist Mari Boine, Indigenous Australian Shellie Morris, Inka Mbing of the Atayal people (Taiwan), Canada’s Jani Lauzon, Hawaiian singer Kaumakaiwa Kanaka’ole and Scottish multi-instrumentalist Megan Henderson all lend their talents.

The idea for ONO has its roots in years of global gigging. “My band toured extensively,” explains Moana, “throughout Europe, Russia, Asia, Canada and the Pacific for about 15 years. During that time, I would reach out to another vocalist or musician from those lands – to join us onstage for a special song. It was always exciting hearing the vocals, culture and spirit blend with ours.” It was a meeting with Mari Boine which cemented the project. “After an invitation from her to co-write a song,” says Moana, “I invited her to sing on one of mine called ‘Āio Ana’ – a gorgeous lullaby. It turned out so beautiful I decided to reach out to other women I’d performed alongside. And we just kept on going!”

Realising that ambition proved difficult, not least due to the complications of matching schedules with busy musicians. “The logistics were challenging,” says Moana. “Once, Paddy [producer Paddy Free] and I flew to Taiwan and the vocalist we had been communicating with told us she couldn’t do it that weekend, so we flew back to New Zealand empty-handed. Then there was the pandemic and lockdowns. But we got there.” This is clearly a labour of love for the singer, who strongly believes in the power of music as a force for change. “Music connects people to each other,” she says, “while the stories may be slightly different, Indigenous people from New Zealand and Australia share similar values in that space. The experience of the Atayal and other native tribes in Taiwan whose language was stripped off them by the colonisers is similar to the Māori experience… and to the Scottish, Hawaiian, etc. Music is one way all of us have championed our languages, traditional instruments and stories.”

For Moana, those connections run even deeper. “I honestly believe,” she says, “that Indigenous values and belief systems where humans understand how connected we are to the Earth and each other are the only thing that will save humanity. That we all have intergenerational responsibilities to be good ancestors; and that traditional practices which reject extractive industries and exploitation are the way to go.” ONO is a fitting tribute to this philosophy.