One of the arts greatest advocates and most durable performers is getting ready to accept another award that celebrates her dedication, achievements and longevity.

The Pacific Music Awards has announced artist, performer, TV presenter, producer, arts administrator and mentor Teremoana Rapley will receive this year's Lifetime Achievement Award at the 20th anniversary of the event on 29 August at the Due Drop Events Centre in Manukau. 

Rapley explains, “As a creative, I tend to not look back at what I have done. This recognition provides the opportunity to take a moment to appreciate the many people who have allowed me to be a part of their life. 

"I am humbled and grateful.”

There's little that this NZ Music Hall of Famer hasn't achieved in her remarkable career that dates back to her trailblazing days with Upper Hutt Posse and Moana and the Moahunters. As the announcement of her latest accolade notes, Rapley's "extraordinary contributions to Pacific music and culture in New Zealand have left an indelible mark on the industry", describing her as "a powerful force in the New Zealand music scene for over three decades."

Rapley - who identifies her skill set as being a Black Moana Sovereign Storyteller - was just 14 when she joined Upper Hutt Posse, becoming at the time the only local-born female rapper in Aotearoa. A leader and a figurehead for that genre as a teenager, as part of a hugely important and influential group that fused together reggae and rap.

Over the coming decades, she went on to win NZ Music Awards, be inducted into the Hall of Fame and receive the Legacy award, twice part of Taite Music Prize success, as well as the Independent Spirit Award and a made a Member of the NZ Order of Merit. She's toured internationally as a solo artist, been at the forefront of Pacific voices working its way into mainstream consciousness as co-host of youth show Mai Time as well as working behind the scenes at Māori Television. 

It's her work on behalf of other creatives and her Pacific community that has taken Rapley to from legendary to iconic status in the eyes of many. She has inspired many others to tell their stories, to stand up and have their voices heard. She has lobbied to - and worked inside - local and central government (including with Auckland Council) to design and deliver initiatives that have had a huge impact.

Not that she's done yet - remaining both a mentor and an active artist with her highly anticipated debut trilogy album, Daughter of a Housegirl, Cleaning House, and Daily Incantations. 

Put simply - Teremoana Rapley has given her all to the arts and her community. It is recognition well deserved. 

Pacific Music Awards Trust spokesperson Rev. Mua Strickson-Pua says “Teremoana Rapley is a true pioneer in Pacific music and culture. A Taonga, a treasure who humbly challenges, inspires and nurtures the spiritual, cultural, and political development of Pasifika people hence all people. Her music is about Alofa Aroha Aloha for our family of humanity our Ngati Human Tribe thus Tu’ufa’atasi Kotahitanga unity and peace.

“Her unwavering commitment to her art and community has made a profound impact, and we are honoured to recognise her contributions with this Lifetime Achievement Award. Her journey is a testament to the power of music and storytelling in shaping and preserving our cultural identity."

For she's a jolly good fellow

Another hugely admired Pasifika creative has reason to smile this week as well.

Poet, author, and academic Dr. Selina Tusitala Marsh has been named Katherine Mansfield Menton Fellow for 2024.

The Fellowship - overseen by The Arts Foundation and one of the longest-running in Aotearoa - will see Marsh spend three months living and writing in Menton in the South of France, with all expenses covered to the tune of $43,000.

“I’m ecstatic and deeply honoured,” Marsh acknowledges. “Being the first Pasifika woman to receive this Fellowship is profoundly meaningful to me and, I hope, to the communities I serve. It's a testament to the growing recognition of Pacific voices in our literary landscape. I hope it opens doors for more voices to be heard and celebrated in the future.

It really is a dream come true – the chance to fully immerse myself in my writing and creativity for months and bring some long-awaited projects to life. I’m excited to dive into the ‘FETUSTARS’* project, a book I’ve had inside me since 2005. I’m eager to map the constellations of Pacific women's poetry across our literary firmament and ensure their starlight shines for generations to come.”

Dr Marsh has been New Zealand's Poet Laureate and has been hugely celebrated in both her poetry and academic career - she shared her creative journey on The Learning Network with tips and advice for other creatives which has been well received.

This latest honour puts her in some fine company - with the likes of luminaries Janet Frame, Bill Manhire, Witi Ihimaera, Elizabeth Knox, Roger Hall and Michael King also among the former Fellows since its establishment in 1970.

Geraldine Baumann, Chair of the Katherine Mansfield Menton Fellowship Advisory Committee, adds, “Selina Tusitala Marsh is an extraordinary talent, and it's a significant moment for us to have our first, long-overdue Pasifika fellow. As a former Poet Laureate, her voice has already shaped our literary landscape, and we are thrilled to see her receive this recognition.”

Research rewarded

Another quartet of writers are being back locally - with Copyright Licensing New Zealand (CLNZ) and New Zealand Society of Authors (NZSA) announcing their four Research Grants for 2024. 

The $5,000 grants support local writers who wish to undertake research for a fiction or non-fiction writing project - with 85 applications received.

Wellington-based, award-winning queer writer and researcher Dr. Lori Leigh has been backed to support her ‘Homo Sweet Homo’: The History of New Zealand’s Queer Homes project– aims to explore the vibrant and diverse landscape of queerness and home making in Aotearoa New Zealand.

West Auckland author/illustrator and paper-cut artists Kate Parker will use her grant to research and develop three picture books highlighting some of Aotearoa’s special creatures and their challenges: The Tākoketai (Northern Black Petrel) from Aotea Island and their travel to and return from the waters of Ecuador, the Korōra (Little Blue Penguin) and their challenge in the summer heatwaves and overfishing and the Kōputōtara (NZ Porcupine Fish) and the story of the sea thieves.

New Plymouth's Steph Matuku is deviating from her recent formula of writing for young people wither her new project The Blue Dawn, an adult novel set in early 19th century New Zealand, when the whaling industry was at its peak. It's described as "Māori mythology and tradition colliding with capitalism and brutal progress." 

And Kerry Sunderland - who has forged a strong reputation as a freelance journalist, author and curator of Nelson Arts Festival's literary programme, Pukapuka Talks - has been given funding to enhance her podcast Deathwalker’s Guide to Life into a book project, on how exploring death can help you live life more fully.

TBI's new boss well received

There has been a big response to this week's announcement that Samuel Walsh will be the The Big Idea's new Chief Executive.

Walsh is well known and well respected throughout the creative community - as has been shown with the feedback on his appointment that sees him add TBI's top role to management positions at Auckland Live and most recently Basement Theatre among his impressive CV.

Tributes too have been flowing for Annie Ackerman, who has been TBI's figurehead for the last eight years and driven transformative change in that time. The handover process between these two former colleague - both were instrumental in the establishment of the Toipoto creative careers mentoring programme - begins on Monday.

Film talent recognised

The New Zealand International Film Festival (NZIFF) has hailed a host of local and international talent in announcing the winners of their many categories this year.

The New Zealand’s Best and Ngā Whanaunga Māori Pasifika Shorts awards - as well as the winners in the unique 2024 Fresh and Frames strand competitions - were handed out on Sunday (18 August) as the festival wrapped up.

Vea Mafile’o bagged the $7,500 award for New Zealand's Best Film for Lea Tupu’anga/Mother Tongue, stating “I feel incredibly honoured and proud to receive such a prestigious award, especially on the eve of Uike Kātoanga’i ‘o e lea faka-Tonga – Tonga Language Week. 

"This film represents the different cultural journeys we are all on. There are many paths and different experiences. Everyone's cultural identity and sense of belonging looks different. But it’s what you feel in your heart that counts the most. This is loto-māfana.”

The $4,000 Spirit of The Civic Award was awarded to Awanui Simich-Pene for his film First Horse. It's seen as a launching pad to bigger things, with a previous recipient Josephine Stewart-Te Whiu going on to debut her feature We Were Dangerous as the Festival opener this year.

Comedian and TV regular Tom Furniss had a big night - claiming both the $4,000 Emerging Talent Award and the Audience Award for his film Rochelle, which comes with a $5000 credit for Panavision equipment hire and 25% of the box office from festival screenings in Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin. 

In the Ngā Whanaunga Māori Pasifika Shorts awards, experienced performer, producer, director and one of Te Pou Theatre's figureheads Tainui Tukiwaho's Chatterbox received the $1,000 Audience Award.

The Māori Pasifika Best Film was awarded earlier in the month, shared between directors Alex Liu (The Red Room) and Veialu Aila-Unsworth (Butterfly/Bataplai). 

As Liu states, “Filmmaking is hard mahi, and at times it can be tempting to throw in the towel and get a real 9-to-5, so to have your hard work received warmly is the best motivation to keep honing the craft and pushing forward.”

The Fresh Competition Main Award went to Truong Minh Quy for his film Viet and Nam (Mo Harawe's The Village Next to Paradise getting special mention) with the Frames strand - focussed on documentaries - won by Ibrahim Nash'at for his thought-proviking Hollywoodgate (Shiori Ito got both special mention and the Audience Award for Black Box Diaries). 

Word countdown

In a matter of days, Ōtautahi will be over-run with creativity.

WORD Christchurch begins on Tuesday (27 August - 1 September) with over 100 writers, creative minds and performers from New Zealand and around the world take to the streets, schools and theatres of the Garden City.

Executive Director Steph Walker declares the event - which will see 70 events over six days - will bea world-class festival.

“Over many years, WORD has developed a unique festival that shares books, stories, performance and community-minded events with our city. With over 20 percent of our programme being free to attend, WORD is for everyone.”

The festival opens with a celebration of Janet Frame - marking her 100th birthday by charging writers Catherine Taylor, Sasha LaPointe, Tayi Tibble, Talia Marshall, and Airana Ngarewa to reflect on Frame's quote ‘Imagination is a form of courage’ - and closes with Father's Day-themed events. 

Among the highlights imbetween will be a topical debate on whether AI is negatively impacting creativity and the written word (coming right on the heels of the report into AI and Music that has rung alarm bells), another quirky and thought-provoking contribution from award-winning multisensory artist Dr Jo Burzynska with Fragrant Texts (described as "a sniffable exploration of all things booky), the always popular Risky Women, Cabinet of Curiosities and The Savage Coloniser Show.