Tiki Taane (born 17 December 1976) is a New Zealand musician, experimentalist, musical activist, producer, and live engineer. He was a member of leading New Zealand band Salmonella Dub but left after eleven years on 1 January 2007 to pursue a solo career.[1] His debut album, Past, Present, Future, was released on 22 October 2007 in New Zealand and has since gone two times platinum, achieving a number one single, "Always on My Mind", which became the first digital single to reach platinum sales and also held the record by staying in the NZ Top 40 Charts for 55 weeks. Taane is also the exclusive live sound engineer for New Zealand drum and bass act Shapeshifter since their first gig in 1999. Taane has also produced multi platinum albums for bands such as Six60, Shapeshifter, Salmonella Dub and Tiki Taane.
Taane was born on 17 December 1976.[2] In 1996, he was asked to become live soundman to Christchurch band Salmonella Dub, who were near becoming one of New Zealand's most popular acts.[citation needed] Through this role, he began to earn himself a reputation for his ability to bring a powerful live sound to using a variety of equipment at a diverse set of venues.[citation needed]
During this time, he stopped playing regularly with metal bands he had previously been associated with, Cultivation and Braaspadeak.[citation needed] While on tour with Salmonella Dub, Taane had composed a dub-reggae track in his hotel room. Once he shared it with the group, they recorded it straight away.[citation needed] Taane and his whānau and friends set to work making a music video featuring Taane on tour at The Gathering that year. This track, "For the Love of It", shot into the New Zealand charts and became a summertime anthem. He became faced with not only being soundman for the band, but also that he was expected to perform his hit song at Salmonella Dub's live performances.[citation needed]
In both 1998 and 1999, Taane won the Best Live Audio Engineer award at the NZ bNet awards and though in popular demand, it was clear that his success lay with his friends Salmonella Dub. Also winning an award for Best Song for 'For the Love of It', Taane's confidence grew in his song-writing abilities and so he went on to create more hits.[citation needed] By 2000, Taane was beginning to spend the majority of the Dub gigs mixing the first part of the set, then jumping on stage to perform. Salmonella Dub went on to tour extensively, mainly Australia, UK and Europe, cutting their way through festivals and sell out shows while setting up a touring circuit which would be later used by other up and coming New Zealand acts.[citation needed]
Taane played his final gig with Salmonella Dub on New Year's Eve 2006.[citation needed]
Describing his decision to leave Salmonella Dub, Taane said, "I felt like it was time to take a break from Salmonella Dub." He described his time since leaving Salmonella Dub as "very lonely" and "very intense".[3] Describing the band in an interview after the release of his album, Taane said, "I have so much love and respect for (Salmonella Dub) because if it wasn't for them I wouldn't be where I am now. I wouldn't be here."[3]
Past, Present, Future
His debut solo record Past, Present, Future was released 22 October 2007 and debuted at #9. The album's first official solo single, "Always on My Mind", was released 28 April 2008. The song has been certified 2× Platinum and made it to #1 in New Zealand, knocking Chris Brown off the top spot after a seven-week reign. The song spent nineteen non-consecutive weeks in the top ten, including two weeks at number one, and a total of 55 weeks in the chart so far which holds the record for being in the charts the longest.[4] "Always on My Mind" has also become the most successful single of all time in New Zealand, landing at number one on the Best of All Time Singles Chart, a chart that has been tracking singles since 1994. The title was previously held by "Bathe in the River" by Hollie Smith.[5]
Past, Present, Future has also been certified Platinum in New Zealand and peaked at number four. The album was certified 2× Platinum after fifty-five weeks, selling over 30,000 copies. It has so far spent over sixty-six weeks in the chart.
Use of music by Pete Bethune
Before taking out his vessel Ady Gil on an anti-whaling "cruise" to the Southern Ocean with an international marine conservation organisation, Pete Bethune noted that he had installed a large set of speakers, and intended to play songs like "Tangaroa" from Tiki Taane to the whalers, describing it as a "growling big sort of a song about the God of the Sea who looks after us."[6]
Legal issues
On 10 April 2011, Taane was arrested on charges of "disorderly behaviour likely to cause violence to start or continue" while performing "Fuck tha Police" by American group N.W.A at a gig in Tauranga.[7] On his web site, Taane posted the message, "Freedom of speech is a human right."[8] Tiki later stated that he "loves police" and was "not angry with them" even though the arrest goes against the NZ Bill of Rights Act 1990. Taane said that "the song is about corrupt Police who abuse their position of power for their own agendas, and to be arrested for singing it is very ironic."[9]
On 13 April Tiki told Marcus Lush on Radio Live that the lyrics often feature in his performances and his arrest came as a complete surprise, considering there was no trouble or violence within the concert.[10] The arrest created a debate about freedom of speech that became political when Tauranga MP Simon Bridges said "Tiki Taane is a disgrace and I hope he never plays Tauranga again." Senior police stated they supported the arresting officers' actions, and are confident they acted appropriately.[11] But in early September, the charges against Taane were dropped by police, calling the incident a "misunderstanding" after mediation; charges remained against promoter Patricio Alvarez-Riveros from the same incident.[12] Taane later invited the Tauranga Police to perform with him at the 2011 Vodafone NZ Music Awards at Auckland's Vector Arena, where he was nominated for three awards & won, but they declined.[13] Taane was instead given permission by the police to borrow 4 police-issued uniforms to be used in his awards performance in which Taane's friends dressed up to re-enact the controversial arrest.[14]
↑ "Thank tha police... Tiki charges dropped". nzherald.co.nz. 5 September 2011. Retrieved 5 September 2011. Mr Wright-St Clair said police had approached Mr Taane to seek a mediation which allowed both sides to openly express their views on how the events had unfolded.
↑ "Police turn down spot at awards". nzherald.co.nz. 30 October 2011. Retrieved 30 October 2011. It's understood Taane last week put out an olive branch to the boys in blue. He invited police from Tauranga to join him at the Vodafone NZ Music Awards at Auckland's Vector Arena on Thursday to perform his single Freedom To Sing, a track inspired by his brush with authorities.
The music of New Zealand has been influenced by a number of traditions, including Māori music, the music introduced by European settlers during the nineteenth century, and a variety of styles imported during the twentieth century, including blues, jazz, country, rock and roll, reggae, and hip hop, with many of these genres given a unique New Zealand interpretation.
Salmonella Dub is a dub/drum n bass/reggae/roots band from New Zealand. The band was formed in 1992 by Andrew Penman, Dave Deakins, and Mark Tyler. The band has toured extensively throughout New Zealand, Australia, and Europe, including the UK and Ireland.
Sir David Joseph Dobbyn is a New Zealand musician, singer–songwriter and record producer. In his early career he was a member of the rock group Th' Dudes and was the main creative force in pop band DD Smash. Since then he has released the majority of his recordings as a solo performer.
Malo Ioane Luafutu, also called Jeshua Ioane Luafutu, and better known by his stage name Scribe, is a New Zealand rapper of Samoan descent. He achieved two solo number ones on the singles chart from his debut album, The Crusader, which was released in 2003 in New Zealand and later certified four times platinum. He also reached number one as a featured artist on P-Money's 2004 song "Stop the Music", and in 2010 on R&B singer J.Williams' single "You Got Me".
Te Wiki o te Reo Māori is a government-sponsored initiative intended to encourage New Zealanders to promote the use of the Māori language which is an official language of the country. Māori Language Week is part of a broader movement to revive the Māori language. It has been celebrated since 1975 and is currently spearheaded by Te Puni Kōkiri and the Māori Language Commission, with many organisations including schools, libraries, and government departments participating.
"Fuck tha Police" is a protest song by American hip hop group N.W.A that appears on the 1988 album Straight Outta Compton as well as on the N.W.A's Greatest Hits compilation. The lyrics protest police brutality and racial profiling and the song was ranked number 425 on Rolling Stone's 2004 list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. In 2021, Rolling Stone re-ranked the song at number 190 in an updated list.
Shapeshifter are a live drum and bass act from New Zealand. They are known for their live shows and blend of heavy soul with drum and bass. They have made appearances at Glastonbury, The Big Chill, Big Day Out, Parklife plus sold-out performances across Europe, Australia and New Zealand.
The Exponents, formerly The Dance Exponents, is a New Zealand rock group led by vocalist and songwriter Jordan Luck.
Past, Present, Future is New Zealand based musician Tiki Taane's platinum selling debut solo album. It features a fusion of Taane’s trademark bass-heavy production with traditional Māori instrumentation, a style which Taane describes as “punk dub meets tangatawhenua”.
"Always On My Mind" is a single by the New Zealand singer Tiki Taane. It was released as the first single from Taane's first solo album, Past, Present, Future. It reached number one on the New Zealand Singles Chart.
JoFF Rae is the pseudonym of a New Zealand event producer, designer & artist.
The 2009 New Zealand Music Awards was the 44th holding of the annual ceremony featuring awards for musical artists based in or originating from New Zealand. Finalists for the three technical awards were announced on 6 August 2009, with winners announced on 2 September at the Langham Hotel. Finalists for 14 'non-technical' categories were also revealed the same night. Five 'non-technical' awards were presented without a group of finalists being selected. The awards ceremony took place on 8 October 2009 at Vector Arena, Auckland. Broadcast live on television by C4, the ceremony was hosted by comedian Dai Henwood.
Six60 is a New Zealand pop rock band formed in Dunedin, Otago in 2008. The band consists of Matiu Walters, Ji Fraser, Chris Mac, Marlon Gerbes (synthesiser), Hoani Matenga and Eli Paewai (drums).
Avalanche City is the stage name of indie folk musician Dave Baxter from Auckland, New Zealand. He is best known for his 2011 New Zealand No. 1 single "Love, Love, Love" and his 2015 single Inside Out, which also charted at No. 1. In 2011, Dave Baxter was awarded the APRA Silver Scroll and nominated for three New Zealand Music Awards, including Breakthrough Artist of the Year, Song of the Year and Album of the Year.
The bNet NZ Music Awards was an annual New Zealand music award presentation organised by New Zealand student radio network bNet from 1998 to 2007.
The Adults is a "collaborative name" used for two different recording projects led by New Zealand musician and Shihad frontman Jon Toogood. The first iteration of the Adults was a New Zealand rock supergroup that released a self-titled album in 2011. In 2018 a completely different set of musicians performed on Haja, an album that blended Aghani Al-Banat with New Zealand hip hop.
The Official New Zealand Music Chart is the weekly New Zealand top 40 singles and albums charts, issued weekly by Recorded Music NZ. The Music Chart also includes the top-20 New Zealand artist singles and albums and top 10 compilation albums. All charts are compiled from data of both physical and digital sales from music retailers in New Zealand.
Benjamin Tipene is a New Zealand singer-songwriter and musician. He is known for his appearance on the first New Zealand series of The X Factor where he was the last contestant eliminated Competing in the Boys category, he was mentored by Ruby Frost. His debut single "Walking on Water" was released on 29 July 2013 and debuted at number two on the Official New Zealand Music Chart and was certified platinum.
Ria Hall is a Māori recording artist and presenter on Maori TV's AIA Marae DIY in 2012-13.
"In the Air" is a song by New Zealand band L.A.B., released as a single from their album L.A.B. III in November 2019. The song topped the charts in New Zealand, becoming the most successful single of 2020 in the country.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
