Music reflects the power of youth

By ALAN PERROTT

Scribe, Deceptikonz, Mareko, SirVere: The line-up for this week's Pasifika Festival would have been a hit at Big Day Out.

Pasifika, the huge Polynesian festival now in its eleventh year, is changing from a day for traditional cultures to one for a local, younger and urban culture.

The event, expanded over three days and including a new "Voices of the Future" concert on Sunday, is expected to draw between 140,000 and 200,000 people.

The changes reflect wider changes within Polynesian culture, says Phil Bell, aka hip hop guru DJSirVere, who will be making his first festival appearance.

"We've had headliners like Te Vaka who are great performers on a purely cultural level. Now the youth cultural perspective is quite different," he said.

"Hip hop is not an entirely New Zealand art form, and you can ask questions as to how culturally relevant it is, but it is to this generation and that's all that matters."

The emergence of overt Polynesian pride has featured increasing interest in traditional tattooing styles and fashion, such as King Kapisi's "Overstayer" T-shirts which turned a historic stigma on its head.

Pasifika will still have its nine cultural "villages" - including Cook Islands, Fijian, Samoan and Tongan.

But much of the expansion has come from the boom in local acts.

In recognition of the pulling power of headliners such as Scribe, the Air New Zealand contemporary stage this year moves inside Western Springs Stadium.

All performers will share the same stage, sound and lighting setup to be used by Meatloaf and the Auckland Philharmonia on Sunday.

The changes reflect the evolving demographics of the Pacific population, now 13 per cent of Auckland's total population.

Some 97 per cent of islanders in New Zealand live in cities, mainly in Auckland.

After the wave of immigration in the 1960s and 1970s, more than six in every 10 Pacific people are now born here - shifting the cultural centre of gravity.

They are also young, with a median age of 21, according to the 2001 census, compared to the national average of 35.

That makes Pacific Island youth a significant group with enough purchasing power to determine musical tastes and fashions.

Rapper Scribe, a Christchurch-raised Samoan, had a number-one hit single, Stand Up, just three weeks after its release. It sat at number one for 10 weeks last year and was swiftly joined at the top by his debut album, The Crusader.

This week Dawn Raid Entertainment, the youthful South Auckland music and clothing company named after the police raids on Pacific overstayers in the 1970s, has taken its stable of artists like Deceptikonz and Mareko on a nationwide tour before they appear at Pasifika.

"Hands down, this is the best and highest-profile line-up Pasifika has ever had," said Pasifika entertainment director Thelo Meleisea.

"To be blunt, the calibre of local artists has come a step up. But it's only further up from here. I'd love to see what it will look like in 20 years' time. It's a watch-this-space thing."

While the festival's cultural element remains important, the musical side has grown swiftly over the past five years, increasing domestic and international interest.

It has already proved a worthy launching pad for artists and helped launch Nesian Mystik.

For many artists, Pasifika is a rare chance to unite under an all-Polynesian banner.

"So we want to present what we are doing at the highest level we can," said Mr Meleisea.

"Every time we step up and advocate for our people we must do our best. There is so much negative stuff out there, but by the end of the festival we want everyone to feel proud about being a Pacific Islander.

" Our culture will still be there, but there's room for the new stuff as well."

THE FESTIVAL

Where: Western Springs Stadium and Lakeside.

What: A celebration of Pacific culture with concerts, stalls, comedy, traditional performances and workshops.

When: Friday, 7.30-9.30pm: opening night concert.

Saturday, 9am-6pm: festival day.

Sunday, 2pm-4pm: free Voices of the Future concert.

Who: Up to 200,000 people expected to attend over the three days.

Who's going to play?

Scribe (hip hop)

Deceptikonz (hip hop)

Katchafire (reggae)

Adeaze (R n B)

Mareko (hip hop)

Kat Theo (R n B)

Trey (hip hop)

The Artistry (jazz funk)

Herald Feature: Pasifika Festival

Auckland City Pasifika Festival webpage