Editorial: Let's not all judge Stan-speak

C'mon yous fullas, lighten up. So X Factor judge Stan Walker says "yous".

Is that any worse than the American vernacular that has invaded our culture over the past few decades.

Wassup wid dat my homies?

Stan has copped flak on Twitter, after Sunday night's X Factor episode.

Walker's expressions - such as "yous done really well" and "don't let your nervous take over" - have been a hot topic on social media.

His unique vernacular was described as a "destruction of the English language", and one Tweeter asked "Can we get judges that speak proper English?".

The beauty of Stan, other than his voice, is that the Australian-born Maori has embraced his New Zealand side. And in doing so, he has replied to critics by saying: "To all the well-spoken people in Aotearoa, u will all need to learn a new english. Its called Hori lol. Cos thats basically all i speak haha".

With all due respect, he's wrong. He spoke te reo to one of the contestants this week.

And I didn't hear a single "yous" in there anywhere.

Our body language also defines us - my brother walked into a Rotorua bar in the 1990s to meet a group of fellow forestry students and tutors. One of them said to him "you're from up north?" because of the way my brother tilted his head back and raised his eyebrows when greeting the tutor. Cultural idiom should be embraced, like ta moko, it defines us. X Factor is not a speech contest - when Stan Walker sings, his phrasing and pronunciation is excellent.

So what if he speaks what he refers to as "hori", he sings like a bird.