Ka Hao is a New Zealand youth choir that formed in 2019. Coming from Te Tairāwhiti / Gisborne District, the group performs music in the

Māori language Māori (), or ('the Māori language'), also known as ('the language'), is an Eastern Polynesian language spoken by the Māori people, the indigenous population of mainland New Zealand. Closely related to Cook Islands Māori, Tuamotuan, and ...

. In 2020 the group won the Mana Reo Award at the

2020 Aotearoa Music Awards The 2020 Aotearoa Music Awards was the 55th holding of the annual ceremony, renamed the Aotearoa Music Awards featuring awards for musical recording artists based in or originating from New Zealand. It took place on 15 November 2020 at Spark Are ...

, as a part of the supergroup Mōhau. In 2021 the group released their debut single " 35", which after gaining popularity through

TikTok TikTok, known in China as Douyin (), is a short-form video hosting service owned by the Chinese company ByteDance. It hosts user-submitted videos, which can range in duration from 15 seconds to 10 minutes. TikTok is an international version ...

was one of the most successful songs performed in Māori during

Te Wiki o te Reo Māori ( en, Māori Language Week) 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 ...

2021.

Background

Ka Hao formed in Te Tairāwhiti / Gisborne District, as a project to promote and revitalise te Reo Māori. The group's name refers to the proverb ''ka pū te ruha, ka hao te rangatahi'' (as the old fishing net is worn, a new one is made), referring to youth growing up and entering adulthood. The approximately 24 members attended

Kura Kaupapa Māori Kura Kaupapa Māori are Māori-language immersion schools () in New Zealand where the philosophy and practice reflect Māori cultural values with the aim of revitalising Māori language, knowledge and culture. Kura kaupapa Māori are establish ...

(immersion schools), and many are

Ngāti Porou Ngāti Porou is a Māori iwi traditionally located in the East Cape and Gisborne regions of the North Island of New Zealand. Ngāti Porou is affiliated with the 28th Maori Battalion and has the second-largest affiliation of any iwi in New Zealand ...

, while all have strong ties to te Tairāwhiti. Ka Hao first performed in October 2019 as a part of the Te Tairāwhiti Arts Festival. In January 2020, the group released a live album of gospel waiata in te Reo, as a part of the supergroup Mōhau. The album won the Te Māngai Pāho Mana Reo Award and the Best Worship Artist Te Kaipuoro Kairangi Toa award at the

. Ka Hao released their debut single " 35" in September 2021, a song that references State Highway 35. The song, featuring Rob Ruha, gained popularity during

in 2021 after the song became popular on

. The group released their debut album ''Ka Hao: One Tira, One Voice'' on 17 September, after being mentored by Anglican bishop

Don Tamihere Donald Steven Tamihere (born 1972) is Te Pīhopa o Te Tairāwhiti (Bishop of Te Tairāwhiti). He was ordained as a bishop in March 2017, succeeding Archbishop Brown Turei. Donald is also Bishop of Aotearoa Head of the Maori Anglican Church & Pr ...

, musician Rob Ruha and music manager Cilla Ruha. Ka Hao were later featured on one of the singles preceding singer Rob Ruha's album ''Preservation of Scenery''.

Discography

Studio albums

Singles

As lead artist

As featured artist

Other charted songs

Guest appearances

References

{{Authority control 2019 establishments in New Zealand Musical groups established in 2019 Māori-language singers New Zealand choirs New Zealand Māori musical groups New Zealand Māori singers Ngāti Porou People from Gisborne, New Zealand Te Whānau-ā-Apanui