Regan Mathews, better known by his stage name Ta-ku, is an Australian musician, producer and photographer.

Life and career

Mathews was born and raised in the Australian city of

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

. He is half-

Filipino Filipino may refer to: * Something from or related to the Philippines ** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines. ** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...

, half-

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...

. Mathews attended high school at

John Curtin High School John Curtin College of the Arts, originally John Curtin High School, is an independent, public co-educational, partially selective high school, located in East Street, , a suburb of Perth, Western Australia. The school provides a general and ...

. Before he decided to focus on music, Mathews held a sales job at

Medibank Medibank Private Limited, better known as simply Medibank, is one of the largest Australian private health insurance providers, covering 3.7 million people in 2021. Medibank initially started as an Australian Government not-for-profit insurer i ...

for five years. Mathews' stage name "Ta-ku" is a nod to his Māori heritage. In 2008, an invite to the prestigious Red Bull Music Academy in

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

, taking counsel from the likes of

DJ Toomp Aldrin Davis (born August 2, 1969), professionally known as DJ Toomp, is an American record producer, songwriter, and DJ. DJ Toomp received his start in 1985, with Atlanta MC Raheem the Dream, producing Raheem’s self-titled record when he was ...

Chuck D Carlton Douglas Ridenhour (born August 1, 1960), known professionally as Chuck D, is an American rapper, best known as the leader and frontman of the hip hop group Public Enemy, which he co-founded in 1985 with Flavor Flav. Chuck D helped creat ...

Bun B Bernard James Freeman (born March 19, 1973), known professionally as Bun B, is an American rapper. He is best known as one half of the southern rap duo UGK (UnderGround Kingz), a group he formed in 1987 alongside Pimp C. Aside from his work with ...

, Omas Keith and

Dennis Coffey Dennis James Coffey (born November 11, 1940) is an American guitarist. He was a studio musician for many soul and R&B recordings, and is well known for his 1971 Top 10 hit single " Scorpio". Biography Coffey learned to play guitar at the ...

. The trip was a breakthrough moment for Ta-ku as he channeled his experience and new found motivation to liberate a slew of free beat tapes within months of his return. Shortly after flooding the internet with a diverse array of releases, his output was rewarded with subsequent collaborations involving CyHi Da Prynce (G.O.O.D music), John Robinson, Raashan Ahmad (Paper Chain labelmate), Joe Scudda,

Outasight Richard Andrew (born February 17, 1983), better known by his stage name Outasight, is an American singer-songwriter, rapper, and record producer born and raised in Yonkers, New York. Though he is considered a pop artist, he is influenced by oth ...

, Kid Daytona, Phil Ade, Raaka (

Dilated Peoples Dilated Peoples is an American hip hop group from Los Angeles, California. They have had little mainstream success in the US, with the exception of the song " This Way", a 2004 collaboration with Kanye West. Better known in the UK, they reached t ...

) amongst many others. Ta-ku's album ''Songs to Break Up To'' was released 8 October 2013. It peaked at No. 18 of the

ARIA In music, an aria (Italian: ; plural: ''arie'' , or ''arias'' in common usage, diminutive form arietta , plural ariette, or in English simply air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrumental or orchestral accompanime ...

Album Chart. Ta-ku has featured on Boiler Room and toured around Australia as part of Listen Out festival in 2014. In May 2015, Ta-ku was a Youth Speaker at TEDxSydney. Ta-ku made his U.S. live debut at New York's

MoMA PS1 MoMA PS1 is a contemporary art institution located in Court Square in the Long Island City neighborhood in the borough of Queens, New York City. In addition to its exhibitions, the institution organizes the Sunday Sessions performance series, th ...

in October 2015. In 2016, Ta-ku collaborated with singer songwriter

Wafia Wafia Al-Rikabi (born 4 August 1993), known professionally as Wafia, is an Australian singer-songwriter of Iraqi-Syrian origin. Originally studying biomedicine at university, she began to write songs to escape its monotony. Her breakthrough hit ...

to create the album '. Mathews was previously a co-owner of Weston's Barbershop in Northbridge and the fashion brand Team Cozy. In 2018, Mathews started a creative agency called Pretty Soon with friend Ben Wright. Pretty Soon has done work for

Red Bull Red Bull is a brand of energy drinks of Austria, Austrian company Red Bull GmbH. With 38% market share, it is the most popular energy drink brand as of 2019. Since its launch in 1987, more than 100 billion cans of Red Bull have been sold worldwid ...

, Puma,

Nike Nike often refers to: * Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory * Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment Nike may also refer to: People * Nike (name), a surname and feminine give ...

G-Star G-Star (sometimes also written G*STAR, G★ or G★STAR; ) is an annual trade show for the video game industry presented by Korea Association of Game Industry and Busan IT Promotion Agency in November. Originally held in the Seoul Capital Area ...

and

Apple An apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus domestica''). Apple fruit tree, trees are agriculture, cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus ''Malus''. The tree originated in Central Asia, wh ...

. From 11 February–6 March 2022, Ta-ku's ''Songs to Experience'' ran as part of the

Perth Festival Perth Festival, named Perth International Arts Festival (PIAF) between 2000 and 2017, and sometimes referred to as the Festival of Perth, is Australia's longest-running cultural festival, held annually in Western Australia. The program features ...

. The immersive music installation was a reflection of his forthcoming album of the same name.

Discography

Studio albums

EPs

Singles

As lead artist

As featured artist

Awards

AIR Awards

The Australian Independent Record Awards (commonly known informally as

AIR Awards The Australian Independent Record Awards (commonly known informally as AIR Awards) is an annual awards night to recognise, promote and celebrate the success of Australia's Independent Music sector. History The inaugural 2006 awards were held at ...

) is an annual awards night to recognise, promote and celebrate the success of Australia's Independent Music sector. , - ,

AIR Awards of 2014 The AIR Awards of 2014 (or Carlton Dry Independent Music Awards of 2014) is the ninth annual Australian Independent Record Labels Association Music Awards (generally known as the AIR Awards) and was an award ceremony at The Meat Market, North Me ...

, ''Songs to Break Up To'' , Best Independent Dance/Electronic Album , , - ,

AIR Awards of 2015 The AIR Awards of 2015 (or Carlton Dry Independent Music Awards of 2015) is the tenth annual Australian Independent Record Labels Association Music Awards (generally known as the AIR Awards) and was an award ceremony at The Meat Market, North Me ...

, ''Songs to Break Up to'' , Best Independent Dance/Electronic Album , , -

West Australian Music Industry Awards

The

West Australian Music Industry Awards The Western Australian Music Industry Awards (commonly known as WAMis) are annual awards presented to the local contemporary music industry, put on by the Western Australian Music Industry Association Inc (WAM). The WAMi Awards are Western Aust ...

(WAMIs) are annual awards presented to the local contemporary music industry, put on annually by the Western Australian Music Industry Association Inc (WAM). (wins only) , - , 2013 , Ta-ku (Regan Mathews) , Electronic Producer of the Year , , - , 2014 , Ta-ku (Regan Mathews) , Electronic Producer of the Year , , - , 2015 , Ta-ku (Regan Mathews) , Electronic Producer of the Year , , -

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ta-ku Year of birth missing (living people) Living people 21st-century Australian musicians Musicians from Perth, Western Australia Australian hip hop musicians Australian electronic musicians 21st-century Australian male musicians