There's been a lot of chat recently about ways to help Te Reo Māori stay alive and grow.
Several Kiwi musicians are making it their mission to keep the language alive in a modern and contemporary way.
Geneva Alexander-Marsters says she wants people to enjoy the language as much as she does.
"I learnt it at school, through Rumaki Reo. And the waiata that I sing with SoccerPractise are actually adaptations of songs I learnt at school, because I'm kind of desperately clinging onto my language," she told Newshub.
The works of SoccerPractise aren't your usual waiata but mixing things up is kind of the point.
"Embrace it however you want. And however you can without, you know, compromising the mana of Te Reo. Obviously I'm doing it out of respect, but I'm also chopping and changing it and stuff," Alexander-Marsters says.
Seth Haapu is another musician who uses song to help keep kaupapa Māori, and his own whakapapa, alive.
Discovering a long lost piece of sheet music belonging to his late grandfather only adds to its importance.
"An artist's story really does add to the authenticity in their music. So definitely for me, being Māori, it's a huge part," he told Newshub.
On top of his own records, he mentors young Māori looking for a career in music, and likes what he sees.
"Keeping the quality of Te Reo Maori, and also shifting it into this new dynamic of this contemporary music that they're using - so that excites me to see more of that happening," he said.
Newshub.
