FOCUS Wales is hosting a powerful cultural exchange between Wales and Aotearoa New Zealand this week, as three celebrated Māori recording artists take the stage at venues across Wrexham from 8–10 May. The festival - which drew record crowds of over 20,000 in 2024 - is spotlighting a unique musical bridge between two nations on journeys building understanding, respect and solidarity around language.
This cultural exchange is made possible through collaboration between the British Council in New Zealand and in Wales, APRA AMCOS, Creative New Zealand, New Zealand Music Commission | Te Reo Reka o Aotearoa, Prosiect Pūtahitanga (Cardiff University Research Project), Wales Arts International, Arts Council of Wales, and British High Commission Wellington.
The musicians from Aotearoa New Zealand will make connections with Welsh contemporaries and other artists from around the world. The featured artists are MOHI, who blends Te Reo Māori storytelling with contemporary urban influences; Jordyn with a Why, known for her bilingual compositions that bridge traditional and modern sounds; and MĀ, with a distinctly Indigenous blend of abstract down-tempo rap, D.I.Y neo-soul and lush ambient music. Each will perform two sets throughout the three-day festival supported by band members and will represent Aotearoa New Zealand for a panel discussion exploring music as a platform for expressing language and culture.
The collaboration began as Prosiect Pūtahitanga, a Cardiff University research project, exploring points of connection between popular music artists who use minority or indigenous languages in Cymru and Aotearoa, and Wales Arts International supported Welsh band CHROMA to travel to Aotearoa with the research project. This work laid the foundation for the Māori-Cymraeg SongHub project, which took Welsh musicians including Georgia Ruth, Cat Southall, and Carwyn Ellis to Aotearoa New Zealand to collaborate with Māori artists. Supported by the British Council in New Zealand and the Pacific, and hosted by APRA AMCOS NZ, the project aimed to connect artists from both countries and advance the understanding and usage of both languages.
FOCUS Wales will showcase more than 250 artists across 20 stages throughout the city, complemented by interactive industry panels, networking events, and film screenings.
The visiting artists will perform at GlyndwrTV on Thursday, 8 May, with Jordyn with a Why, MOHI, and MĀ each delivering 20-minute sets. On Saturday, 10 May, all three artists will perform longer 30-minute sets at Hope Street Church.
A highlight of the collaboration will be Saturday's FOCUS Panel discussion, Prosiect Pūtahitanga, Cardiff University Presents: Reflections on Music and Language in Cymru and Aotearoa, exploring topics including musical trends in non-English language music, questions of cultural authenticity, tensions around genre and language, and how language can transcend genre barriers.
The Aotearoa: New Zealand Networking Reception, hosted by Cardiff University at Hope Street Church on Saturday evening, will provide further opportunities for cultural exchange and professional connections.
Eluned Haf, Head of Wales Arts International said: “We are thrilled to be continuing our support for cultural exchange between Māori artists and Wales. With one language disappearing every two weeks globally, and the Welsh language itself at a critical point, falling below 20% of speakers, our Gwrando/Listening programme as part of the United Nations Decade of Indigenous Languages, has supported Welsh artists to connect with Indigenous languages and cultures from around the world, aiming to build bridges of understanding, respect, and solidarity aligned with Wales’ Wellbeing of Future Generations Act. It is fantastic to support this through music at Focus Wales.”
Andy Jones, co-founder and music programmer for the FOCUS Wales showcase festival said: "Hosting these talented Māori artists at our festival is at the heart of what FOCUS Wales stands for—creating meaningful connections across borders through music. The Welsh and Māori languages have had similar journeys, and it will be great to see a celebration of this heritage and connection. We're thrilled to provide a platform at Focus Wales where these cultural conversations can happen."
Ruth Cocks, Director, British Council Wales, said:
"The shared journey of revitalising Cymraeg and Te Reo Māori through music is a powerful reminder of how language and culture can thrive through creativity. Events like FOCUS Wales break down borders—geographical and cultural—allowing artists to connect, collaborate, and inspire one another. We're honoured to welcome these remarkable musicians to Wrexham and proud to support the connections they’ll make, not just between Wales and Aotearoa New Zealand, but across the global creative community."
Dr Elen Ifan, Lecturer at the School of Welsh, Cardiff University, said: "This cultural exchange represents a unique opportunity to explore the points of connection between musical communities that use minority and indigenous languages in Wales and Aotearoa New Zealand. Music can be a powerful medium for cultural expression, and through initiatives like this we can better understand how language use in popular music intersects with a sense of community and language ownership across different cultural contexts. Prosiect Pūtahitanga is proud to be part of this collaboration and to host discussions that will deepen our understanding of language use in these contemporary contexts."
To find out more about connections between Wales and Aotearoa New Zealand and the Maori/Cymraeg Songhubs project, you can tune the British Council’s new podcast series Breaking Boundaries. Natasha Beckman, Director British Council New Zealand and the Pacific speaks about the origins of the project with host and acclaimed Welsh musician Georgia Ruth. Georgia also reflects on her experience travelling to Aotearoa New Zealand to work with leading Māori artists and with acclaimed producer Greg Haver: Breaking Boundaries, Series Two, Episode one | Music across oceans.
The Artists
Images: Musicians from Aotearoa New Zealand performing at FOCUS Wales. L-R: MĀ Photo | Credit Brandon Te Moananui. | Jordyn with a Why | Photo credit Luke Penney. Mohi | Photo credit Luke Penney.
MOHI [Ngāti Kahungunu ki Te Wairoa Ngāpuhi | Te Rarawa | Ngāi Te Rangi]: an award-winning artist from Henderson, West Auckland, MOHI blends Te Reo Māori, traditional Māori storytelling, English lyrics, and urban influences to create a unique sound. With whakapapa connecting him to Te Tai Tokerau, Tauranga Moana, and Ngāti Kahungunu ki Te Wairoa, his work is deeply rooted in his Māori heritage. Since launching his solo career in 2020, MOHI has become a household name with chart- topping hits. His latest project, The Flowers That Grow From Concrete Pavements, features two singles that topped the NZ Music Singles Charts in 2024. MOHI won Best Te Reo Māori Album and Best Male Artist at the 2024 Māori Music Awards, was nominated for multiple awards at the 2024 Aotearoa Music Awards and has been nominated for Te Māngai Pāho Te Manu Taki Māori o te Tau | Best Māori Artist at the 2025 Aotearoa Music Awards. He also won the APRA Maioha Award for “Me Pēhea Rā.” MOHI will perform at the FOCUS International Showcase Festival in Wales, UK, showcasing his captivating live performance.
Jordyn with a Why: [Tainui Āwhiro | Vaimoso, Samoa Mulifanua Lalovi FalelataiI] Jordyn Fuala’au Awatea Rapana is from Tainui Āwhiro in Whāingaroa on her dad’s side and Mulifanua Lalovi, Falelatai, and Vaimoso in Samoa on her mum’s side. Growing up mainly in South Auckland, Jordyn has strong ties to her family homestead in Ōtara. In recent years, she’s been on a journey to reclaim her reo Māori, a journey that has also invigorated her music career and inspired her songwriting. She was the winner of the 2024 Maioha Award at the Silver Scrolls for 'He Rei Niho' and has been nominated for the Te Māngai Pāho Mana Reo / Best Māori Song and Te Māngai Pāho Te Manu Taki Māori o te Tau | Best Māori Artist awards at the 2025 Aotearoa Music Awards. Now, Jordyn juggles her mahi as a reo Māori teacher with a busy music career, enabling her to showcase bilingual music to a growing audience.
MĀ: [Ngāi Tūhoe, Ngāti Raukawa, Ngāti Porou] Somewhere between a singer, rapper, spoken word poet, beatmaker, producer and band leader, MĀ is an autodidact Māori musician and artist from Te Whanganui-a-Tara, Aotearoa. Since releasing her self-produced debut album, Breakfast With Hades, she has been celebrated by Radio New Zealand, Rolling Stone, and Vice, toured with Avantdale Bowling Club, and opened for Ice Cube, Souls of Mischief, Clear Path Ensemble, and Homebrew. Over the last three years, MĀ has won over audiences around her home country with a distinctly Indigenous blend of abstract down-tempo rap, D.I.Y neo-soul and lush ambient music. Born from grief, self love and an attentive awareness of the natural world, her songs value te taiao / nature, whakapapa / genealogy, manaakitanga / respect and generosity, humour and emotional honesty.