ALLANA GOLDSMITH RELEASES HOATA - A STIRRING CELEBRATION OF PURPOSE AND WISDOM THIS AOTEAROA MUSIC MONTH
"HOATA is a song of inspiration using our Māori sayings, and our relationships with our ways of living and being," says ALLANA. "‘HOATA’ is a moon phase when the moon is small…. It's a good day with energy for mahi."
As Aotearoa Music Month wraps up, Māori singer-songwriter ALLANA Goldsmith shares her breathtaking new single HOATA - a waiata born from the maramataka, steeped in ancestral wisdom, and guided by the whakataukī of those who walked before us. The single marks the final instalment of her Te Māngai Pāho-funded reo Māori trilogy.
Co-written during Reo Māori SongHubs ki Pōneke, the waiata features contributions from Tawaroa Kawana (mātanga reo), AJA, Thomas Te Taite (producer/engineer), and ALLANA herself. Its lyrics are woven with whakataukī that speak to intention, effort, and the pursuit of one’s goals.
"The chorus uses the whakataukī ‘He manako te kōura i kore ai’ meaning, ‘a crayfish won’t jump in your net just because you wish it in there’. It’s about doing the mahi " - ALLANA
The single is released alongside a beautiful black-and-white music video, directed by Shivani Karan. Visually rooted in the energy of the hoata moon, the video brings to life the tension and harmony found in the maramataka, where movement mirrors the moon's pull.
"It’s a dance between the music and the moon phase," says ALLANA. "The waiata was written in this phase, a time of clarity and movement, I wanted the video to reflect that energy”
A graceful close to Aotearoa Music Month, HOATA is now available on all streaming platforms.