Maori Music Chart and Music Royalties

Waiata Maori Awards

Press Release, August 3, 2010

Maori Music Chart and Music Royalties

The executive director of the 2010 Waiata Maori Awards (Maori Music Awards) Tama Huata has welcomed news a Maori Music Chart will be set up to play across the country’s 21 iwi radio stations.

He is also pleased to hear Phonographic Performances New Zealand (PPNZ) and Te Mangai Paho have agreed Maori artists and labels can receive royalties for the broadcast of their music on iwi stations.

PPNZ represents the copyright owners of sound recordings and TMP is the Maori Broadcasting Funding Agency. The two organizations recently announced they had come to an agreement which would allow royalties to be paid to artists and labels that create and control music playing on iwi radio stations.

The agreement meant an Iwi Radio Chart could be determined by regular collection of playlist data supplied by iwi radio stations to independent chart company Radioscope.

Mr Huata said it was a timely addition to the music industry as the National Waiata Maori Awards are just under a month away, where they will be held at the Hawke’s Bay Opera House in Hawke’s Bay.

“I have raised the issue of a Maori music chart with Te Mangai Paho recently and it’s great that they have been proactive about it,” he said.

Mr Huata said it was important Maori artists were able to have their music played on iwi radio stations, which he believed was the main vehicle for their work.

“I think the challenge now goes out to the radio stations to see how they will promote the Maori chart because it will bring a new dimension to the industry and for Maori radio.

“This is very timely for the Waiata Maori Awards and I am hoping to invite Te Mangai Paho to be part of our Maori Music Expo workshops during the awards, to talk about it is as well,” he said.

Mr Huata said he would encourage the iwi radio station network to not only think about a Maori music chart of top-ten hits, for example, but also perhaps one for “all-time greatest Maori artists”.

“It just takes a bit of thinking around how they are going to roll this out,” he said.

Mr Huata was also happy to hear Maori artists will be paid royalties for their work.

“The idea is to get their music played at as many stations as possible,” he said.

Waiata Maori Awards 2010

• The awards will include the Maori Music Expo, September 9 and 10, where modern and traditional musicians and composers will offer their advice and experience in a series of workshops and forums.
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• A fashion show will be held on the evening of September 9, mixing live music with work from prominent Hawke’s Bay designers.
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• The awards ceremony will be held on the evening of September 10, broadcast by Radio Kahungunu through the iwi station network and by Maori Television.
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• A hip-hop dance crew competition will be held on September 12.

ends

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