Written by student and band member, Kalita Tautaiolevao 

Smokefree Tangata Beats is a live, original music, nationwide, youth event created to share the musical talents/insights of our Pasifika and Māori students. It is an event where students from around New Zealand write their own songs and produce their own type of music while displaying their cultural values. The competition includes many opportunities such as getting your very own song produced professionally or even being scouted. It is an amazing thing to be part of and a great opportunity for our students to grow their knowledge of music in Aotearoa.

On the 27th of June our school band 4worty2wos led by Tony Ese, had the great opportunity to perform on stage their two original songs “Leader” and “We Friends Tho”. They performed at the Regional Finals at the Due Drops Centre in Manukau. Despite being the only ones from West Auckland we were able to represent the whole of West Auckland and make our parents proud as well as the school.

The competition was fierce and even though we did not place we are still winners in the eyes of our families and the staff that went to support us. The Band was one of the biggest bands at the event consisting of 9 members which are Tony Ese (Guitar 1), Dahil Ese (Drums), Junior Lito (Ukulele), Michael Demeter (Keyboard), Gavin Venu Masina (Bass), Elisha Opetaia (Guitar 2), Sana Taefu Tia (Vocal) Annika Schwalger (Vocal) and Kalita Tautaiolevao (Vocal).

“It was a great and fun experience for me, it has really helped me learn more about music and embracing my culture” - Dahil Ese
“It was cool” - Elisha Opetaia
“It was a really cool experience, I really enjoyed watching the other amazing bands perform. Definitely a night to remember” - Junior Lito
“I really enjoyed being part of this band as it helped me learn new things such as how to structure a song and write one. Even though the process was a very long and hard one and the results not as we expected, I'm still proud and happy to be part of this amazing band and growing my knowledge of music within my culture. “LEaDeR~” - Kalita Tautaiolevao

Special thanks to the Band managers Mr and Mrs Ese (Tony and Dahils parents) for taking good care of the band and looking after 9 students, it is most definitely not an easy job!  Another special thanks to Miss Iripa, Ms Passi and Mr Nightingale as well as many other teachers who helped this band grow and supported us every step of the way.
Also a special thank you goes to our mentor Jesse Sheehan from the Aotearoa School of Music and Hilma (Tony and Dahils Aunty) for tutoring our band and helping our band prepare for the Regional Finals.