Music Industry News

NZ On Air and Te Māngai Pāho have once again collaborated on this year’s Waiata Takitahi funding round. The purpose of this round is to support billingual waiata (with at least 25% te reo Māori lyrics) that has the potential to find a home on mainstream playlists and contribute to the normalisation and wellbeing of te reo Māori for online and broadcast audiences.
The Waiata Takitahi round is open now until 4pm on Thursday 30 October 2025. Artists from all backgrounds are encouraged to participate, but it is required that the use of te reo Māori in the song is reviewed by a te reo Māori language consultant (mātanga reo) to ensure quality and contextual relevance in the waiata.

Funding of up to $15,000 is available to put towards the costs of recording a single song, making video content, promotion of the single and engaging a te reo Māori consultant. It also includes a mandatory $1,000 Artist Creation Fee to cover the artist’s creative work on the project.

You can read further information on the Waiata Takitahi round at the link here, or begin your application at newmusicsingles.nzonair.govt.nz

If you have any questions about the Waiata Takitahi round, we recommend you check out the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) and detailed Criteria List before applying.

The application process includes working your way through a list of 25 criteria options focused on your music journey and audience engagement to date. Waiata Takitahi applicants will need to have achieved at least 5 of the 25 criteria options to proceed to the application stage.

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