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A campaign has been launched to take Māori music to the world.
MOHI, Jordyn with a Why, and HOPE have joined forces as 4 The Masses, “just a bunch of mates who make music,” they say, who want to “take reo Māori global.”
“All three artists have built their music careers on their shared belief in te reo Māori, its undeniable value and its place in the big wide world,” a press release states.
“They all have individual projects set to release later this year and have found collaboration to be the main ingredient when it comes to music creation and performance — with te reo Māori as their throughline.”
The trio of young artists are looking to their Māori predecessors who have made a significant global impact using their native language — Dame Hinewehei Mohi, Pātea Māori Club, Marlon Williams, and Alien Weaponry, to name just a few.
4 The Masses have just launched their debut campaign, ‘Reo Māori Is Global’, and it’s a big one.
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London is their desired destination, with Te Wiki o te reo Māori | Māori Language Week 2026 their target date. Two of their ambitious goals are to record at the city’s iconic Abbey Road Studios as well as perform a showcase at a London venue.
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Before they land in the English capital, 4 The Masses are touring through Kura Kaupapa and Wānanga (Māori language full immersion education), to the places that have the most impact on the revitalisation of te reo Māori. As Jordyn says, “In order to be global, you gotta be local!”
The launch of 4 The Masses comes after two of its creators made headlines and found opportunities through using their native language.
MOHI got to open for English star Loyle Carner on tour last year after he posted a te reo version of Carner’s single “Ottoleghi”.
Earlier this year, Jordyn with a Why started posting te reo versions of the songs of another English star, Olivia Dean, as part of an ambitious pitch to open for her upcoming Aotearoa concert in October.
A particular highlight was her te reo rendition of “Man I Need”, which we previously covered on Rolling Stone AU/NZ. At the time of writing, Jordyn’s version has been viewed over 3 million times across social media platforms.
Follow 4 The Masses’ campaign here.
