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Te Whanau a Apanui musician, Rob Ruha,
has released his latest song, Tiki Tapu.
Rob Ruha joins me now from Rotorua
to talk about his second single and his new album.
It appears Tiki Tapu is a success?
This morning I read that it reached number one
on the NZ World Charts for iTunes.
It's going from strength to strength.
What is Tiki Tapu about?
I wrote it about 10 years ago,
and it's about the different parts of the facial moko.
There's also a message to encourage Maori men to wear moko,
and not to let it be relegated to the pages of history
for generations to come.
You've already released two singles,
will there be more to be released on your upcoming album?
Those are the singles.
At the end of March
the rest of the songs will be released.
There are four songs yet to be released for my debut EP.
That's the plan.
Are you working on another album?
Yes, I've started composing songs for another album.
That's what I'm doing at the moment
now that I'm not focusing on the Mataatua kapa haka regionals.
I'm working on another project.
How do you compose your songs?
Sometimes it's in the words,
other times I get the melody first
or the subject.
So I can't really say 'this is the process I undergo'.
It's all inspiration.
For some famous composers they can release songs quite fast
while others it takes a bit more time between releases.
Are you the same?
I definitely do that.
And I think the songs that are quick to write
are the best ones.
Is this a career that you'd like to pursue seriously into the future?
Yes, definitely.
This is something I want to pursue,
that I'm passionate about.
Maisey Rika, Ria Hall, and Tama Waipara
have all been encouraging me,
so I'd like to acknowledge them for their support.
Do you have any plans of collaborating with others?
Possibly in the future!
Perhaps for my next album.
Congratulations on your single making it to the top.
Rob Ruha, thank you for joining us.