Hīnaki

Tauranga-born MC Nikora Edwards, aka Swizl Jager, enjoys a freewheeling approach to making music, using "whatever I want, whenever I want". He calls 'Hīnaki', his track for the Waiata Anthems series, a "reo rua rap"; it mixes both English and te reo Māori to communicate his world view. Jager uses bilingual lyrics to uplift the reo and make his tracks accessible to a wide audience. 'Hīnaki' opens with a metaphor of emerging from "the trenches", and with each verse Jager asserts himself, sure of his identity and motivations. In this video Jager is upfront, mic in hand, delivering his rap in a domestic setting. 

We've been telling people to learn te reo for ages. Yelling at people doesn't really get the job done, you know, so I started making my reo raps or my "reo rua raps" ...like, I think that's what people connected with.

– Swizl Jager on mixing te reo and English in his raps, in his 2023 Waiata Anthems episode

Key Cast & Crew

Luke Penney

Director, Editor, Producer

Julia Parnell

Producer