Presented by: Frontier Touring

Marlon Williams (Kāi Tahu, Ngāi Tai) is about to release his first Māori language album, Te Whare Tīwekaweka, (out April 4th) and today, also announces a 11-date album tour of Aotearoa.

Performing with his long-time band The Yarra Benders as well as some special appearances from some of the album’s collaborators, Marlon Williams will bring Te Whare Tīwekaweka to life across the main stages in our most illustrious theatre venues.

In another first, Marlon will make his debut headline appearance at Tāmaki Makauru’s Spark Arena this Matariki in what promises to be a sparkling and spectacular arena show.

Today also marks the release of the second single from Te Whare Tīwekaweka, Kāhore He Manu E.

“‘Kāhore He Manu E’ was one of those gentle labours. It played itself out to me, easily and near complete from the first. It was also obvious who should be singing it; Ella’s voice in a very real sense wrote the song. The distinct and striking characteristics in her voice cornering and demanding of the melody and phrasing what only her voice could. Singing with Ella is incredible; the amount of mind she’s able to pour into the vessel. We got to know each other through sharing the highs and lows of touring life, and in a real sense this song is an ode to the colourful but grim wormhole of road life, to the friends made and lost in the folds of time, ‘visions lost in the blur.’”
– Marlon Williams

“Over the course of several years I watched Marlon pull at the threads that became Te Whare Tīwekaweka. I saw that the further he got into the album, the deeper my friend came to know himself, his whānau and his world at large. Marlon is an undercover perfectionist, and he was never going to embark on this journey without turning over every stone, crafting complex waiata that speak to the past while also braiding in his characteristic humour and X-ray vision. Singing with Marlon is one of my favourite things to do on earth, whether we are tipsy backstage by a pool table or in a luscious studio, and I was honoured he asked me to sing with him on this album. I’m so proud of my friend.”
– Lorde

“Ko te reo Māori, he matapihi ki Te Ao Māori” goes the Māori whakatauki that has guided Te Whare Tīwekaweka. Translated to “The Māori language is a window to the Māori world,” it expresses Marlon’s motivation behind this album. He comments, “Through the process of constructing these songs, I’ve found a means of expressing my joys, sorrows and humour in a way that feels both distinctly new yet also connects me to my tīpuna and my whenua.”

Throughout the five years Marlon spent creating the album, he reconnected to family, friends in Lyttelton, Ōtautahi after a globe-trotting decade establishing his career. His journey developing his ancestral tongue unlocked both a newfound lyrical honesty and a grand sonic vision.

Supported by long-time touring band The Yarra Benders, co-producer Mark Perkins (Te Whānau-ā-Apanui), the He Waka Kōtuia singers and featuring the collaboration with Lorde, the album is a collection at once contemporary and timeless, traversing Marlon’s familiar folk-country-bluegrass territory, while continuing his exploration of poppier waters and the inherent rhythms of Māori music.

“As a songwriter, I cherish simplicity, but as a speaker of Māori, I had a bucketload of whakamā to push through before I could even approach my friend KOMMI about helping me write songs in Māori. We took this song out on the road with us five years ago and it just felt so damn good to play. I’m proud of it for reasons deeper than I’ve felt as a songwriter before. This song acted as a guiding light for the rest of the album to follow.”

“I hope that music may do the mahi that conversation cannot, and that it may broaden and deepen our sense of interconnectedness,” he says. By expanding his output into Māori, Marlon has widened the portal through which that connection might happen.

Opening all shows throughout Aotearoa is Marlon’s dear friend KOMMI.

KOMMI (Kāi Tahu, Te-Āti-Awa) is a non-binary solo music artist, recording and performance collaborator, writer, poet, and a lecturer in Māori and Indigenous Studies and Te Reo Māori at the University of Canterbury and Lincoln University.

They also teach reo Māori within the community of Ōhinehou/Lyttelton and throughout Ōtautahi. They have just completed the recording of ‘TAUWHENUA’, a collborative Witch-Hop, Swamp Hop, Experimental Hip-hop Reo EP with producer Infectiouss (Zac Harding).

KOMMI regularly composes reo Māori waiata with various NZ musicians including Troy Kingi (Te Arawa, Ngāpuhi, Te Whānau-ā-Apanui), Delaney Davidson and more recently the significant collaboration with Marlon on Te Whare Tīwekaweka.

Marlon Williams Te Whare Tīwekaweka Tour Dates 2025
With support from KOMMI

MAY

Friday 9/5 – TSB Showplace NEW PLYMOUTH eventfinda.co.nz
Saturday 10/5 – Regent on Broadway PALMERSTON NORTH ticketek.co.nz
Monday12/5 – Napier Municipal Theatre NAPIER ticketek.co.nz
Tuesday 13/5 – War Memorial Theatre GISBORNE ticketek.co.nz
Thursday15/5 – Holy Trinity TAURANGA ticketmaster.co.nz
Friday 16/5 – Clarence Street Theatre HAMILTON ticketek.co.nz
Saturday 17/5 – Sir Howard Morrison Centre ROTORUA ticketmaster.co.nz

JUNE

Saturday 7/6 – St James Theatre WELLINGTON ticketmaster.co.nz
Saturday 21/6 – Spark Arena AUCKLAND ticketmaster.co.nz
Thursday 26/6 – Regent Theatre DUNEDIN regenttheatre.co.nz
Saturday 28/6 – Town Hall CHRISTCHURCH ticketmaster.co.nz

Pre sale for all ticketer database members commences 12.00pm NZST Monday 3 March. Sign up now.

Tickets for all shows on sale 12.00pm NZST Wednesday 5 March.

Te Whare Tīwekaweka Tracklist:

1. E Mawehe Ana Au
2. Kei Te Mārama
3. Aua Atu Rā
4. Me Uaua Kē
5. Korero Māori
6. Ko Tēnā Ua
7. Whakamaettia Mai
8. Ngā Ara Aroha
9. Huri te Whenua (Featuring KOMMI)
10. Kuru Pounamu
11. Kāhore He Manu E (Featuring Lorde)
12. Pānaki
13. Rere Mai Ngā Rau
14. Pōkaia Rā te Marama

Pre-order Te Whare Tīwekaweka

New Music