Semi MCs - Simon Grigg, Rip It Up/Back2Basics archive
As the 1990s dawned, the influence of British and American fashion and music, particularly hip-hop, R&B, and house music, rang out across Aotearoa. Up and down the country, a wave of musicians, dancers, party kids, and promoters began to find ways to intertwine these fast-rising forces with our local cultural backdrop. Within this milieu, a collection of emerging record labels of the era, like Southside Records and Deepgrooves Entertainment, and a few hipped ears at the major labels, began to release music from a generation of predominantly – but by no means exclusively – Māori and Pacific talents such as Houseparty, Ngaire, Semi MCs, Jules Issa, and Moana and The Moahunters. Here’s a list of 10 local R&B, street soul and new jack swing classics and deep cuts that fired up imaginations and dancefloors in the 1990s and still have the power to do so decades later.
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Houseparty – Dangerous Love (1991)
The group project of the late Fuemana brothers Phil and Pauly, their siblings Christina and Tony, and their friend Matty J Ruys, Houseparty (later Fuemana), came together in South Auckland during the late 1980s. In 1991, they released their debut single ‘Dangerous Love’ through Murray Cammick and Simon Lynch’s Southside Records. Capturing the imagination of crucial Auckland nightclub DJs Manuel Bundy and Soane, it even saw play further afield in the northern hemisphere via big-time UK DJ figures Norman Jay and Gilles Peterson. Driven by a Soul II Soul-style backbeat and a world-class soul vocal from Christina, “Dangerous Love’ is a cult classic. In 2024, Melbourne’s Gazebo Records reissued Fuemana’s sole album, New Urban Polynesian (1994).
Ngaire – When The Feeling Has Gone (1991)
Although she’s probably best known for her chart-topping cover of ‘To Sir With Love’ (1990) by the Scottish singer and actress Lulu, I’ve always felt that Ngaire Fuata, simply known as Ngaire, really hit her stride with the Ardijah cover, ‘When The Feeling Has Gone’. Written and produced by Simon Lynch and Tony T Nogotautama (D-Faction, Ardijah) for Southside Records, ‘When The Feeling Has Gone’ sees the Dutch Rotuman New Zealand pop artist singing in effortless form over a bouncy early 1990s slanted club beat. As the 1990s unfolded, Fuata began working as a television producer. In 2023, she produced the feature film Mysterious Ways.
Semi MCs – Trust Me (1992)
A world-class anthem from the early 1990s, ‘Trust Me’ (1992) by South Auckland’s Semi MCs group is the essential New Zealand swingbeat single. Created during the lead-up to the release of Proud: An Urban Pacific Streetsoul Compilation – an album which also platformed Sisters Underground and the Otara Millionaires Club – ‘Trust Me’ is a remarkable convergence of melody, style and new jack swing rhythm, as written and produced by the Semi MCs, their keyboard player Hiran Benton and his brother Karl (Digi Brothers). Even better, ‘Trust Me’ was accompanied by an L. Baker-directed video clip that captured the colour and vibrancy of the era.
Jules Issa – Dangerous Game (1992)
First heard on Deepgrooves’ self-titled compilation album (1991) before being released as a CD single the following year, Jules Issa’s ‘Dangerous Game’ is a stunning dubby R&B cover of the Diatribe original. On release, the Māori Rastafarian singer-songwriter scored coveted radio play on the London dance station Kiss FM via a remix version of ‘Dangerous Game’ and went on to be nominated for Most Promising Female Vocalist at the NZ Music Awards in 1993. Two years later, she released her mini-album, Found In You, before touring extensively on the international reggae circuit.
Moana & The Moahunters – A E I O U (1993)
When Southside Records released ‘A E I O U’ by Māori singer-songwriter Moana Maniapoto, MIna Ripia and Teremoana Rapley’s Moana & The Moahunters group in 1991, popular music was experiencing a seismic shift following the Second Summer of Love (1988) in the UK and the rise of rave culture. Styled as “haka house music”, ‘A E I O U’ was powered by a chorus written by Ripia to showcase the correct pronunciation of vowel sounds in te reo Māori. Between that utility, a shuffling breakbeat groove, group vocals and a playful rap from Rapley, they had something special on their hands. Thirty-three years later, it still sounds fresh and vital.
Teremona Rapley – Beautiful People (1995)
By the time Teremoana Rapley MNZM released her debut single ‘Beautiful People’ in 1995, she had already spent over half a decade recording and performing in groundbreaking groups including Upper Hutt Posse and Moana & The Moahunters. Alongside those efforts, Rapley also appeared on songs with Riot Riddum Sound System, MC OJ & Rhythm Slave and Unitone HiFi, inspiring a generation. Filled to the brim with heart and soul, ‘Beautiful People’ still burns brightly. These days, the award-winning Pacific musician’s cultural influence can also be felt through a multiplicity of different creative disciplines and in her broader cultural work.
Igelese – Groovalation (1995)
I’ve got a childhood friend who remembers hearing ‘Groovalation’ by Igelese Ete, known simply as Iglese, playing everywhere in the Wellington suburb of Newtown in 1995. A man of many talents at the time, a Victoria University music graduate, composer, hotel pianist, church choirmaster and part-time model, Ete wrote ‘Groovalation’ for the 1994 International Festival of the Arts finale concert under the working title ‘Tutufa'atasi’ before releasing it commercially through Papa Pacific Records. These days, the Samoa-born musician’s choral arrangement skills can be heard in the soundtrack of Disney’s celebrated Moana film.
Maree Sheehan – You Can’t Hide Love (1995)
One of several singles from her debut album Drawn In Deep, ‘You Can’t Hide Love’ by Dr Maree Sheehan is one of my favourite R&B songs recorded in New Zealand during the 1990s. A laidback blend of lower-tempo drums, yearning vocal arrangements, and silky smooth melodies, ‘You Can’t Hide Love’ stands up alongside anything comparable released in the US and UK at the time. In the wake of Drawn In Deep’s release, the Māori singer-songwriter and composer toured nationally and internationally and lived overseas before moving into academia, film and television soundtrack work and sonic arts.
Matty J Ruys – I Love Every Little Thing About You feat Lole (1995)
After sharing the stage with the late Phil Fuemana and his siblings in Houseparty (and later Fuemana), the Otangarei, Northland-born R&B singer Matty J Ruys recorded his debut album, Deeper, for EMI. My personal favourite off Deeper is the G-funk angled soul cut ‘Mine (The Sequel)’, but on YouTube, where a litany of comments attest to the quality of Ruys and Lole Usoali'i-Hickey’s vocals, their dreamy cover of 'I Love Every Little Thing About You' by Steve Wonder has emerged as a clear fan favourite. Later on, Ruys brought K’Lee and Dei Hamo into the charts with his Universal Music imprint, HiRuys Records.
Lole – Just Wanna (1997)
Lole Usoali'i-Hickey, on the other hand, went on to record a series of singles with Papa Pacific Records and Deepgrooves before releasing music through her own Sista Records label. Released on CD single as the B-side to a cover of ‘Feel Like Making Love’, ‘Just Wanna’ is a perfect slice of sunset pop music that effortlessly captures the era when New Jack Swing transitioned into soft RnB and early neo-soul. In recognition of her efforts, the Samoan New Zealander won Most Promising Female Artist at the 1997 New Zealand Music Awards. Since relocating to Samoa in the 2000s, she’s remained active in music.
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