4/4 Pacific Music + Arts Volume 2:2 Oct 2017 | Page 16

QUICK FIRE QUESTIONS
Writer: P. Togi-Sa'ena
How did attending the awards and being part of the VPMA impact you?
Attending the awards is always special for the obvious reasons but this one was very special for me because I felt
like I was being welcomed back home. I was greatly moved by it.
Can you please share your favourite memory from the 2017 VPMA ceremony?
Best memory of the night was seeing our young generation performing the songs from Moana with pride and
con idence, they were amazing.
Can you outline what winning the Special Recognition Award meant to you?
I was chosen by Disney to write songs for Moana which was great ..but the pressure I carried throughout
those three years to do a good job and not let our culture down was always with me. The Special Recognition
Award meant I did a good job and I’m very grateful to have received it.
How and why are the VPMAs important – to you, to other artists, to the
industry?
We have something that is unique to us and to the industry, and that is, our language and culture, it’s our point of
difference in the world.
The VPMAs is very important not just as an annual celebration of our Paci ic artists but for the encouragement and
nurturing of our young artists.
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