Record finalist numbers as Pacific Music Awards celebrates 21 years of musical recognition

24 June 2025

The finalists for the 2025 Pacific Music Awards were announced last night at a ceremony at the Mangere Arts Centre in Auckland, Aotearoa New Zealand. This year’s celebration of Pacific music marks the 21st anniversary of the event.

Following the highest number of entries to the awards so far, this year there are a record 34 finalists across 13 categories.

Among the finalists are 15 first-time nominees – a testament to the incredible depth of talent and the vibrant growth within the Pacific music community, as a new wave of artists rise into the spotlight.

Leading the pack with four nominations are Shane Walker and Aaradhna.

Cook Island and Māori songwriter who began his career with his uncle Rahui ‘Brother Love’ Vaka and Father Dion DHarp Paekau, Shane Walker has now built his own distinct sound.

Walker is up for NZ Music Commission Best Pacific Male Artist, 531pi Best Gospel Artist, Pacificast Best Pacific Roots/Reggae Artist, and APRA Best Pacific Song for Believe.

Soul/R&B singer Aaradhna is also nominated for four awards including Auckland Council Best Pacific Female Artist, RNZ Best Pacific Soul/R&B Artist, and Recorded Music Te Tino Pukaemi Moana Nui a Kiwa o te Tau | Best Pacific Music Album for Sweet Surrender.

She’s also nominated for NZ On Air Best Pacific Music Video for Mango Tree, directed by Prasenjit Das.

Onehunga hip hop group SWIDT have received three nods at the 2025 Pacific Music Awards for FLAVA Best Pacific Group, ONErpm Best Pacific Hip Hop Artist, and Recorded Music Te Tino Pukaemi Moana Nui a Kiwa o te Tau | Best Pacific Music Album for Taking Care of Business.

Jordyn Rapana – aka Jordyn with a Why – draws inspiration from her Māori and Samoan heritage in creating her bilingual, 1980’s tinged music.

This year, she is nominated for Auckland Council Best Pacific Female Artist, RNZ Best Pacific Soul/R&B Artist, and Recorded Music Te Tino Pukaemi Moana Nui a Kiwa o te Tau | Best Pacific Music Album for Hibiscus Moon, Love & Justice.

Hailing from Auckland, New Zealand, with Māori/Cook Island roots, Lomez Brown blends reggae, old-school soul/RnB, and Polynesian grooves, creating music that resonates deeply with listeners.

He’s nominated for Pacificast Best Pacific Roots/Reggae Artist and Recorded Music Te Tino Pukaemi Moana Nui a Kiwa o te Tau | Best Pacific Music Album for his album Under-Rated.

Known for his introspective lyrics and genre-blending sound, prominent rapper, poet, and singer Melodownz is nominated for NZ Music Commission Best Pacific Male Artist and ONErpm Best Pacific Hip Hop Artist.

Other finalists this year include Kenzie from Welly (Auckland Council Best Pacific Female Artist, ONErpm Best Pacific Hip Hop Artist), A.R.T (FLAVA Best Pacific Group, Pacific Media Network Best Pacific Language), Sam V (NZ Music Commission Best Pacific Male Artist, RNZ Best Pacific Soul/R&B Artist), Tree (Pacific Media Network Best Pacific Language, APRA Best Pacific Song), Adeaze (FLAVA Best Pacific Group), Village 90 (FLAVA Best Pacific Group), Diggy Dupé (NZ Music Commission Best Pacific Male Artist), Myshaan (NZ Music Commission Best Pacific Male Artist), Junior Soqeta (Pacific Media Network Best Pacific Language), Opetaia Foa’i & Moana 2 Artists (Pacific Media Network Best Pacific Language), Wayno (Pacific Media Network Best Pacific Language), David Dallas (ONErpm Best Pacific Hip Hop Artist), Brotherhood Musiq (531pi Best Gospel Artist), Saia Frank Sola (531pi Best Gospel Artist), Sire (531pi Best Gospel Artist), Rubi Du (Pacificast Best Pacific Roots/Reggae Artist), Fejoint, Lomez Brown and Switch.E (APRA Best Pacific Song), T’NAY (APRA Best Pacific Song), Jaro Local (NIU FM Best International Pacific Artist), KUKI (NIU FM Best International Pacific Artist), Paradise Rootz (NIU FM Best International Pacific Artist), Seven Suns (NIU FM Best International Pacific Artist), and The 046 (NIU FM Best International Pacific Artist ).

There are also four nominees for MPGNZ/SAE Creative Media Institute Best Producer including Astro and EDY (90’s Fine, Rolling Your Eyes, Sam V), Canaan Ene (The Way It Is, Handyman, You’ve Got A Friend, Nothing’s Gonna Change My Love For You, Selfish, Lately, Canaan Ene and various artists), Feagaigafou Tupa’i, Logovi’i Tupa’i, Astro, EDY (Forever I Am Yours, Adeaze) and Ikon Music (When He Was Mine (Pele Fo’i Mai), Easy, A.R.T).

Finally, the finalists for NZ On Air Best Pacific Music Video are Haanz Fa’avae-Jackson (Mayehe,directed by Mario Faumui & Ben Mikha), Shepherds Reign (Ala Mai, directed by Bahador Borhani), Tha Movement (The Lecture, directed by Samson Rambo), and TheWesternGuide (Bottom of the Bed, directed by Esther Mauga).

Matai continues to support the awards and will provide timepieces which will be gifted to all the winners at the awards ceremony, alongside the beautiful trophies.

Pacific Music Awards Trust spokesperson Rev Mua Strickson-Pua said: “Aotearoa is celebrating Matariki, the Māori New Year, with the 2025 theme ‘Matariki mā Puanga’, highlighting inclusion and unity. The Pacific Music Awards honours Matariki as a treasured cultural celebration across Pacific languages and traditions.”

“This year marks the 21st anniversary of the Pacific Music Awards. Inspired by the wisdom of Matariki, we celebrate a record-breaking year with the highest number of entries, finalists, and Pacific languages represented – especially in our International category.”

“To all 2025 finalists: thank you. As always, our Finalist Announcement event is a celebration for families, communities, and the wider music industry—where everyone is a winner. Guided by our ancestors, we honour the past, celebrate the present, and look forward to a bright future.”

Trustee and Event Producer, Petrina Togi-Sa’ena says: “It feels like we are entering a new era for the Pacific Music Awards as we celebrate our 21st year. The year looked very daunting with the challenging environment for funding and events. Then we opened for entries and the wave of nominations came through. We received a record number of entries, which has flowed on to more finalists and more first-time finalists than ever before. All strong signals of this new wave and the strength of Pacific music right now.

“The music of the finalists has allowed us to celebrate all our artists from the incredible Pacific music community here in Aotearoa, to recognise so many genres, to honour our Pacific languages through music and to reach across the moana to connect with artists living overseas. I am really proud of this year’s finalists and so happy for everyone being acknowledged.”

The SunPix People’s Choice Award voting opens Tuesday 1st July, and all artists nominated for the 2025 Pacific Music Awards are eligible. The winner will be decided entirely by public vote, which can be cast through the voting poll on the PMA website. Voting will close on Friday 1st August 2025.

To listen to all the nominees, here’s the official PMA 2025 Finalist Playlist. This year’s Pacific Music Award winners will be celebrated on Thursday 21st August 2025, at the Due Drop Events Centre in Manukau.

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2025 Pacific Music Awards finalists:

Auckland Council Best Pacific Female Artist

Aaradhna – Sweet Surrender
Jordyn with a Why – Hibiscus Moon, Love & Justice
Kenzie from Welly – Hold Ya Head, Queendom

NZ Music Commission Best Pacific Male Artist

Diggy Dupé – Request Line
Melodownz – Broke, Calm and Chill, When I, High Vibration, MeloDub (828), Directions
Myshaan – Power of Love (Reggae), Carry My Heart, Wrapped, I Do
Sam V – 90’s Fine, Rolling Your Eyes
Shane Walker – Coasty Girl, Māori in Me, Iesu, Let Me Be Your Man, The Lord is Watching You, Believe

Flava Best Pacific Group

Adeaze – Forever I Am Yours
R.T – When He Was Mine (Pele Fo’i Mai), Easy
SWIDT – Taking Care of Business
Village 90 – U & Me

Pacific Media Network Best Pacific Language

R.T – When He Was Mine (Pele Fo’i Mai), Easy
Junior Soqeta – Moni Meke, Senituli ‘Oe Tau’ataina, Buna Na Isa Lei Buna
Opetaia Foa’i & Moana 2 Artists – Tulou Tagaloa (Sei e Va’ai Mai), My Wish For You (Innocent Warrior), Finding the Way, Mana Vavau, We’re Back (Te Vaka Version), Nuku O Kaiga
Tree – Tupulaga Samoa Feat Wayno
Wayno – Siva Samoa 2K24 (Reggae Version), Siva Samoa 2K24, Fafine Faitala, Tama O Le Faifaiaso

531pi Best Pacific Gospel Artist

Brotherhood Musiq – Open The Eyes of My Heart
Saia Frank Sola – E Le Galo Le Mativa Feat. DJ Twitch, Fai Oe Ma Leleiga, Sili Ai Lou Alu Eke Moe, E Le’o Se Mea Ta’alo Lo’u Alofa, Aisea, Oute Le Ma i Le Mativa, Tofa La’u Feagaiga
Shane Walker – Iesu
Sire – Temporary

ONErpm Best Pacific Hip Hop Artist

David Dallas – Vita
Kenzie from Welly – Hold Ya Head, Queendom
Melodownz – Broke, Calm and Chill, When I, High Vibration, MeloDub (828), Directions
SWIDT – Taking Care of Business

RNZ Best Pacific Soul/RnB Artist

Aaradhna – Sweet Surrender
Jordyn with a Why – Hibiscus Moon, Love & Justice
Sam V – 90’s Fine, Rolling Your Eyes

Pacificast Best Pacific Roots/Reggae Artist

Lomez Brown – Under-Rated
Rubi Du – Calling, Day Dreaming
Shane Walker – Let Me Be Your Man, The Lord is Watching You

NZ On Air Best Pacific Music Video

Aaradhna – Mango Tree
– Director: Prasenjit Das

Haanz Fa’avae-Jackson – Mavehe
– Directors: Mario Faumui & Ben Mikha

Shepherds Reign – Ala Mai
– Director: Bahador Borhani

Tha Movement – The Lecture
– Director: Samson Rambo

TheWesternGuide – Bottom of the Bed
– Director: Esther Mauga

MPGNZ/SAE Creative Media Institute Best Producer

Astro and EDY – 90’s Fine, Rolling Your Eyes, Sam V
Canaan Ene – The Way It Is, Handyman, You’ve Got A Friend, Nothing’s Gonna Change My Love For You, Selfish, Lately, Canaan Ene and various artists
Feagaigafou Tupa’i, Logovi’i Tupa’i, Astro, EDY – Forever I Am Yours, Adeaze
Ikon Music – When He Was Mine (Pele Fo’i Mai), Easy, A.R.T

APRA Best Pacific Song

Fejoint, Lomez Brown, Switch.E – Stay
– Written by: Fejoint, Norman, Brown Sione Eliesa

Shane Walker – Believe
– Written by Shane Walker

T’Nay – Penina O Le Vasa Feat Wayno
– Written by: Sililo Tapuitima

Tree – Tupulaga Samoa Feat Wayno
– Written by: Juliana Sopoaga Lologa and Joyce Lonise Toleafoa

NIU FM Best International Pacific Artist

Jaro Local – Aghe Kula
Kuki – What’s Up, Fijian Lewa, Au Na Vuka Yani, Noqu Vanua (EP)
Paradise Rootz – Galili, Liwa Donu Tu, AJI Feat The Gang
Seven Suns – Many Feathers
The 046 – Music is Everything, Lifetime, Young Free & Reckless, Hustle Hard, All In