Troy Kingi

Troy Kingi (Te Arawa, Ngāpuhi, Te Whānau-ā-Apanui) is a multi-award-winning, multi-genre musician and actor. 

 

Described by the New Zealand Music Commission as “Our Northland Treasure”, Kingi rose to fame after the release of his first two multi-award-winning albums ‘Guitar Party at Uncles Bach’ and ‘Shake That Skinny Ass All the Way to Zygertron’, along with memorable acting roles in Kiwi films including ‘Hunt For The Wilderpeople’, ‘The Pā Boys’ and 'Mt Zion’.

 

Over and above his love for acting, Kingi’s passion for music has led to a successful and ever-expanding artistic career. A hard task master with his own creativity, Troy is now past the mid-point of his aspirational 10 10 10 Series, with the goal to release 10 albums in 10 different genres in 10 years. He is a prolific songwriter and serial collaborator, with voracious capacity and freakish efficiency. 

 

His third album, ‘Holy Colony Burning Acres’ – a hard-hitting deep roots-reggae album focused on major issues facing indigenous peoples around the world and a strong political bent, won the prestigious 2020 Taite Music Prize. The album also earned Kingi two awards at the 2019 Vodafone New Zealand Music Awards – Best Roots Album, and for a second consecutive year, Best Māori Artist.

 

Kingi’s fourth album, ‘The Ghost of Freddie Cesar’, is inspired by memories of his father who disappeared fifteen years ago, 70s funk, and the music and stories of Freddie Cesar. The lead single ‘All Your Ships Have Sailed’ won the coveted Silver Scroll Award for 2021. While his fifth album, ‘Black Sea Golden Ladder’ is a collaboration with award-winning singer/songwriter and producer Delaney Davidson. A folk/songwriter music compilation documenting the life cycle of humankind and the common themes that weave life together.

 

Album six, titled ‘Year Of The Ratbags And Their Musty Theme Songs’ - is an 80’s Synth Pop record that see’s Troy jumping in the Delorian and taking us back to 1984, the year of his birth. An album drenched in nostalgia, synths and bad hair which was crafted solely by equipment and engineering techniques from the period, leaving no stone unturned in his quest for authenticity in one of history’s most colourful musical eras.