A dream came true for Stan Walker today as he performed at Te Matatini for the very first time.
The singer made his debut at the national Māori performing arts festival as a member of Te Reanga Morehu o Rātana.
Thousands poured into Mt Eden Stadium this week to catch a glimpse of the highly-anticipated performances and participants taking part in the biennial event.
Walker is one of New Zealand's most celebrated music stars, regularly gracing stages around the country to belt out hits like Take It Easy, Bigger and Thank You to his thousands of fans.
Now he's achieving one of his most important goals, sharing the stage with whānau to impress a message of inspiration into the audience.
In an interview with 1News, during a rehearsal on Tuesday, he said: "For me, and I know for the hearts of our people is to win people over; to be a hope and a light into their lives - that's a big thing for us, it's a big thing for me.
"I know when I go out there to serve, whether I'm singing on a stage that I'm used to or singing on this stage, I'm there to give hope, life, joy and healing to people.
"In the time that we're living in in the last few months, in the last year, last years, we need hope. We need to know there is still hope, that there's still light and that there's still better days to come."
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While showing off their skills and communicating the values of their rōpū through dance and song is important, it's also a competition.
Forty-five groups from across the country are competing for just 12 spots in Saturday's final.
A privilege
To be included in the team, which consists of 40 members, is a privilege Walker is taking seriously.
Walker said: "This, for me, means everything. It has been one of the biggest dreams of my life to stand on stage at Matatini and to stand with Te Reanga Morehu o Rātana.
"It's a childhood dream - something that I didn't think was going to happen. Now I'm doing it.
"I'm still going in there competitive as hell, I'm going in there wanting to win, and I want to do the best that I can."
Training for the Kapa Haka competition began in September, with training Friday evenings, all day on Saturdays and Sundays.
But the work on their showcase - which includes waiata, haka and poi - didn't stop once they went home; performers also had to prepare in their own time.
With this being Walker's debut moment on this kind of stage, he dedicated all the spare time he had, giving up gigs for six months in the lead-up.
He said: "I knew that the commitment would take everything. It's a lot of hard work. It's physical, mental, emotional preparation, and just building that stamina in all areas is challenging.
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"It's been the hardest training, hardest thing I've done in my life, I've drowned every weekend, every practice, but I've loved it, I love it."
Before going into it, Walker said he had a chat with his wife, Lou Tyson, who encouraged him to go for it.
He says her support was crucial, with her stepping up to look after their two children when he was needed for practices.
'It's part of your heart's desire'
Walker said: "She knew and I knew was going to fill my cup and make me whole in some kind of way, so I had to sacrifice a lot of my mahi and also, my wife holding it down for us at home with our two kids, it was a big sacrifice for both of us but also the most rewarding, so in a way, it isn't a sacrifice if it's part of your heart's desire."
His rōpū, Te Reanga Morehu o Rātana, is hoping to impress by showing a part of themselves, their culture and their history to the crowd and judges.
The club was formed under its original name, Morehu Youth Movement, in 1982 by the late Maata 'Te Reo' Hura, who spurred a movement to bring the rangatahi together to partake in activities - such as Kapa Haka.
Their performance today paid tribute to the late tumuaki, Harerangi Meihana.
He said: "Our job is to be servants and to serve a kaupapa that is way bigger than ourselves, way bigger than our egos, our own individual lives, it's more than us, and we're representing a whole lot of incredible people".
It's a full-circle moment for Walker. His grandfather was born at Ratana Pā - about 20 minutes south of Whanganui - and was raised there until he was a teenager.
Now he brings his own children to practices inside the same space.
Connections run deep
But right across the rōpū, the whānau connections run deep.
He said: "There's a lot of brothers and sisters, parents and their children, first cousins.
"Some of my cousins here, their grandparents and great grandparents were the founders of this Kapa Haka and of Te Reanga Morehu o Rātana, the youth movement.
"We're the legacy of our grandparents, our great-grandparents, and all who came before us, which is a beautiful legacy to be a part of and then now to leave for our tamariki who are growing up.
"I get to be a part of something that's bigger than just my purpose and just what I do, I get to become part of a greater purpose.
"I hope that we can change people's lives - and win."
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