Rob Ruha

Known for his seamless blend of Māori music, pop, reggae, and R&B, New Zealand musician Rob Ruha was born in Wharekahika, Gisborne District, in 1980. Coming from a family of Te Whānau-ā-Apanui and Ngāti Porou descent, he grew up immersed in Māori culture and developed a passion for kapa haka, a type of traditional performance art that involved dance and music. At the age of 17, he won the Best Waiata Tira award at the Aotearoa Traditional Māori Performing Arts Festival as part of the Waihīrere Māori Club. After obtaining a master's degree in Mātauranga Māori in 2007, he decided to fully devote himself to music. "Hotuhotu," his debut single, appeared in 2011 and featured fellow Māori artist Ria Hall. Entirely sung in Māori, the track received heavy airplay on New Zealand radio. Preceded by the single "Pōnga Rā," his first EP Tiki Tapu saw the light in 2014 and cracked the Top 5 of the New Zealand charts. Following the release of his studio debut Pūmau in 2015, Rob Ruha served as the musical director for the Te Reo Māori version of the 2017 Disney animated film Moana. Later that year, his joint album with the Witch Dr., Survivance, hit Number 10 in New Zealand. In 2021, Rob Ruha produced and featured on Ka Hao's chart-topping single "35" and issued his third full-length, Preservation of Scenery. The album enjoyed great popularity at a national level thanks to the single "That's Where I'll Be," which peaked at Number 4 on the Official New Zealand Music Chart.