Marlon takes the Taite at NZICC

NEWS | ISSUE FIVE | PUORO O AOTEAROA / LOCAL MUSIC

Written by Liam Hansen (they/them) | @liamhanse.n | Associate Editor

Marlon Williams - Image courtesy of Independent Music New Zealand

The Taite Music Prize has held stature as Aotearoa music's scrappiest little award show for over a decade and a half. With New Zealand Music Month just around the corner, indie musicians packed into the intimate Q Theatre, celebrating the incredible records of 2026 whilst keeping all award winners, losers, punters, and schmoozers within a hundred metres of each other at all times. It fit with the kaupapa of the presenters, Independent Music New Zealand, who’ve made a habit of kicking off the international careers of local artists like The Beths, Princess Chelsea, and Marlon Williams while embracing emergent artists, recognised stars, and their support networks alike. 

Now in its seventeenth iteration, the Taite Music Prize upgraded venues to the shiny New Zealand International Convention Centre and opened its doors up to the public, bringing back the open-capacity chaos of pre-rebrand Vodafone Music Awards that even the top dogs at the AMAs have pulled back on. The Debate team went along, unsure of whether the night would reach the chaotic heights of nominee Tom Scott bringing a goat to the NZ Music Awards with Homebrew in 2012. 

Unfortunately, attendees wanting to rub shoulders with the stars of Kiwi music first needed to face the entryway of the NZICC - terrifying revolving door and all. It’s fair for there to be a couple of growing pains within the venue, considering the delays, fires, and technical issues that went into its construction and opening. But upon arrival, I had to trudge up and down broken escalators to get my bearings, before leading half of our posse up the (now functional) moving steps while wrangling Skye, who was stuck in the parking basement where the elevator refused to work. They were left at the emergency exit stairwell, which proceeded to lock her in while she tried to convince a security guard (for a different event) that we were allowed to be there.

Lyttleton darling Marlon Williams completed his trifecta of music awards, taking home the top prize for his Te Reo Māori album ‘Te Whare Tīwekaweka’ after stacking his shelves with Tuis and Silver Scrolls for nearly a decade. Williams couldn’t make it in person, gracing us with his pre-recorded presence from an airport in Norway while the LP’s principal collaborator, KOMMI, delivered his acceptance speech in te reo on his behalf. Marlon’s on the cusp of returning to Aotearoa for his final run of shows, booking out The Civic on the 21st and 22nd of May before taking a well-deserved break from the spotlight. The jury is still out on whether he’ll manage to get a STAG on this album cycle alone, but no one would be surprised. 

The Auckland Live Best Independent Debut went to Geneva AM, the singer, songwriter, and former SoccerPractise producer for ‘PIKIPIKI’. With the two major new music prizes going to self-released records laden with te reo Māori and taonga pūoro, indigenous pride was on display in droves amidst Geneva joining MC Sarah Thomson and various other speakers in embarrassing Arts, Culture, and Heritage (and Treaty Negotiations) minister Paul Goldsmith. 

The Taite Music Prize is equally dedicated to supporting the amplifiers of Aotearoa music, giving the NZ on Air Outstanding Music Journalism award to the team behind Newzician Magazine - consisting of Flynn Robson, Rosa Nevison, & Sam Elliott, who immediately thanked their contributors and wider community for making the publication possible.  Hopefully, it proved that our print budget is worthwhile for at least another year. 

The Independent Spirit Award rewards community leaders who have improved the landscape and ecosystem for musicians and their support networks. Carmel Bennet from MusicHelps took it home this year, with various figures referred to by the on-screen captions as ‘total legends’ singing her praises as a caring, nurturing figure across her roles at The Powerstation, Big Day Out, and various other institutions. Bennet paid tribute to Dylan Taite, the music journalist and awards namesake, while calling out one of the aforementioned legends - “I met Dylan behind the scenes at the Powerstation, while Nancy was working on some Dance exponents shit and NOT WORKING.” 

The IMNZ Classic Record award honours influential albums of years past, giving The Mint Chicks recognition for their 2006 sophomore breakthrough “Crazy? Yes! Dumb? No!” as soon as it became eligible. Journalists like Charlotte Ryan and Duncan Greive sang their praises while interrogating their creative decisions that propelled the band to infamy (such as the Big Day Out Chainsaw incident). As soon as he got it into his hands, Kody Neilson threw the platinum record into the air and took a hard pass on any interviews. We’ll get 'em next time. 

We managed to catch up with some of the winners and nominees, like Geneva AM, Phoebe Rings, and Bub, at the awards - check out @debate_mag for excerpts of our banter as we struggled to find a comfortable place to film content. With the night coming to a close, we ducked out after taking photos of our friends' bands on display via the ‘From The Pit’ photo gallery. We squeezed into the (now functional) elevators, and Crystal Choi nearly cut me in half with the closing doors in front of half of Phoebe Rings, before we got off at the wrong level and said our goodbyes. Hopefully, some things never change. 

The Mint Chicks - Image courtesy of Independent Music New Zealand