August 10, 2022
Panther soundtrack wins big at Pacifika music awards
An associate producer on The Panthers television series says its soundtrack’s wins at the 2022 Pacific Music Awards is a win for all tangata moana.
Jaunnie ‘Ilolahia says having a powerful soundtrack was key to the success of the show, which dramatises the formation of the Polynesian Panthers and their response to racism against Pacific migrants in the 1970s.
Choicevaughan and P. Smith with Grey Lynn rapper Diggy Dupé and kiwi producers got the best producer award, while Ain’t The Same featuring Melodownz & Summer Vaha’akolo took out Best Pacific Music Video.
‘Ilolahia, who’s the daughter of Panther Will ‘Ilolahia, says Ain’t The Same captures the feeling of the young activists during the Dawn Raids era.
“Even though they were young people fighting racism and fighting injustice we have to remember they were 16, 17, 19 years old and they were also trying to find themselves and also just find out relationships and how to be in the world and how to react with other people on a personal level,” she says.