In 1996, Dam Native’s ‘Behold My Kool Style’ made waves in challenging the ongoing effects of Pākehā colonisation and racism against Māori and Pacific peoples in Aotearoa.
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“Robbed of our language, robbed of our land, robbed of our culture. This is why that song exists; to put Māori hip hop on the map,” says lead rapper Danny Haimona.
Built on ‘groundbreaking lyricism’, ‘Behold My Kool Style’ was a track that explored what it meant to be Māori in a colonised state. The song’s lyrics referenced Maui and Papatūānuku, the experiences of tangata whenua as well as the Springbok Tour and ongoing colonisation in New Zealand.
Bennett Pomana of Upper Hutt Posse Photo: Supplied / The Downlow Concept
Even down to the group’s name, Dam Native’s focus was on drawing attention to the ongoing injustices towards Aotearoa’s indigenous peoples that were plain to see but sparingly discussed in the mainstream.
“Watching television in the 70s, there was this phrase, ‘those damn natives!’”, DLT says.
Alongside vocalist Danny Haimona, the group was a ‘collective of good friends’ who were ‘like minded’ about the need for more Māori hip hop. These included Bennett Pomana, Darryl Thomson (DLT), Teremoana Rapley, Hone Manukau and Bryson Campbell.
Teremoana Rapley of Upper Hutt Posse Photo: Supplied / The Downlow Concept
Danny says that, while he wanted to make hip hop by the time he was 11, the lyrics of the song came from a passion to learn more about his own roots and his people’s history.
The track’s ‘intimidating’ music video was inspired by late 19th-century colonial-style photography. Directed by filmmaker Jonathan King, band members wore Edwardian-period suits and took control of a period look that was otherwise dominated by Pākehā settlers.
At the 1997 New Zealand Music Awards, Dam Native won two awards as Most Promising Group and with Behold My Kool Style’s music video winning best video. Danny Haimona also won Most Promising Male Vocalist for his vocals on the track.
Described now by others as ‘pioneers’, Dam Native’s ‘irreplaceable’ swag made others ‘proud to be brown’ that has undoubtedly paved the way for musicians to this day.
DLT of Upper Hutt Posse Photo: Supplied / The Downlow Concept
“It’s a taonga I wear around my neck every day for the absolute joy it’s brought me. My main objective was to be the best Māori MC there is and for Māori hip hop to ring in New Zealand,” Haimona says.
This episode explores what inspired the lyrics of Behold My Kool Style and its accompanying music video. It looks at the people who the song influenced and how Dam Native broke new ground in the history of Māori and New Zealand hip hop.
About the artists
Dam Native Photo: Supplied / The Downlow Concept
Dam Native
Originally called Native Bass and later changing to Dam Native, the group formed around 1990 with band members Danny Haimona, Bennett Pomana (MC B-Ware), Darryl Thomson (DLT) and Teremoana Rapley. Their first album, ‘Kaupapa Driven Rhymes Uplifted’, was released in 1997 and helped bring the group to the forefront of Aotearoa hip hop. Through the years, the group added members like Bryson Campbell, Hone Manukau (H-ONE), Fred Harrison, Sol Ankers (Sol E) and Native612.
Danny Haimona of Dam Native Photo: Supplied / The Downlow Concept
Danny Haimona
Daniel Haimona (Danny D) was the lead rapper of Dam Native and stuck with the group ever since. While he was born in Wellington’s Island Bay, his family moved to Auckland for work opportunities when he was 12 and led him to meet members of the underground-rap scene. In Tāmaki Makaurau, he met the Upper Hutt Posse’s DLT (Darryl Thomson) and Teremoana Rapley, who was established within the scene and provided mentorship to the fledgling musician. Haimona returned to Dam Native in 2010 with the band’s comeback album, ‘Aotearoa … Nobody Does It Better’.