Lockdown Soul Sessions: Rotorua singers come together for dinner and show

This concert will be held next month. Photo / File

Top Rotorua singers who livestreamed into your living rooms during lockdown are coming together for a special one-off concert next month.

Lockdown Soul Sessions - Live and Unlocked is being held on November 21 at Te Puia and is a dinner and show featuring some of the city's most well-known faces.

Rewa Ututaonga

The concert was to be part of the Aronui Indigenous Arts Festival originally scheduled for September, which had to be postponed as a result of uncertainty around large gatherings.

However, those involved in the concert were keen to still go ahead and bring together a show that featured all of those who did livestream concerts during lockdown under the Aronui Indigenous Arts Festival banner.

Russell Harrison

Jack Grace

Those featuring on the show are Russell Harrison, Jack David Grace, Turanga Merito, Krissie Knap, Terrence O'Brien, Bobby Mihi Howard, Alayna Powley, Nikau Grace Chater, Native Nations and Rewa Ututaonga. They will be backed by top Rotorua band Cairo.

Krissie Knap

Alayna Powley

Organiser Rewa Ututaonga said each artist would sing a song in the first half and another in the second half before the night ends with dance music from herself and Cairo, with help from a few of the featured artists.

Ututaonga said the artists who performed online during April and May attracted thousands of viewers.

"It was so popular. Just for mine alone, it got 3500 hits and I'm sure everyone else were similar if not more. We were all locked down and all we really had was our TVs so a lot of people turned to music, either listening to it or picking up an instrument."

Turanga Merito

She encouraged people to get tickets for the show early.

"It's going to be a fabulous night and just a great way to support and celebrate our local musicians and artists with a great live band."

Aronui Arts Festival Trust chairwoman Mercia-Dawn Yates said they planned to roll out key features of the original September 2020 programme over the next 12 months leading up to next year's festival, pending availability of the key artists involved.

"It is so wonderful that we are finally able to start to gather again post the second round of Covid-19 outbreak, and what a way to begin than with our very own stunning local talent from Rotorua - Aronui Arts Festival Lockdown Soul Sessions."

Tickets are $103.20 each which includes the buffet dinner and are available from Ticketmaster.