NZ Rugby says viral Porirua trio Le ART to sing anthem at domestic final

Three Porirua College students produced a stunning rendition of the New Zealand national anthem. Photo / Le Art / Facebook

The three Porirua College students whose rendition of the New Zealand national anthem went viral online have been confirmed to sing at a domestic rugby final this year.

Tiresa Foma'i, Rosetta Lopa and Anastasia Sirila posted their rendition of the anthem to their Facebook group page, Le ART, after United States singer Crystal Collins apologised for butchering the song during the Kiwis' league test against England in Denver.

NEWS | We're excited to announce that sweet-sounding trio Anastasia Sirila, Rosetta Lopa & Tiresa Foma'i, Le ART, will sing at a domestic competition Final this year. Music mentor Jonny Viliamu: "It's perfect for them & they are so excited." 🎼🎤👏🏽👏🏽 👏🏽 pic.twitter.com/cm4FPWUh0U

— New Zealand Rugby (@NZRugby) July 11, 2018

Le ART told the Herald they all felt blessed to have the opportunity.

"We're blessed that New Zealand Rugby even reached out and for them to offer us this is very exciting for us.

"We love singing live and to do that for a national event means a lot.

"We enjoy singing and putting up videos for our friends and family to enjoy so the fact it went viral is still something we're coming to terms with."

NZR Head of Events Liz Fitzgerald said they looked forward to having Le ART perform and believed it was the perfect opportunity to showcase the girls' talent.

"We've this week confirmed with the girls' mentor and former music teacher Jonathan Viliamu, that we'd love to have them involved in one of our domestic competition finals this year," Fitzgerald said.

"We have agreed that it is the perfect opportunity for them to showcase their beautiful harmonies, and to adequately prepare for a big occasion with a full stadium audience and a live broadcast."

The trio's video went viral after they put a call out to the Kiwis Rugby League side and the All Blacks.

Hi!!! Its been a while but we're working on originals so bear with us 😁. With our anthem being in the news recently we'd like everyone to know we're available!!!🤗 🎼🎙🎙🎙New Zealand Kiwis Allblacks AllBlacks 1 NEWS 1 NEWS Sport All Blacks Tours Three Stuff Newshub

Posted by A.R.T on Sunday, June 24, 2018

The girls' performance, which has been viewed more than 980,000 times, was praised not only by Kiwis but also by many around the world.

"I'm from England and I've heard the NZ anthem a few times. This one, and I genuinely mean this, tops it. Sung with passion as all anthems should. You should be very proud of that rendition as I'm proud of you," one viewer wrote.

"Should of got these girls to go sing the anthem for the Kiwis v England game," another commented.

Collins, the singer of what some have called the worst version of the New Zealand national anthem, spoke to Radio Sport to apologise for her performance before nailing the Māori version live on air in a second attempt.

Collins told Radio Sport she felt "horrible" about the performance.

"I would like to apologise to you and the citizens of New Zealand," she said.

"I felt horrible. I would have rather sung it a cappella, as that was how I was rehearsing."