Late last Friday we were excited to learn that M.C.S (Te Kahurangi McLean, Faitonu Matamua, CJ Henry, Christian Fogavai and Nathaniel Strange) were named as the winners of the Tangata Beats Otago Regional Final.

This Friday they will find out if they have been judged in the Top 10 bands to compete in the Tangata Beats National Final, in Auckland.

Tangata Beats is a companion competition with Smokefree Rockquest. The students are tasked with composing original songs that celebrate Maori and/or Pasifika culture. M.C.S' song "Love Hurts" is a reggae and R&B song that tells a classic tale of heartbreak in both English and Te Reo. Due to COVID-19 restrictions during the initial stages of the competition, the regional finals were held via youtube videos being submitted to be judged (and you can see M.C.S's video here http://sftb.nz/otago/ ). 

The judges were impressed with their musicianship, catchy tunes, the inclusion of Te Reo lyrics and the boys giving their best efforts to put on a show for a non-existent audience. We are very proud of M.C.S and their achievements so far in the competition and we're excited to hear the results of the next part of the Tangata Beats and Smokefree Rockquest competitions.