Anna Coddington Shares Te Reo EP 'Mana​-​Wā​-​Hine'

September is very nearly over and so Mahuru Māori is drawing to a close with a final hoorah from Tāmaki songwriting superstar Anna Coddington. Her shiny Mana​-​Wā​-​Hine EP lands today with five original Coddington tracks translated into te reo Māori with help from Scotty Te Manahau and Stacey Morrison, and features a Ria Hall co-writing credit on the new title and opening track. 'Mana​-​Wā​-​Hine' is a reo play on words, reading as either Manawa Hine — heart of a girl, or Mana Wāhine — mana of women, which is then explored further by Pōneke artist Te Kahureremoa Taumata on the EP cover art, depicting three woman dancing across Papatūānuku, Mother Earth. The other four tracks are translated from her Taite Music Prize finalist album Beams, including the title track and Louis Baker collab 'Aho / Beams' which first cropped up at the other end of Mahuru Māori on Kono 003. Before listening to Mana​-​Wā​-​Hine, read a snippet from Anna Coddington's reflection on the project:

"I find myself lost for words in trying to summarise what it means for me to release an EP in te reo Māori. The journey of language reclamation for Māori is a complex thing - enriching & exhilarating as it is arduous and painful.

My own reo Māori journey has been long & inconsistent. When I had children and put them into kōhanga reo, it was the catalyst for me to get back in the waka and paddle hard. It also gave me the invaluable gift of horopaki reo Māori - Māori language contexts. I’ve lived in central Auckland for 20 years- it’s not exactly bursting with opportunities to be immersed in te reo. So for me, the current fleet of waiata reo Māori is another branch on the fire, feather on the wing - some other metaphor that if my reo were better I’d know instinctively… It all helps shift that attitudinal tide and I’m proud to add another 5 tunes to it."

'Mana​-​Wā​-​Hine' is out now on major streaming services via Loop Recordings.