DEAN HAPETA aka TE KUPU

Te Kupu in the Maori language means The Word, also known as D Word. His name is specifically linked to spreading the word, delivering Maori from the system of Babylon otherwise known as colonial presence and also the binds that came with Christianity.
Dean Hapeta (as his parents named him) could rightly be deemed one of the contemporary Maori prophets of our time. His impassioned and hard-core lyrics make no apologies for their direct line of fire to the colonial Other. In the same spirit as all liberationists for the causes of the oppressed, he uses words as the early Maori warrior would use the taiaha, a skilled warrior who exacts blows straight to the heart of the concern.
Aligning with other resistance ideologies that challenge the status quo of the indigenous peoples and the racially oppressed, Te Kupu is one voice that refuses to be drowned out as a minority; Maori make up only 14 percent of the population of Aotearoa New Zealand.
In the original lyrics of E TU, Hapeta (Te Kupu) makes reference to the freedom fighters of his forebears, Chief Te Rauparaha who was a fearless warrior, Hone Heke who challenged the Colonial presence being made permanently visible by the cutting down of the British Flagstaff at Kororareka (Russell). In fact, the word TU is derived from the name Tu-mata-uenga the Atua/god from whence all war originated in Maori Mythology. E tu are indeed fighting words. They do not mean to bring peace but are words inspired by defense and defiance against oppressive power.
Known widely as one of the original musicians in the Aotearoa reggae hip-hop crew called UPPER HUTT POSSE (UHP formed in 1985), Te Kupu, along with Matt Hapeta (MC Wiya), Aaron Thompson (Blue Dread), Darryl Thompson (DLT), Bennet Pomana (MC Beware), Teremoana Rapley (Tere) and Steve Rameka (Acid Dread), created a fusion of Hip Hop, Reggae and kapa haka or traditional Maori performing arts. Their music’s ethos shares a close affinity to the struggles suffered by African Americans, the Rastafarian message of solidarity and freedom from oppression and indigenous peoples who endure disposession to this day. This total commitment to the sovereignty of indigenous cultures has enabled him to connect with the African- American musical forms as well as syncopated beats and the political rationale of Reggae to create what is a Maori resistance style of Hip Hop, a Maori political consciousness, distinctly targeting the dispossessed and those who proudly call themselves Maori.
Te Kupu is one of the unspoken heroes in our nation’s musical history. He delivers the kaupapa of tino rangatiratanga and the overwhelming message of resistance, using his gifts as a performer to disseminate the word about Maori Sovereignty. He urges each Maori to stand proud in one’s tikanga or Maoritanga without apology.
Have self determination in what ya gonna do
Kia kaha, kia mau ki to Maori
Don’t let no-one stand on you
Te Kupu - Dean Hapeta 1988

Na0 Leafa Wilson
Overview/Translation by Mamae Takerei Waikato Iwi, Tainui Waka
Mamae Takerei is Tangata Whenua Curator at the Waikato Museum Te Whare Taonga o Waikato and is a Kingitanga Consultant.
Also assistance from April Le Mon, Tangata Whenua Education Programme Leader, Waikato Museum Te Whare Taonga o Waikato