Marlon Williams has joined forces with Lorde for his new single ‘Kāhore He Manu E’ – check it out below.
The track marks the latest preview of the singer-songwriter’s upcoming album ‘Te Whare Tīwekaweka’ – which is his first studio record to be recorded exclusively in Māori.
For the single, he is joined by Lorde – real name Ella Yelich-O’Connor – and the song is described as a track that comes as “an ode to the colourful but grim wormhole of road life”, as well as the friends “made and lost” along the way.
“‘Kāhore He Manu E’ was one of those gentle labours. It played itself out to me, easily and near complete from the first. It was also obvious who should be singing it; Ella’s voice in a very real sense wrote the song,” Williams said.
“The distinct and striking characteristics in her voice cornering and demanding of the melody and phrasing what only her voice could. Singing with Ella is incredible; the amount of mind she’s able to pour into the vessel. We got to know each other through sharing the highs and lows of touring life, and in a real sense this song is an ode to the colourful but grim wormhole of road life, to the friends made and lost in the folds of time, ‘visions lost in the blur.’”
Speaking about the collaboration, Lorde explained the inspiration she felt from listening to Williams’ work and described the partnership as “one of my favourite things to do on earth”.
“Over the course of several years I watched Marlon pull at the threads that became ‘Te Whare Tīwekaweka’. I saw that the further he got into the album, the deeper my friend came to know himself, his whānau and his world at large,” she said.
“Marlon is an undercover perfectionist, and he was never going to embark on this journey without turning over every stone, crafting complex waiata that speaks to the past while also braiding in his characteristic humour and X-ray vision.
“Singing with Marlon is one of my favourite things to do on earth, whether we are tipsy backstage by a pool table or in a luscious studio, and I was honoured he asked me to sing with him on this album. I’m so proud of my friend.”
Check out the song above. It also comes along with a video that is taken from Marlon Williams: Ngā Ao E Rua – Two Worlds, the forthcoming documentary film by Ursula Grace Williams about the making of the record.
As for the album as a whole, the inspiration came as Williams faced difficulties when writing an album in English and decided to switch to his ancestral tongue.
“While not fluent, [the switch] unlocked a new means of self-expression and felt like an important act of reclamation,” reads a description of the LP.
It also came together over a period of five years, which saw him reconnect with family, friends, and his home town of Lyttelton. The album is set for release on April 4. Visit here to pre-order it and check out the preview of the upcoming making-of documentary above.
As for Lorde, the singer also made headlines last September when Chappell Roan revealed that the singer sent her a list of ways to deal with negativity and her meteoric rise to fame.
Before then, Lorde got fans talking by wiping all of her social media accounts clean, leading some to believe she is set to announce some new music soon.
