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Tame Iti Debut CD Release
The Area Presents "Terra-ism: Dr. Tutu featuring Tame Iti"

K Road, Auckland, NZ 9.11.2004 - Tame Iti, well known Maori activist, is featured in a CD release of original songs produced by Mike Weston (The Area) and accompanied by an exhibition of 88 new paintings by Otis Frizzell and Mike Weston (Ngati Pakeha). The CD and paintings were completed on 9.11.2004 at The Area, 203 K. Road basement, Auckland, New Zealand.

The music ranges from relaxed electronica mixed with traditional Maori instruments to harder-driving electro layered with traditional Maori chants. The opening song "Whenua," raises the topic of New Zealand land rights amidst a backdrop of native New Zealand bird sounds, Maori flute and conch. "Aotearoa Not for Sale" is a downtempo postulation of Captain James Cook as a recently arrived alien looking to invest in New Zealand real estate. "Kiwi" is an uptempo meditation on New Zealand race relations that asks, "Why you fellas calling yourself a Kiwi?" The CD closes with the breakbeat influenced "The Real Terrorists?" which questions governments' roles in atrocities committed against indigenous peoples. Original compositions were contributed by Tom Ludvigson (Alloy/Trip/Pagan Records/KOG Transmissions/MAINZ), the RFG (KFM Radio) and Mike Weston. Music samples were contributed by Matt Turner (Data:Bass).

About Tame Iti (Dr. Tutu)
Tame Iti (c1948-) is a social worker, dealing with issues related to substance abuse and domestic violence. He has hosted nationwide radio shows on Radio Waatea and George FM, and is a co-founder of KFM, a low power FM station in central Auckland. Tame currently hosts a youth and talk back show on Radio Tainui 95.4FM. He is also a painter.

As legend goes, when little Iti was about a month old, he arrived in Ruatoki in a discarded letter box. His adoptive parents were an elderly couple that had raised Iti's father, plus 7 children of their own. At 15 he traded the village life for the city of Christchurch, where he was drawn toward politics. In the 1970s he protested against the Vietnam war and against rascism in this country. He is a founding member of a the Maori Youth Movement (Nga Tamatoa), and is former member of the NZ Comminist Party. In 1972 he pitched a tent on Parliament grounds as a Maori ambassador and demanded sovereignty for first nation people. He actively followed the civil rights movement in the US, and helped set up the Maori Liberation Front. He helped found the first Maori party "Mana Maori Movement," and in 1996 ran an unsuccessful campaign for a seat in Parliament. When Colin McCahon's Urewera Mural, a painting valued at over a million dollars, was liberated from a Department of Conservation office, Iti was instrumental in its return.

Mr. Iti has been featured in many international books, songs and television shows about Maori struggles. Earlier this year at Gallery Salmonroot in Auckland, Tame held an exhibition of original paintings entitled "Meet the Prick" which was opened by National MP Gerry Brownlee. Tame Iti has been arrested many times.

About Mike Weston
Mike Weston (1963-) is the proprietor of The Area, an independent music studio and art gallery on Karangahape Road in Auckland. During his twenty-year career he has worked as a recording engineer, DJ, music producer, event promoter, clothing designer, visual artist and artist manager. He has created original music under the names Black Girls Machine, Theta State and Field. As a music producer he has worked with Anigma, The Warners, Reptiles@Dawn, the Dakoda's, The Lils, Christine White, Mechanism, ICU, Field, OB1, Miss DJ, The Nairobi's, Fruit, and Shima, among others. In 1994 he started the techno record label Pulse. Between 1994 and 2002 he coordinated New Zealand tours for international artists such as Jeff Mills, Derrick May, Juan Atkins, Stacey Pullen, Freddie Fresh, Dave Angel, Mark Dynamix, Sandra Collins, Chris Lee and Shaheen. From 1998 to 2002 he produced mix albums and managed dance club events and tours for club LOVELY and Renegade with DJ OB1. With graffiti artist Askew (Disruptiv), Weston produced a series of graffiti art events including Fresh Fresh Fresh, Disrupt the System 2000, Damage Control and Contents Under Pressure, seeding careers for Askew, Misery (Illicit), Otis Frizzell and the late Martin Emond (Illicit), among others.

About Otis Frizzell
Otis Frizzell (1971-) is a television celebrity, hip hop performer, radio personality, tattooist, graphic designer and chauffeur to the stars. If there are any barriers to where Otis Frizzell's diverse, irrepressible talent and colourful personality will take him, he has yet to be stopped by them. Otis entered public life in his late teens as half of popular hip hop duo MC OJ and Rhythm Slave. He has performed as Joint Force and Stylee Crew. His partnership with Mark "Slave" Williams carried the duo into a long-running Wednesday drive-time radio slot on BFM called "Slave and Otis," now the morning drive show on Base FM. The duo's radio celebrity transferred to television with the award winning "The Mo' Show." Otis has more than 15 years of public graffiti art experience, and since 1998 has retained his position as New Zealand's highest profile graffiti artist. His work is on walls in Saatchi and Saatchi, IE Music (Robbie Williams' London management office), in celebrity collections, on KFC packaging, breast cancer T shirts, Playstation Ads, TV2 promos and the record sleeves of Che Fu and Concord Dawn.