Bandquest

18/12/2023

As we head towards the new year - we have been reflecting on how fantastic 2023 has been!

At RQP we offer 7 different programmes nationwide; Smokefreerockquest, Smokefree Tangata Beats, Rockshop Bandquest, Showquest, Toi, Stills, and OnScreen.
Our programmes all focus on fostering the growth of rangatahi nationwide - celebrating creativity, building connections, offering the sense of achievement that comes with participation, and shaping the future of the creative industries.

This year we have had:
12K+ Rangatahi involved nationwide
70+ Live events
30K+ Members of the community attended live events
1.5M+ Connections reached on social media
900+ Rangatahi involved in 'Creative Development Mentoring' opportunities

Massive (MASSIVE!) thank you to everyone who was a part of our journey this year - whether that be as a participant, audience member, teacher, on an event team, or as a partner. We cannot wait to do it again in 2024!

13/12/2023

👕🎸 ROCKSHOP BANDQUEST TEE GIVEAWAY 🥁🎤
We have some '23 Rockshop Bandquest tee's to give away to keep you looking cool this school holidays!
To enter - comment below a song you reckon would be a cool Bandquest cover 🎶

🏆 Winners drawn on Friday 15th at 4pm.

11/12/2023

Rockshop Bandquest presents the 2023 National Winners - WHYPHY from Rangikura School ! 🎶 Here is their medley of 'Where Have You Been' by Rhianna & 'Moment 4 Life' by Nicki Minaj.

⭐️ Massive thank you to James Coyle at Massey University, and Itu Obeda from Rangikura School, for all your mahi behind the scenes on this recording.

🎸The Rockshop Bandquest event series is made possible by the support of the Rockshop NZ and the Wright Family Foundation.

Credits -
Performance by: WHYPHY from Rangikura School
Producer, mentor & mixing: Avina Kelekolio
Song and video recorded at: Massey University studio in Wellington
Video by: Mason Rudd

30/11/2023

This morning we honoured the legacy and birthday of Chloe Wright, who sadly passed in Oct.

Alongside her whānau, and the many people who she touched with her incredible work in the community - we would like to shine a light on The Village NZ.

Chloe Wright was passionate about providing support to individuals navigating parenthood. She founded The Village to offer education and support through providing accessible online and offline resources to parents, and to build a community of connections that would empower and support those involved.

Her incredible community values and generosity has left a mark on the world which will continue to inspire and uplift us.

Ka aroha hoki. Moe mai rā e te taonga o mate.

- RQP



Wright Family Foundation

27/11/2023

✨ Ampt Up from Napier Intermediate won this years national 'Best Song Wright-er Award' with their original song called 'Alive'.

Let's show some love and support for these talented young musicians by checking out their incredible work linked below 🏆🎵

Huge thanks to The Wright Family Foundation for presenting this years Rockshop Bandquest, and for their incredible support for young musicians. 🙌🎸

🔗 Link to "Alive" by Ampt Up:

Alive Video@_ampt_up_Here is Ampt-Ups song 'Alive.' They won the Bandquest 2023 national competitions best original song. -Up StageLeft...

17/11/2023

🎸Get ready for some epic vibes! We are so excited to have the national champions of this year, WHYPHY from Rangikura School, going into the studio next week to lay down their track! 🎤🎶

This 10-piece powerhouse knows how to bring the rock to the max - and you can check out their video submission from earlier this year below. 🤘

Stay tuned for the magic they're about to create in the studio! 🚀🤟

20/10/2023

Entries close at midnight tonight for Stills, our photography platform for students enrolled in school in Aotearoa. Supported by Fujifilm there is a prize package worth over $25k!

Students in years 1-8 can enter into the Junior section.
Photo entries for this section are open ended - they can be anything you want! Landscapes, animals, nature, your friends, your whānau, something that moves, something that stays still, or maybe something that grows... What captures your attention!?

To enter and for more info - feel free to flick us a message, or check out www.stills.nz

03/10/2023

21/09/2023

🎉 Drumroll, please! 🎸

Congratulations to all 287 talented acts who took the stage and made music come alive in this year's Rockshop Bandquest! We understand that preparing a live musical performance is no small feat; it's a massive undertaking that demands dedication, creativity, and passion.

Today, we're thrilled to unveil the results that highlight the exceptional talents and hard work poured into the competition.

We would also like to say a massive thank you to the Wright Family Foundation for presenting this years programme, and the Rockshop for powering it!

• 1st Place (winning $3000 Musical equipment from the Rockshop): WHYPHY from Rangikura School (Wellington)
• 2nd Place (winning $1000 Musical equipment from the Rockshop): Shades On from Holy Cross School Papatoetoe (Manukau)
• 3rd Place (winning $500 Musical equipment from the Rockshop): Carnival Cops from Berkley Normal Middle School (Waikato)

• Wright the Best Original Song Award (winning $200 for their school’s music department): Ampt Up from Napier Intermediate (Hawkes Bay)
• Best Keyboard player Award: Jackson from Hazy Days, Kamo Intermediate (Online Region)
• Rocking Drummer Award: Harvey Connor from Tempo, Waimea Intermediate (Nelson)
• Rock-Solid Bassist Award: Amelie Pilot-Rowsell from Pyramid Scheme, Te Atatu Intermediate (Auckland)
• “Killer” Guitarist Award: Alex from Synchronicity, Wairarapa Cobham Intermediate (Canterbury)
• Rockstar Styles Award: Shades On from Holy Cross School Papatoetoe (Manukau)
• Musicianship Award: Olivia Pinkney from Wildfire, Kapakapanui School (Manawatu)
• Best Vocalist Award: Taniane Lemafua, Emaia-Lei Ah-Hoi Tiatia, Jahvis Cheung and Desire Waara from WHYPHY, Rangikura School (Wellington)

Well done to each of you who has been named an award winner!
If you have won a prize, your teacher will be emailed with the details.

Mā te wā, Bandquesters!
We can't wait to see you next year,

The RQP Team

20/09/2023

🎬🎥And that’s a wrap on our Rockshop Bandquest webisode series for 2023!!

🧑‍🧑‍🦱🧑‍🏫We’re finishing the series at our amazing Wellington event where we had 15 superb bands take the stage! They gave shoutouts to all the support who’d helped them along the way including their parents and teachers. Their support really shone through in the bands’ performances, so we’re grateful for all their help too!

This series has been made with the support of the Wright Family Foundation and the Rockshop NZ.

19/09/2023

👏👏👏Have you ever played in front of a packed audience?

🎤🎸🧑‍🎤Well, for a lot of our Rockshop Bandquest entrants, it’s their first opportunity to do so. The same was true at our Otago event, but our students took to the challenge with style – giving everything they had on stage, and showcasing all the practice they’d put in!

This series has been made with the support of the Wright Family Foundation and the Rockshop NZ.

18/09/2023

🏘️🎭🎤New Zealand sure has some iconic venues!

🤘🧑‍🎤🚀And that was no different at our Rockshop Bandquest Nelson event where our students got the chance to play at the beautiful Theatre Royal! The bands covered a range of genres and rocked the house!

This series has been made with the support of the Wright Family Foundation and the Rockshop NZ.

14/09/2023

💃🕺Having a boogie, jive, bop, sway, kanikani…

🪩🩰👯Whatever you call it, it was all happening at our Rockshop Bandquest Hawke’s Bay regional event! Some bands had their own choreography while others made up their own moves on stage. Regardless there was some serious dancing going down. And what better way to listen to live music than cutting some shapes?

This series has been made with the support of the Wright Family Foundation and the Rockshop NZ.

13/09/2023

🌊🌊🌊“The next wave of Aotearoa talent…”

👕🎩That’s how our mate Rei put it at the Manawatū Rockshop Bandquest event and we couldn’t agree more. Our entrants put on an evening of killer live music and gave it all they had! Even better, they expressed their individuality – from bright t-shirts to plaid, fuzzy hats to fedoras. Check out all the action in our latest webisode!!

This series has been made with the support of the Wright Family Foundation and the Rockshop NZ .

11/09/2023

⚡🦸If you could have any superpower what would it be??

🧳🎸👂Well, our Manukau Bandquest entrants chose classics like invisibility and teleportation, but they also chose fast fingers for playing guitar, and the ability to learn any piece of music instantly!! Perfect pitch really is a super power! Our acts were all about having fun with their friends and making other people happy which surely is what playing in a band is all about!

This series has been made with the support of the Wright Family Foundation and the Rockshop NZ.

08/09/2023

🌟✨💫Bandquest entrants today, stars tomorrow…

🎤🔊🧑‍🤝‍🧑Our final day in the Greater Auckland region and we got exclusive interviews with the future stars of the New Zealand music industry! They told us about their favourite moments of the day, the best parts of performing live and alongside their peers. Catch it all in this week’s webisode!

This series has been made with the support of the Wright Family Foundation and the Rockshop NZ.

07/09/2023

Alongside the live regional events we have an 'online' region available for bands unable to perform at a live event.

These bands have submitted videos of them performing live, which have been viewed by a judging panel. Each of the bands really impressed the judges, and they will all get feedback sent out to them.

The winning band, Hazy Days from Kamo Intermediate, is now invited to submit a video in the Rockshop Bandquest National Final, of which the results will be annouced on 21 September.

Here are the results for this years 'online' region:
• 1st Place (winning $400 credit with The Rockshop for their school): Hazy Days - Kamo Intermediate

• 2nd Place (winning $200 credit with The Rockshop for their school): The Hot Pinky’z - New Brighton Catholic School

• 3rd Place (winning $100 credit with The Rockshop for their school): The Sunshine Band - Glen Eden Intermediate

• Best Song-Wrighter Award, sponsored by The Wright Family Foundation (winning $100 cash for their school): The Landing - Clarkville School (for their first song)

• Best Keyboard player Award: Elaine of Trinity, Blockhouse Bay Intermediate

• Rocking Drummer Award: Braxton of Hazy Days, Kamo Intermediate

• Rock-Solid Bassist Award: Scarlett of The Hot Pinky’z - New Brighton Catholic School

• “Killer” Guitarist Award: lead guitarist (left handed) of Waste Management - Highlands Intermediate

• Rockstar Styles Award: Bruce (singer) - No Socks, ACG Strathallan

• Musicianship Award: The Loose Goose (whole band) - Highlands Intermediate

• Best Vocalist Award: Jointly awarded to:
All Singers of The Sunshine Band - Glen Eden Intermediate &
Male singer of Rolling Pebbles - Kowhai Intermediate

Pictured: Hazy Days - Kamo Intermediate

07/09/2023

💅👖So your performance is sounding good but what’s your band wearing?

👕🎩🥽👷At day one of our Rockshop Bandquest events in Greater Auckland we had band t-shirts, themed costumes, ski goggles, hi-vis vests and more! Our entrants were singing, dancing and enjoying their time on stage!

This series has been made with the support of the Wright Family Foundation and the Rockshop NZ.

06/09/2023

👖🍋🥑🌾🧊Our final day in the Canterbury region for Rockshop Bandquest and we had some incredible band names

🎺🎻🎸Names like the Denim Lemons, Holy Guacamole, OSM, Ice Cold and many others! There were all sorts of instruments being featured by our young musicians from trumpet to violin to ukulele! Check out all the action from Õtautahi here.

This series has been made with the support of the Wright Family Foundation and the Rockshop NZ.

05/09/2023

🎶💪🔊Another Rockshop Bandquest event in the beautiful Canterbury region, another day full of energy, excitement, and of course… some rockin’ music!!

⚡💡🧑‍🎤With a great energy from the crowd, students were pumped to take the stage, giving their awesome renditions of popular tunes and even some original songs! It was epic to see the collaboration between bandmates and the support between bands!

This series has been made with the support of the Wright Family Foundation and the Rockshop NZ.

04/09/2023

Massive thank you to everyone who joined us at the Otago regional Rockshop Bandquest!

Here are the results:
• First place, winning $400 credit with The Rockshop for their school: UN@Bathgate Park School from Bathgate Park School
• Second place, winning $200 credit with The Rockshop for their school: Screen Pollution from Tahuna Normal School
• Third place, winning $100 credit with The Rockshop for their school: On Point from Balmacewen Intermediate

• Wright The Best Original Song, winning $100 cash for their school: Bleeding Roses from Taieri College
• Best Vocalist (jointly awarded): Odd Ones Out from John McGlashan College
• Best Vocalist (jointly awarded): Chain Reaction from Taieri College
• Musicianship award: Horn Section from Ultraviolet, Balmacewen Intermediate
• Rockstar Styles award: Bass Player from The Nutmegs, Taieri College
• 'Killer' guitarist award: Screen Pollution from Tahuna Normal School
• Rock-solid bassist award: UN@Bathgate Park School from Bathgate Park School
• Rocking drummer award: Odd Ones Out from John McGlashan College
• Best Keyboard Player: Blue Lace from Dunedin North Intermediate

Photo - UN@Bathgate Park School from Bathgate Park School, taken by Michael Trillo NZ