Sonny Ngatai

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Sonny Ngatai

Sonny is a storyteller and champion for te reo Māori Sonny Ngatai is a young Māori presenter, humanitarian, and funny guy with a passion for change.

Like and follow to keep up with Sonny's journey.

12/08/2024

We love Osaka 💡 🇯🇵 🛍️ 🍱

12/08/2024

“How’s Japan going?” = 👌🏽

07/08/2024

When you forget your HUE 💦🥵. No other bottle compares to

14/06/2024

Hands on hips, mahi is getting done! 👊🏽

01/05/2024

Last month vibes 😮‍💨🙌🏽

12/04/2024

cheers to the weekend! 🤩

05/04/2024

my week ain’t weak 🤳🏽😤

01/04/2024

POV: you're your own boss 😎

02/02/2024

Me and my Hei Tiki

03/01/2024

Great start to 2024 🏝️ ⛳️ 🥂 💆🏽‍♂️ ⛳️ 🏊‍♂️ 🥘 ⛳️ 🏝️

13/12/2023

The tears were for a whole mix of reasons. Relief that I was finally accepting my reality. Sadness that I had done this to myself. Anger that I had let this happen. Fear of whether I was ready to change, and what did change actually mean.

13/12/2023

That’s a wrap 🎬

Now bringing all the kōrero together to share with the motu begins!

04/12/2023

Stepping out of my comfort zone, I joined today’s hīkoi. A peaceful hīkoi to remind those in power that we’re mokopuna focussed ✊🏽❤️

30/11/2023

Mā te kōrero e ora ai te reo 🌱 Every word I speak in te reo is a victory for te reo Māori.

30/10/2023

Ever since I was little I’ve always wanted to be on TV, I used to practice my Te Karere sign off in the mirror, and would watch The Graham Norton Show every week with my parents. I used to parrot Jimmy Fallon’s jokes and when I was in my last year standing at Ngā Manu Kōrero I said I wanted to be the Ellen of Aotearoa 😂

On this day, 5 years ago when I was a kaimahi at Te Amokura Productions we created Flatties. It was going to be an all out Sonny late night show. It never saw a camera but our ideas were amazing. I haven’t hosted my own late night show but I’ve loved every minute in te ao pāoho (broadcasting) 📺 🎥

E mihi nui ana ki ngā tōtara i akiaki i tēnei tipu 🌱

10/09/2023

I was fortunate to join the parata (brother) on his show Brain Busters. Normally a reo Pākehā show, Chris and the production team challenged themselves to make a commitment to make the show 💯 reo Māori. Chris has hosted hundreds of episodes, and after challenging himself to full immersion hosting last te wiki, this year Chris, our tuahine and myself were able to share te reo again. The cool thing about this show, is that every aspect of it was reo Māori first. It exemplified that using te reo Māori can be a challenge but with the right support, patience and commitment to giving your best you can make a world class game show for the whole motu to enjoy! Kia mau tonu mai e hoa mā👏🏽

10/08/2023

Another day, another golf ball I’ll never see again… 😭

26/07/2023

Incase you missed it….my reading face 😬

Hoi anō, kia kaha ki te pānui kids 📖 📕

22/07/2023

Mānawatia a Matariki ✨. A beautiful and emotional hautapu held at Ngātokowaru. Matariki was clear all morning long, we had 3 shooting stars 💫, and even saw the starlink satellites too 🛰️. With all these signs the year ahead looks clear, full of dreams coming true and maybe some surprises too. Happy new year e hoa mā, I can’t wait to celebrate with the whānau again!

11/07/2023

Matihiko Awards ✨ a beautiful night celebrating the tipu and tōtara of our Māori digital eco system 🌲 🍃

Shout out to Katie Brown and my cuzzy Lee Timutimu for allowing me to test some new jokes, and share more Sonny’isms 😂. Nōku te whiwhi

07/07/2023

My darling, my best friend. Hari huritau e te tau x

29/06/2023

🚕 📱 fit appreciation post. Koina 📸

28/06/2023

Throwback to Dubai 🏙️✈️ where to next? 🤔

02/06/2023

Kia ora e te whānau, our new show Kete Kai airs Wenerei (Wednesday) 7 June! We’re so happy with the final product and we could t have done it without tautoko from Te Māngai Pāho and My Food Bag.

🥦 The Kete Kai meals can be ordered when the episode airs and will come with bilingual recipe cards featuring English and te reo Māori so whānau can practice the te reo phrases learned during the episode while cooking at home.

🥦 A QR code on the recipe card will provide a full te reo version for the recipe.

Shout out to our ringa āwhina:
🎥 Caleb Kingi
🌀 Hona Black
🧑‍🍳 Uncle Chef Rex, Wendy Morgan
🫱 Mo Passmore
✨ Jershon Elkington
🎨 NJ Makeup Artistry

and all the amazing talent!

Rex Morgan will be joined on the series by guest Māori language advocates.

15/04/2023

Harry + Taylor 🕺🏽💃🏽❤️

14/04/2023

Whakawhanaungatanga levels ki tua ⬆️↗️

09/04/2023

Ngā mihi o te aranga - Happy Easter e te whānau 🍫 🐰

05/04/2023

Was scrolling through some old NYC photos, and noticed that while I was trying to pose for “an action shot” I just realised that I was calling for a cab the wrong way. 🙈

19/01/2023

How many world leaders do we know that would do this? With all the Prime Minister led our country through, her commitment to te reo Māori is my highlight. From launching Te Maihi Karauna at Te Matatini to celebrating Matariki, even naming her tamaiti Te Aroha speaks volumes.

When I was looking for words to summarise my mihi to the Prime Minister, I think Te Pāti Māori said it best "Our country needed the grace of a wahine to lead us through this period of our history, and she did so with the utmost humility and integrity." Her leadership and bravery as Prime Minister have forever transformed politics, leadership, and our country!

E te rangatira, ka mutu pea. Kia pai te whakataa...

Address

16 Cambridge Terrace
Wellington

Telephone

0274130994

Website

http://ata.business/

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Videos

Keeping up with kā-ATA-dashians... 📹 Inspired by @bomanizer #officelife #tereomāori #keepingup

Āperira highlights 🎙️🔥🔥🔥. Kia kaha tātou mā cos te reo is strong! OG rap recaps by: @mrgrandeofficial #news

What place names should be changed back to its original Māori name? Pito One is currently under consideration 👏🏽 E mihi nui ana ki Wellington Tenths Trust and Palmerston North Māori Reserves Trust for submitting the tono and @radionewzealand for the karere

Just a handful of whakataukī I use to motivate my team. Do you need motivation? Feel free to take a leaf out of my handbook 😎 🍃

Translators maintain the integrity of te reo Māori. Respect them, pay them ✊🏽😤 Read the full blog at: www.ata.business/blog

cheers to the weekend! 🤩

Māehe highlights 👀🎙️ I love this rap recap style by TikTok creator Mikey Angelo. So I thought I’d do a Māori news version. 🔥🔥🔥 OG rap recaps by: @mrgrandeofficial #reoraps #reonews #reomāori

... 🤨 time for a cheeky 'brofessional' reminder.

Last week started off on a high, with no mahi on Mane (Monday). We also kicked of filming for my bro Hona Black new reo Māori podcast starring taku darling Kiriana....more deets to come... And it wouldn’t be a great Ata week without a little happy hour and karaoke on a Paraire! 🥂

POV: you're your own boss 😎

Our very cool Prime Minister

How many world leaders do we know that would do this? With all the Prime Minister led our country through, her commitment to te reo Māori is my highlight. From launching Te Maihi Karauna at Te Matatini to celebrating Matariki, even naming her tamaiti Te Aroha speaks volumes. When I was looking for words to summarise my mihi to the Prime Minister, I think Te Pāti Māori said it best "Our country needed the grace of a wahine to lead us through this period of our history, and she did so with the utmost humility and integrity." Her leadership and bravery as Prime Minister have forever transformed politics, leadership, and our country! E te rangatira, ka mutu pea. Kia pai te whakataa... #JacindaArdern #OptimusJacindaPrime

Back by popular demand! If you’re missing a little bit of Aotearoa, let me tell you the story of how Māui slowed the sun! 🌞 Ngā mihi to the whānau from @purenewzealand

I’m sharing Māori stories from my home to help our whānau from across the ditch 🦘 dream of Aotearoa! 🇳🇿 ♥️ 🇦🇺

Movie Vax Night's

Like Taika Waititi 🕺 said if you want to be a 'Free Guy' this summer 🌞 then check out our Movie Vax nights 🍿 which have been popping up around the motu! Next one is coming to Tauranga Moana! Pirirakau Hauora #ngātirangatahi #itsoursummer For more info check out the link below 👇 ⬇️ https://fb.me/e/34pk5cytO 👀

Bathe in The River / Kōrukutia

Scared to sing in Māori, Hollie Smith wants to be braver. Alongside Don McGlashan, Hollie stands up to perform one of Aotearoa’s most beloved songs. We are all super proud of you! Bathe in The River / Kōrukutia stream on apple music & Spotify

Ngā Manu Kōrero - 2013

Tiki Towns - Kurow

Tiki Towns - Rotorua

Shortcuts

Sonny’s story

Sonny Ngatai was raised in Rotorua and went to kohanga reo before his whanau relocated to Titahi Bay (Wellington). His parents were of the generation that were not exposed to the reo, however they had a deep desire for their tamariki to grow up learning te reo. Sonny was awarded the highest achievement any Young Māori orator can receive, the winner of the National Korimako Award two years in a row at Ngā Manu Korero Nationals in 2013 and 2014. As well as this, Sonny spent his last high school year as head Boy for his prestigious boarding School Hato Pāora College. When Sonny was young, he wanted to be a doctor – until everyone started telling him he should be on TV.

Sonny went on to the University of Auckland to study medicine with the Chancellor's scholarship for top Māori and Pacific Island scholars in his back pocket. However reality soon caught up with him, and his focus changed. Sonny's passion and commitment to defending Child rights has seen him step up as a NZ Unicef Ambassador. Sonny was spearheaded by the producer of the first ever rangatahi webseries Hahana with a deep passion for promoting Te Reo Māori and inspiring youth, he quickly accepted the challenge. Since Hahana, Sonny has gone on to Present, Direct and create all kinds of shows, with his most recent show “Tiki Towns” playing on Prime and Nickelodeon.