The full force of one of Aotearoa's most celebrated bands is being felt in the US YouTube community.
TikTok account KiwiAdamsNZ put together a compilation of a few US content creators reacting to the Six 60’s epic rendition of ‘Don't Forget Your Roots’ from their Western Springs show in 2020.
For many of the YouTubers, the emotion and power of the performance were too much, with a couple of them left in tears by the mana on display.
One of the most intense reactions came from a YouTuber who goes by The World Upside Right. He burst into tears during the Te Reo section of the performance and was obviously struck deeply by it.
“Oh my goodness,” he said. “Māori people: y’all gotta stay strong, you gotta keep this alive. I’ll be so sad for your people if you lose this.”
“Y’all gotta do whatever you can to keep this alive, whatever it takes, whatever it takes. I feel this from a video - I can’t imagine what it feels like to be Māori and know what that means.”
Another YouTuber, Jesse from BEL Development, also had an emotional reaction, saying: “Wow man, how magical - I literally have tears in my eyes.”
Commenters on the TikTok said the reactions are awesome, and show the power present in Māori culture.
“I love how they don’t necessarily understand Te Reo, but they feel it,” wrote one person. “Te Reo is a language that is understood without understanding the words, if that makes sense.”
“I had the same response as the guy with glasses when I first saw this - chills,” said another. “When the haka hits - ātaahua. I love this culture.”
“Best song ever live,” a third added, “with a little Ka Mate haka thrown in.”
Look at Six60 and Te Reo going global!
