Bringing together country, bluegrass, folk and pop with his irresistibly charming voice, New Zealand singer-songwriter Marlon Williams performed music from his new Māori language album in his long-awaited return to the Sydney Opera House.

With a sound that traversed everything from bluegrass and country to folk, rock, synth-pop and traditional Māori rhythms, the multi-talented Aotearoa singer-songwriter Marlon Williams proved himself to be one of New Zealand’s most distinctive musical exports of the past decade. Having last appeared at the Sydney Opera House Forecourt in 2019, Williams returned for his first solo headline performance, where he showcased his new record Te Whare Tīwekaweka for his Vivid LIVE debut.

In 2025, Williams returned with Te Whare Tiwekaweka, an album written and performed in Te Reo Maori that connected the musician with his Maori heritage. Drawing inspiration from a wide array of sources from the great vocal showbands of mid-century New Zealand to Sardinian folk singing, Elvis Presley to Elliott Smith it offered a playful exploration of Maori musical forms both traditional and newly imagined, synthesised into Williams’ established signature sound.