04 Feb 2026
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When people think of the Pacific Islands, they often picture blue waters and wide stretches of green. What is less expected is hip hop, freestyle cyphers, and underground street dance.
Supported by the Creative Impact Fund, the Projekt Team delivered a hip hop and street dance tour engaging Pasifika communities in Aotearoa and across the Pacific. From February 2025, the team travelled to Samoa, the Cook Islands, Fiji, Tonga, and Niue, taking their practice back to the islands.
This mahi reflects the Moana pou of the Pacific Arts Strategy 2023–2028, which focuses on strengthening meaningful connections across Aotearoa, Oceania and globally, to further enrich Pacific arts and support continued growth in reach, visibility, and impact.
The idea of taking hip hop back to the islands had been with the team for a long time. As a collective and as individuals, they have travelled to Asia, United States and Europe to learn, compete, and connect. There have been fewer opportunities to take Hip Hop back to the Pacific — until now.
Across each country, Projekt Team delivered workshops, open battles, and community sessions. The team was intentional about who travelled and why, relying on the guidance and leadership of Pacific dance members to support non-Pacific teammates. The format was flexible, responding to each community rather than imposing a fixed structure.
There were three key objectives for the tour:
- Hold hip hop and street dance workshops
- Perform excerpts of their theatre show, Ko Au
- Hold a 1v1 All Style dance battle with the intention of bringing dancers back to compete in the grand finale in Aotearoa
Mele Otufelenite Ta’e’iloa (Lotofoa, Ha’apai, and Kolonga/Holonga Tongatapu), dance artist and Producer of Projekt Team, says hip hop has always resonated with Pacific peoples and creatives.
“Hip hop has always been about people, community, respect, and mutual exchange. These values already exist in our Pacific cultures,” says Mele.
What stayed consistent throughout the tour was the response. Young people showed up curiously and were ready to move. Many had never experienced freestyle street dance in this way before yet quickly found confidence in it. Parents, in turn, saw the joy these sessions brought to their children and communities.
“We wanted our people back home to experience this culture firsthand, not just watch it online, but truly be part of it. That’s why we held dance battles in schools and workshops in community spaces.”
“It wasn’t about us going in as experts. It was about sharing, learning, and creating together. It was a great vibe, and it kept everyone hyped,” she says.
Since the tour, participants in Samoa have organised their very first battle event, inspired directly by the programme and their drive to keep developing their skills. In Fiji, the tour’s champion launched hip hop and freestyle workshops for the first time, creating new opportunities for young dancers to learn and thrive in their own communities.
The team is eager to do more in the future. At its heart, the tour was about supporting pathways for Pacific creatives, supporting young people to see hip hop and street dance as something that belongs to them, their communities, and their futures. It reaffirmed why they dance, who they dance for, and the responsibility that comes with sharing these artforms across the moana.
“There’s something powerful about seeing young people realise, ‘This is for me too!” Mele says.