Organisers selected her because her reputation as a Māori artist brings “depth, authenticity and cultural richness” to the stage. Caii-Michelle, also known as Kay Michelle Gordon (Ngāti Porou, Rongowhakaata, Te Aitanga-a-Māhaki), has been chosen as the first solo Māori artist to open the New Zealand-China Film Festival in Beijing.
Her performances at the opening ceremony are seen as a way to showcase New Zealand artists and strengthen cultural ties between Aotearoa and China.
“To be representing Aotearoa New Zealand as the only artist, I thought, wow, this is a bit of a heavy mantle to carry Caii-Michelle says.
“But the experience was outstanding; they treated me like a superstar.”
Getting her start with a legend
Before travelling the world, Caii-Michelle grew up as the tenth of 15 children in a big, musical country family.
Her life changed overnight when she was 19. She was at a kapa haka practice with the famous composer and her Aunty, Ngoi Pēwhairangi, when the legendary entertainer Prince Tui Teka walked in.
Within days, her life took a completely different direction.
“Auntie Ngoi turned around, and she said, ' Take that girl, Prince Tui took me then. I was terrified,” Caii-Michelle recalls.
“But what an incredible man; he really embedded into me incredible values as a professional artist”
That first tour launched a career that has kept her on stages around the world for nearly 40 years.
Rebuilding from nothing
While her career includes major highlights, including travelling to Los Angeles in 2006 and winning a worldwide singing competition in the Spanish language category, her personal life has also brought severe challenges.
Caii-Michelle has shared that she has had to lose everything and rebuild her life from absolute scratch four separate times, including after the devastating loss of her late husband, Neville Baker of Te Āti Awa.
“I believe that God was using all those challenges not to define me, but to refine me”, she says. “So that I can get up and believe in my ‘why’, my purpose, why I stand on this stage and sing”
Bringing two worlds together
For her major shows in China, the organisers specifically asked her to sing a well-known Chinese love song called “The Moon Represents My Heart.” The song fits with her special arts name, Te Ao Mārama, which means “a light for the world”. The name was gifted to her by arts students and a professor in Gisborne and reflects her belief that music should be used to bring harmony and peace globally.
When people in China look at a performer from New Zealand and wonder how she can capture the spirit and pronunciation of their language so perfectly, she points right back to her roots.
“When they ask, how can you sing our language so beautifully? I say, because I’m Māori,” she says.
“It’s about why you are standing on the stage, singing your waiata in any language.”
Caii-Michelle is also using her platform to create opportunities for the next generation. Long involved with Wellington’s Ngāti Pōneke through her late husband’s ties to the area, she hired members of the Ngāti Pōneke Young Māori Club to perform alongside her during this year’s Lantern Festival. The kapa haka group also travelled to China to represent New Zealand at the New Zealand-China Film Festival.
She also supported young artists by hiring Ngā Taonga Mai Tawhiti to perform with her for a collaboration with the NZ & China Cultural organization and the Chinese Embassy, ensuring these young artists had the support and professional backing to experience the stage.
