Methamphetamine Suppliers Face The Music
A hard-hitting song launched today by young Whakatane musician and songwriter Calvin Kingi is getting a lot of attention
for lyrics that focus on the supplier of P or methamphetamine as the problem.
Fries, Lies and Alibis is a song with a strong message
'We don't need no methamphetamine around
If you've got it please don't sell it in my town.'
A second year Diploma of Music student at the Bay of Plenty Polytech of Ngtai Awa and Tuhoe descent, 22-year-old Calvin
says the song just flowed for him.
"I was asked to do some music for an advert about P. To do that I wrote a whole song and extracted 30 seconds out of it
for the ad. But when staff at Ngaiterangi office heard it they liked it and said they were keen on the whole song.
Calvin wrote, arranged and performs the song and it means a lot to him. He's seen the impact of P in his community.
"I like the chorus because it's direct and it gets the message out there. It's the dealers who are the problem and
that's what this song is about."
"Music has been with me my whole life," he says.
When he finishes his course Calvin would like to be a working artist, writing and performing songs.
Paul Stanley of Ngaiterangi Iwi says the song had an instant impact on him when he first heard it because it validated
some of what he was hearing from other young people.
"This song captures the truth that while users of methamphetamine are a problem for themselves, their families and their
communities, it's the suppliers who are the hub of the problem."
He says what public health workers in his team are now realising is that young people are smart enough to understand
that.
"When our team are out in the community they are increasingly finding that young people have a low opinion of dealers.
They don't see them as smart; they don't see them as cool. They are seeing them more and more as hurting their friends."
Stanley says that the response to the song's soft tones and toe tapping beat has been very positive from youth as well
as other age groups. He believes the song will be well received by the nation.
ENDS