Tiki Taane’s song Always On My Mind was a hit locally – and it could become an international hit too thanks to its inclusion on console karaoke game Sing Star.

“They just sent me an email – I had a read through and said, ‘Yeah, I’m keen as,” Taane said about his 2008 hit, which climbed to the top of the charts in New Zealand and sold more than 30,000 copies. The track, from his solo debut album Past, Present, Future, will be available on Sing Star for the next 10 years – as well as being converted into different languages for versions of the game in foreign countries.

“I don’t play PlayStation or Xbox or any of that stuff, although I did play Sing Star once at a mate’s house party,” he said. “I mean I love playing video games, but it makes me scared ‘cos I’d spend days and days on it but I’ve got a business to run and I’ve got a record to make, and man if I started playing video games it’d be all over.”

When asked if he got tired of being asked to play Always On My Mind he said: “No way man”.
“That one song has made everything I have ever worked for over the past 18 years happen. I have been working really hard for that one song and all of a sudden it’s blown up.
“So I’ll play it any time anyone wants to hear it. It’s affected other people too, it’s touched others so I can’t hate that song – it has given me such an amazing life and everything’s really cool”.

Taane said his life had changed a lot since he toured as the front man of dub act Salmonella Dub.
He refers to himself as a businessman who owns his own music, art, record label and publishing rights. He now has control and doesn’t have to conform to a major label. “I’m this tattooed Maori boy who’s a bit rough around the edges and I walk into this corporate world and I’m walking away on top. There are people who don’t see the full picture.

“You know I should be getting high fives and pats on the back for that because I’m representing the underground the underdogs who are slaving away and struggling and have been slaving away for years. And finally I get to peek up and play ball with the big guys.”So these people who say I’m selling out, I find it ridiculous because they don’t know the history of myself, I’ve worked really hard for this”.

Until next time keep rockin’
The 0800 Jukebox crew.
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