Manaia Toa has been in the game since the late-80s, bar managing at now legendary venues in Wellington and crewing at warehouse and one-off raves.
One and a half years in London deepened his knowledge and experience of pirate radio and sound system culture, and he religiously attended Aba Shanti I sessions and Bryan Gee's Movement nights. During two years in Ireland he was deeply entrenched in the Drum n Bass scene, always causing trouble in the dance at early Bassbin gigs at Switch in Temple Bar.
Back in Aotearoa, Manaia Toa held down a Saturday night radio show on Base FM in Auckland from 2003 -2010, spinning hip hop, dub, dubstep, jungle, jazz and more. He was one of the founding members of the Dubstep Alliance crew, and ran the junglistic nights, F_ckin Yardcore. He has been on multiple bills for Bassweight and NiceUp in Wellington during 2010-2013 and was a jazz show host on Active Sundays. He has also ran a Saturday nightshift show on RDU in Christchurch in 2014.
Now he is back with Aotearoa-wide Jungle Crew, Momentum. Manaia Toa says, “Like most of the Momentum selectors, I have been through 2 or 3 waves of this music being in ‘fashion’, and I still play the same killer 20-plus year-old records to new audiences!
In 2017 Jungle is even bigger worldwide with more killer contemporary productions, and we are bringin it to the masses here with the realness!”
