Page 36 - Islands Business June 2023

Culture Culture

YOYO TUKI - PROUD CULTURAL AMBASSADOR OF RAPA NUI

By Rowena Singh family. My family are family of cultural holders.
“My grandfather was the last of the old generation of great
Easter Island or Rapa Nui—which lies 3700km from Chile historians of the island. He was the keeper of all the ancient
to the east and 4000 from Tahiti to the west—is famous for stories, names and everything—he was a living book. My
its ancestral sculptors who created the ancient colossal Moai grandfather was also one of the last great master carvers of
stone statues. the island. All of my uncles, my mum, as a family, are well
Their progeny, Jorge Villanueva Tuki, is equally gifted and known in Rapa Nui as a lineage of carvers. My grandfather was
creative. named by the islanders, Mana Roa, which means great mana,
A musician, artist, carver, storyteller, producer, researcher the great wisdom. I didn’t carve much when I was little, I was
and proud cultural ambassador of Rapa Nui, Tuki is better more of a painter, illustrator, fed by all of the stories of my
known as Yoyo Tuki. family and my grandfather.
He is now one of a handful of Rapa Nui people based in Aus- “At 15 I discovered the power of music, and I started music.
tralia. From here he works tirelessly to promote, teach and And late in my thirties, I discovered that I loved carving, and I
share his culture and music. had a bit of carving fever, so I now carve as well.”
“I began my music journey when I was 15 years old,” says If as if that’s not enough, aged 14, Tuki also landed a major
Tuki. “One of my cousins showed me how to play a Tahitian role in an international feature film, L’ile Au Bout Du Monde.
ukulele and I fell in love with the instrument and the sound of Then at 19, he was signed by Sony Music Chile, as the lead
it and I decided I wanted to learn how to play the instrument singer, songwriter and guitarist for Rapa Nui band ‘Manaroa’.
and write songs. Since then, he has released four solo albums, with more
“When I first started doing music, I was also a painter and on the way. His releases include the 2011 album Hoko Manu,
illustrator,” says Tuki. “I was in a school very focussed on that, which took contemporary Rapa Nui music to a new level and
going to competitions. The storytelling part comes from my established Tuki’s place and influence on the islands’ musical

36 Islands Business, June 2023