The song was written by Six60 band members Marlon Gerbes and Matiu Walters, alongside Te Reo experts Mahuia Bridgman-Cooper (a member of the Black Quartet), Jeremy Tātere MacLeod and Sir Tīmoti Kāretu.

In 2019, the band collaborated with musician and project coordinator Hinewehi Mohi for the album Waiata / Anthems, a project for Te Wiki o te Reo Māori which reimagined popular New Zealand songs in Māori language.

[2] Six60 performed "Kia Mau Ki Tō Ūkaipō", a reimagining of their version of their 2011 single "Don't Forget Your Roots".

[8] The word pepeha references a form of self-introduction, where the speaker describes their ancestry and connections to the natural environment (such as which waka their ancestors arrived on, and what mountains, rivers and marae are important to them and their family roots).

[9] Musician Reti Hedley performs taonga pūoro, or Māori traditional instruments on the song.