{"id":2420265,"date":"2026-05-17T07:41:27","date_gmt":"2026-05-17T07:41:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/?p=2420265"},"modified":"2026-05-17T07:41:27","modified_gmt":"2026-05-17T07:41:27","slug":"once-in-a-lifetime-concert-at-one-nz-stadium-5-takeaways","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/once-in-a-lifetime-concert-at-one-nz-stadium-5-takeaways\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Once in a Lifetime’ Concert at One NZ Stadium: 5 Takeaways"},"content":{"rendered":"

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In a historic moment for \u014ctautahi Christchurch, the brand-new One NZ Stadium at Te Kaha held its first concert last night.<\/p>\n

Rolling Stone<\/em> was there to see Six60<\/a>, Synthony, Kaylee Bell<\/a>, Cassie Henderson, and more Aotearoa music stars put on a dazzling spectacle.<\/p>\n

Read our full review of the Once in a Lifetime concert here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Check out 5 takeaways from the special event below!<\/p>\n

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World-Class Service<\/h3>\n

Any new venue lives and dies by its amenities, so it\u2019s lucky that Te Kaha is stacked on this front.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs we strolled through the E entrance, one of the vendors literally yelled \u2018hotdogs hotdogs, come get your hotdogs,\u2019 while someone else handed me a free sample of fancy muesli, just the beginning of an evening of confidence and abundance,\u201d our reviewer wrote.<\/p>\n

Later, during a trip to the toilets before co-headliner Six60 arrived on stage, they found the loo-going experience to be \u201cfunction and surprisingly chill.\u201d That\u2019s all you can really ask for, isn\u2019t it?<\/p>\n

From MC to PM?<\/h3>\n

Radio star Sarah Gandy handled MC duties for the night, and she had the packed crowd in the palm of her hand from the very start.<\/p>\n

\u201cAre you ready for the night of your lives?\u201d she asked near the beginning of the concert, receiving thousands of screams in reply. <\/span><\/p>\n

When Gandy later boldly asked more than 30,000 people to turn off their green light-up bracelets so they didn\u2019t interfere with Synthony\u2019s production, 99% of the crowd duly followed her request, turning off their bracelets en masse. Which \u00a0begged the question from our reviewer: \u201cSarah Gandy for Prime Minister, anyone?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

Image: Six60\u2019s Matiu Walters Credit: @greghaver<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Just Another Day at the Office<\/h3>\n

If any Aotearoa act was capable of handling the immensity of this historic occasion, it was Six60.<\/p>\n

\u201cSix60 strode onto the stage, comfortable with an audience in the tens of thousands, and stood shoulder-to-shoulder to greet the wall of cheers before finding their places and playing the unmistakable bassline of their breakout hit \u2018Don\u2019t Forget Your Roots,\u201d our reviewer wrote.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

A mash-up of \u201cDon\u2019t Forget Your Roots\u201d and \u201cKa Mate\u201d, featuring a kapa haka group, came in for particular praise, with a sea of piupiu and synchronised poi leaving our reviewer \u201ctotally hypnotised.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bassist Chris Mac was so chill that he casually carried his glass of red wine from one stage to another at one point during their set, before Six60 played several stripped-back songs, \u201cwith the performances elevated by the accompaniment and Walters\u2019 velvety vocals.\u201d<\/p>\n

Epic Acoustics<\/h3>\n

It was always going to be a case of trial and error with regard to the acoustics at One New Zealand Stadium\u2019s first-ever concert.<\/p>\n

According to our reviewer, though, the sound travelled well throughout the massive venue.<\/p>\n

\u201cKudos to the production team behind the show, because the only time I thought I heard anything even close to an audio error was when I mistook the voices of 35,000 people singing along to Six60 as some sort of echoing delay in Matiu Walters\u2019 unfaltering vocals,\u201d they observed.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Ecstasy and Synthony<\/h3>\n

Synthony, or \u201cthe Christchurch Symphony Orchestra in rave mode,\u201d as our reviewer called them, closed out the concert in spectacular fashion.<\/p>\n

Legendary Aotearoa rapper Savage? Check. A stacked lineup of guests including PRINS and Shapeshifter\u2019s P Digsss? Check. Insane mash-ups featuring songs by Darude and Avicii? Also check. A hearty rendition of \u201cUp the Wahs\u201d, in tribute to the New Zealand Warriors? Naturally.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was epic \u2014 everyone lost their shit,\u201d as our review concluded.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n