Stan Walker wows with powerful debut kapa haka performance at Te Matatini

Stan Walker made a childhood dream come true yesterday as he performed at Te Matatini Herenga Waka Herenga Tangata Festival for the very first time.

The Kiwi singer made his kapa haka debut as he took to the stage at Eden Park as a member of Te Reanga Morehu o Rātana - and the crowd was left blown away by his powerful performance.

You can watch their full performance here.

The 32-year-old Australian Idol winner has been training since September for Te Matatini - which is the biggest kapa haka festival in the Māori calendar - and admits it's the hardest thing he's ever done.

"From September to now, we’ve been training basically nearly every weekend ... Then we have to do our home prep, I'm training at home because I'm brand new at this," he said.

This is Te Reanga Mōrehu o Ratana's sixth appearance at national level.

The group, which hails from Aotea, Porirua has consistently placed among the top kapa haka groups in the region.

Ahead of his debut, Walker revealed the performance is a full-circle moment for him as his grandfather was born at Ratana Pā - about 20 minutes south of Whanganui.

Now Walker brings his own children to practices inside the same space.

He said: "This, for me, means everything. It has been one of the biggest dreams of my life to stand on stage at Matatini and to stand with Te Reanga Morehu o Rātana.

"It's a childhood dream - something that I didn't think was going to happen. Now I'm doing it."

His grandfather would be so proud.