Marlon Williams

Marlon Williams (Kāi Tahu, Ngāi Tai) is a New Zealand singer. He draws on folk and country and is sometimes compared to Leonard Cohen, Roy Orbison or Elvis Presley. He moves between several genres, both on record and on stage.

Originally from Lyttelton on New Zealand’s South Island, he first played with his high-school band, The Unfaithful Ways, then as a duo with Delaney Davidson. He went on to pursue a solo career with his debut album, Marlon Williams (2015), followed by Make Way for Love (2018), My Boy (2022) and Te Whare Tīwekaweka. The latter, written entirely in te reo māori, reached the top of the New Zealand charts — a first for an original album in the Māori language.

Over the years he has performed at international festivals and shared the stage with Bruce Springsteen, the Eagles, Florence + The Machine, Courtney Barnett, Brandi Carlile and Lorde. He has also been a guest on shows such as Conan, Later... with Jools Holland and NPR’s Tiny Desk. He has received six New Zealand Music Awards and the APRA Silver Scroll Award. He appears in Bradley Cooper’s film A Star Is Born and has acted in the Netflix series Sweet Tooth, as well as in The Beautiful Lie, The Rehearsal, True History of the Kelly Gang, Lone Wolf and Bad Behaviour.