How 900 \u2018boring\u2019 Kiwi mortgage stories became a hip-hop banger<\/p>\n
\u2018What\u2019s the Kiwi dream? House, family and car, gotta keep \u2018em clean<\/p>\n
Bills, work, bills, but what\u2019s in between? No frills, 30 years till we\u2019re in the green<\/p>\n
\n We used to go out weekends, in the week too, now the
\n bins go out more than we do\u2019\n <\/p>\n
To most people, hip-hop beats and home loans don\u2019t sound like natural bedfellows \u2013 unless you\u2019re NZHL CEO Kip Hanna and rapper Manu Walters. They\u2019re combining their skills to let everyday Kiwis know they can have both a mortgage and a life.<\/p>\n
\u201cEvery day we hear how people are having to sacrifice just to get by,\u201d the financial services executive explains. \u201cWe want people to know they\u2019re not alone and that there is a better way of paying off your mortgage \u2013 without life becoming boring.\u201d <\/p>\n
The idea took off last year when the company ran a campaign with ZM to find \u2018The Most Boring Kiwi\u2019, asking New Zealanders to share their honest stories about how boring life had become with a mortgage, or saving for one.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe received around 900 submissions. People shared all the reasons why their friends, their sister, their mum, themselves were boring,\u201d Hanna says.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat stood out wasn\u2019t regret or resentment. People were proud to own their homes, but also honest about how the responsibility can quietly change everyday life.\u201d<\/p>\n
NZHL wanted to get these stories out to a wider audience and let them lead the conversation. The aim was to reflect what people were already experiencing in everyday life \u2013 which led Hanna to what he affectionately calls \u201can obvious collaborator for a financial services company: the rapper Manu Walters.\u201d<\/p>\n
Walters was on board with the idea of turning the submissions into a song. \u201cThe reason I wanted to do the collaboration was reading through those lists. Those are things that are easy to talk about, and I could make the song how I wanted to make it; I had creative control over it. <\/p>\n
\u201cWith hip-hop, it\u2019s all about talking about your own experience, but with this it was all about other people\u2019s experiences. And on top of that, I could relate to these things.<\/p>\n
\u201cI just picked things that were funny or that I like to talk about or that I would say myself, and put my own spin on it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Like the one about the kids who want Dad to buy takeaways. Broke, he cooks some rice, puts it in a box, drives the car around the block and brings the meal home. His daughter complains it doesn\u2019t taste like it should. \u2018They\u2019ve got new staff on,\u2019 he replies.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen I got my brother Ngawaka to make a beat, something that\u2019d be a bit fun to play with.\u201d Cue Walters\u2019 new track, The Boring Banger.<\/p>\n
Collaboration with a rapper is different for the financial services industry, Hanna admits, \u201cbut I like it because it\u2019s bold and I think it speaks to, \u2018let\u2019s be real\u2019. We want to be real, we\u2019re in our communities, we\u2019re real people \u2013 and so the reality of that resonated with us.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe found Manu to be really authentic, understanding what everyday Kiwis are going through, and we were able to let him run with the project and come up with something that hit the mark pretty much straight away. It was incredible.\u201d<\/p>\n
NZHL (New Zealand Home Loans) is a Kiwi-owned franchise of 65 offices across the motu, arranging home loans, insurance and KiwiSaver referrals for more than 45,000 New Zealanders.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re deeply connected to their local communities and genuinely passionate about helping clients within those communities,\u201d Hanna says.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur advisers build long\u2011term relationships with their clients and support them with ongoing financial coaching to help them stay clear on their goals.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat might involve simple, open conversations like noticing where money is going, what\u2019s important right now, and where there might be opportunities to make different choices that support both their mortgage and their lifestyle.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThose conversations are important. We act as mentors, helping people understand their choices and the impact they can have. We love showing people that you can have a mortgage and a life.<\/p>\n
\u201cUsing our debt management software, DebtNav, we can show how income and outgoings look over time and how greater awareness and the right structure can help people stay on track, while still leaving room for things like a holiday or a kitchen renovation.\u201d<\/p>\n
Walters captures the feeling in The Boring Banger: \u201cI\u2019m so bored of being poor, I\u2019m just so bored of being boring, Last night I had sleep for dinner, on the bright side it keeps me thinner. There\u2019s gotta be a better way\u2026\u2019<\/p>\n
Hanna understands that people can feel overwhelmed by big numbers. He admits he gets upset hearing clients say, \u201cOh, I\u2019ve got this significant mortgage and it\u2019s dominating my life.\u201d<\/p>\n
But, he says, there is another way: \u201cTalk to us. People may have more options than they think when it comes to getting good advice about structuring their mortgage better.\u201d<\/p>\n
If you\u2019d like to learn more about how NZHL works, visit nzhl.co.nz<\/a><\/p>\n To listen to The Boring Banger check it out now on Spotify<\/a> or Apple Music<\/a>.<\/p>\n