Lavina Williams

Lavina Rose Williams (born 13 June 1979) is a New Zealand musical artist and musical theatre performer.

Lavina Williams
Birth nameLavina Rose Williams
Also known asMiss L
Lavina Williams
Born (1979-06-13) 13 June 1979
Auckland, New Zealand
GenresRnB
Soul
Occupation(s)Singer
Musical Theatre Actress
Years active1996–present

Williams began her career as a member of the 1990s the girl group Ma-V-Elle.[1] The group had multiple songs in the New Zealand music charts, including Never Say Goodbye, Freedom, Show Me Heaven, and Three Flow.[2]

In 2006, Williams competed in the 4th season of Australian Idol, finishing in the top 8 of the competition.[3]

Williams briefly joined her younger sister's girl group Young Divas in 2007.[4] She has since pursued a musical theatre career, performing in The Lion King,[5] Hairspray,[6] Dream Girls,[7] and Sister Act.[8]

As a singer, she has been the backing vocalist for many New Zealand artists including Ginny Blackmore and Stan Walker.[9] She featured in her brother J. Williams's song Stand with You, which reached 6th in the New Zealand charts.[10]

Williams has also featured in some of Mika Haka's singles, including Coffee[11] and Loved Me A Man.[12]

Ma-V-Elle
Main article: Ma-V-Elle

The group formed at James Cook High School, Manurewa in the mid 1990s. Ma-V-Elle's name comes from the first names of the three members - Marina, Lavina and Maybelle.[13] The group was originally managed by Tim Mahon.[14] Their debut album Spoken To was released in 1997, with the trio touring nationally and internationally, including two performances at Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club in London.[15]

Member Marina Davis left in 1998 for religious reasons, with Maybelle and Lavina continuing as a duo. The group released their second album, Angel in 1999, with a heavier, drum and bass-inspired sound.[16] Both Maybelle Galuvao and Lavina Williams were nominated for the Most Promising Female Vocalist award at the 2000 New Zealand Music Awards, losing to Vanessa Kelly of Deep Obsession.[17]

Ma-V-Elle performed together for the first time in 13 years with a surprise reunion at the 2013 Pacific Music Awards.[18] The group released new single "Let's Go (To the Sky)"[19] and performed at the Parachute music festival in January 2014.[20]

Australian Idol
Main article: Australian Idol (season 4) § Lavina Williams
Top 24: "(You Make Me Feel like) a Natural Woman" by Aretha Franklin
Top 12: "If I Ain't Got You" by Alicia Keys Bottom 2
Top 11: "Bring Me to Life" by Evanescence
Top 10: "Don't Leave Me This Way" by Thelma Houston Bottom 3
Top 9: "Too Much Heaven" by The Bee Gees
Top 8: "Best of My Love" by The Emotions Eliminated

Notable performances

Williams has been a regular performer at Christmas in the Park. She performed in 2014,[21] and returned in 2015 to sing a solo of Joy to the World and perform Aotearoa with Stan Walker.[22][23] She also performed in 2016,[24] 2017,[25] 2018,[26] and 2019.[27]

She performed regularly at the Big Gay Out event at Coyle Park. She has performed in 2014,[28] 2015,[29] 2016[30] and 2017.[31]

Personal life

Williams is the older sister to J. Williams, Emily Williams and Ezra Williams.[32]

She was born in New Zealand, and is of Samoan and Fijian descent.[33]

Discography

Albums
  • Spoken To (1997)
  • Angel (1999)

Singles
Year Title Peak chart positions Album
NZ[34]
1997 "Show Me Heaven" 36 Spoken To
"Three Flow" 43
"Depend On Me" —
1998 "Freedom" 29
"Love Is" —
"Angel" Angel
1999 "Never Say Goodbye" 26
"Don't Be So Shy" —
2013 "Let's Go (To the Sky)" Non-album single
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.
Year Title NZ peak chart position
 Certifications
(sales thresholds)		 Album
2009 "Stand with You" (by J. Williams) 6 Young Love
(and Collector's Edition)
2014 "Coffee" (by Mika Haka) — — Non-Album Single
2016 "Loved Me A Man" (by Mika Haka)
2020 "Tahi" (by Mika Haka) The Aroha Collective[36]
"Rima" (by Mika Haka feat. Yorke)
"Whitu" (by Mika Haka feat. Mokoera Te amo )
"Waru" (by Mika Haka)
"Iwa" (by Mika Haka feat. King Homeboy & Te amo)

Awards
Year Award Ceremony Award Work Art Result Ref
2000 New Zealand Music Awards Most Promising Female Lavina Williams Music Nominated [37]
2017 The Variety Artists Club of New Zealand Inc Pacific Entertainment Award for Top Female Vocalist Won [38]

References
  1. "Throwback Thursday: Turns out the 'You Only Wanna Be With 2' ad is still an absolute banger". The Spin Off. 3 August 2017. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  2. "MA-V-ELLE charts". NZ Charts. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  3. "Lavina Williams Out Of Australian Idol 2006". Alistair Lattimore. 9 October 2006. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  4. "Divas pull out of gig". Herald Sun. 11 February 2007. Archived from the original on 14 May 2009. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  5. "About the Mentor". New Zealand Music Commission. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  6. "PRODUCTION INFORMATION: DOMINION RD THE MUSICAL". Theatre Review. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  7. "Lavina Willams – Vocal Coach for NZ's X-Factor Tutors our Students!". katikati college western bay of plenty. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  8. "Sister Act: POSTPONED". Eventfinda. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  9. "Singer shares her skills". Katikati Advertiser. 25 August 2016. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  10. "Stand by you charts". Charts NZ. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  11. "Mika - "Coffee"". Scoop. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  12. "Mika Haka – Loved Me A Man". Scoop. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  13. "Names -> Band Name Origins -> M". Am I Right. Retrieved 30 October 2013.
  14. "Blam Blam Blam Profile". Audio Culture. Retrieved 30 October 2013.
  15. "Ma-v-elle". Amplifier. Retrieved 30 October 2013.
  16. "Pair pressure". NZ Herald. 13 November 1999. Retrieved 30 October 2013.
  17. "2000 Winners". NZ Music Awards. Archived from the original on 23 October 2013. Retrieved 19 October 2013.
  18. "Pasefika Proud Pacific Music Awards Winners Announced". NZ Music Awards. Archived from the original on 1 November 2013. Retrieved 19 October 2013.
  19. "Ma-v-elle". Facebook. Retrieved 30 October 2013.
  20. "MA-V-ELLE". Parachute. Archived from the original on 1 November 2013. Retrieved 30 October 2013.
  21. "Broods headline Coca-Cola Christmas in the Park". NZ Herald. 18 November 2014. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  22. "Top 12 things to do in Auckland for Christmas". NZ Herald. 26 November 2015. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  23. "Christchurch gets in the festive spirit". Stuff NZ. 29 November 2015. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  24. "Thousands defy the rain to attend Christmas in the Park". NZ Herald. 10 December 2016. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  25. "Christchurch gears up for annual Christmas in the Park". Stuff NZ. 25 November 2017. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  26. "Damp night ahead for Christchurch Christmas in the Park goers". Stuff NZ. 23 November 2018. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  27. "Christmas in the Park 2019: Rules, banned items, stage times and lineup". Stuff NZ. 10 December 2019. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  28. "LYC Big Gay Out 2014 celebrates diversity and condom culture". Scoop. 7 February 2014. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  29. "Lavina Williams, Emily Williams and J.Williams RATHER BE (cover) Clean Bandits". Youtube. 13 February 2015. Archived from the original on 17 December 2021. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  30. "Big Gay Out Auckland New Zealand 2016". Youtube. 5 June 2016. Archived from the original on 17 December 2021. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  31. "ENDING HIV BIG GAY OUT". Auckland Pride. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  32. "Kiwi singer Raze on her transition from dancer to soul singer". Newshub. 22 May 2019. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  33. "About the Artist". New Zealand Music Commission. 9 September 2016. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  34. "MA-V-ELLE IN NEW ZEALAND CHARTS". charts.nz. Retrieved 19 October 2013.
  35. "Gold / Platinum Singles". Radioscore. Archived from the original on 14 October 2008. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  36. "Aroha Collective". Spotify. Retrieved 20 July 2020.
  37. "AWARD HISTORY 2000". New Zealand Music Awards. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  38. "AWARDS". The Variety Artists Club. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
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