Gisborne-raised singer Samantha Booth (Te Aitanga-ā-Māhaki, Te Whakatōhea) is the winner of the Wahine category for Five Minutes of Fame Season 2.
"It's the hardest thing I've done," she says.
"Because usually, I sing in a group, or with backup singers but for this, I was literally by myself the whole time.
“I'm super grateful to have been given the opportunity and I was just I was so shocked and so happy to win."
Booth has been singing since primary school and carried on her passion all through intermediate and High School where she competed in the Smokefree Rockquest and Tangata Beats competitions.
“After school, I studied a bachelor of commercial music - Music Industry, so not performance or vocals just so that I could be well rounded as a musician.”
Booth said she was informed about Whakaata Māori’s Five Minutes of Fame show by her music teacher and mentor Jane Egan. Although she missed the initial audition date, Booth said she managed to get her audition tape done after the deadline was extended.
“While we were running an event for the Tairawhiti Arts Festival - We came to the end of the event and I was in the office so I sang a Jenifer Hudson song and sent it off.”
Booth has just landed a role at Rāngai Productions in Tūranga as an Esports Coordinator but says that she would love to make singing her full-time career.
"I'm hoping to release an EP in the new year, so I'm hoping to keep getting to do events and keep performing as much as I can.