// Workers AI · dad joke modeIs Lisi a good rapper? Lisi-believe so.
Lisi | |
|---|---|
| Born | 2000 or 2001 |
| Origin | Goodna, Queensland, Australia[5] |
| Genres | |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 2019–present |
| Labels |
|
Talisi or Tahlis Poasa[1][2] known professionally as Lisi, is a New Zealand-born, Australian-based rapper and musician.
He lives in Goodna, Queensland and released his debut extended play Average Man in 2020 and studio album Perspective in 2021.[5]
Early life
[edit]Poasa was born in New Zealand to Samoan heritage. He and his family moved to Sydney, Australia when he was three.[4] He grew up in Goodna, Queensland.[6][7] He attended Redbank Plains State High School.[2]
Lisi told the ABC's The Pacific program in 2023, "[Growing up] I liked listening to rap. I think I liked how it made me feel empowered, You know, the way that they paint pictures with words, really takes you into a space where you put yourself in their shoes."[1]
As a teen, he posted videos to Instagram which gained popularity. Lisi said he was spurred on to try recording in a studio by suggestions from fans. He had saved enough money from working shifts in a factory as a machine operator to pay for time at a local studio and recorded what became his debut single, "Say Less" in 2019.[1][4]
His grandmother is Ana Tuisila, played Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's grandmother, Lia Maivia, on the show Young Rock.[1]
Career
[edit]In October 2019, Lisi released his debut single "Say Less".[8]
In August 2020, Lisi released the extended play Average Man.[9] The EP was recorded in his brother's bedroom, released organically, with no marketing[6]
In October 2020, Lisi featured on Chillinit's single "Stand For", which peaked at number 54 on the ARIA Charts and was nominated for Most Performed Hip Hop/Rap Work at the APRA Music Awards of 2022.[10][3]
In May 2021, Lisi co-founded the record label Castille Records with Christian Brown and signed rap collective TH4 W3ST and rapper Nokz78.[8][4] "Dreams" was released in June 2021.[6]
In November 2021, Lisi released the studio album, Perspective in conjunction with ADA/Warner Music Australia. NME said "Across its nine songs, Lisi explores his Samoan heritage, his goals as a rapper (both material and non-material) and the importance of community."[4]
In June 2022 Lisi performed his songs alongside the 25-piece Queensland Symphony Orchestra, which he described as "history making", adding "I'm doing something new. It's a step out of my comfort zone. And I get to do music that shows you who I am – it shows what I'm about."[5]
Discography
[edit]Studio albums
[edit]| Title | Details |
|---|---|
| Perspective |
Extended plays
[edit]| Title | Details |
|---|---|
| Average Man |
|
Charted and/or Certified Singles
[edit]| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Certification | Album | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUS [10] |
NZ Hot [11] | |||||||||||||
| "Say Less"[8] | 2019 | — | 35 | Non-album single | ||||||||||
| "The Come Up" | — | 9 |
| |||||||||||
| "Fist's Up" (featuring Vicc.) |
2020 | — | 37 | |||||||||||
| "64 Bars Home" | — | 28 | ||||||||||||
| "Stand For" (Chillinit featuring Lisi)[14] |
54 | — |
|
Full Circle (Chillinit album) | ||||||||||
| "Look At Me Now" (DJ Discretion featuring Lisi and Shely210) |
2021 | — | 17 |
|
Non-album single | |||||||||
| "Dreams"[6] | — | 14 | Perspective | |||||||||||
| "Til the Death" | — | 21 | ||||||||||||
| "Baby We On" (featuring EJ) |
— | 10 |
| |||||||||||
| "Pray for Me" (Melodownz featuring Lisi and Mikey Dam)[17] |
2022 | — | 21 | Lone Wolf (Melodownz album) | ||||||||||
| "Like This" (featuring Nokz78) |
— | 31 | Non-album single | |||||||||||
| "Make It Out" | — | 7 | ||||||||||||
| "Olé" (featuring JR) |
2023 | — | 17 | |||||||||||
| "Remain the Same" | — | 20 | ||||||||||||
| "Fear No Man" | 2024 | — | 25 | |||||||||||
| "Try Me" | 2025 | — | 35 | |||||||||||
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | ||||||||||||||
Awards and nominations
[edit]APRA Awards
[edit]The APRA Awards are held in Australia and New Zealand by the Australasian Performing Right Association to recognise songwriting skills, sales and airplay performance by its members annually.
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | "Stand for" (Chillinit featuring Lisi) (Rilind Kocinaj/Tahlis Poasa/Benjamin Sutton/Blake Turnell) |
Most Performed Hip Hop/Rap Work | Nominated | [3] |
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 4 5 6 Dinah Lewis Boucher and Melissa Maykin (16 April 2023). "From a factory west of Brisbane to the big stage, rap artist Lisi is breaking new ground for Pasifika in Australia". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 11 April 2026.
- 1 2 3 "Redbank Plains High are learning more than just footy". Courier Mail. 6 May 2015. Retrieved 11 April 2026.
- 1 2 3 "Nominees revealed for the 2022 APRA Music Awards!". APRA AMCOS. 7 April 2022. Retrieved 9 April 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 Ben Madden (13 December 2021). "Lisi: Samoan rapper determined to rep Goodna and share his own Perspective". NME. Retrieved 11 April 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 "Lisi". Queensland Symphony Orchestra. 2022. Retrieved 11 April 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 "Lisi: Leaving the Right Legacy (Interview)". Sniffers. June 2021. Retrieved 11 April 2026.
- ↑ "Behind the Bars Australia · Season 1 · Episode 3". Red Bull. 18 May 2021. Retrieved 11 April 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 "ADA/Warner Music Australia partners with Lisi's Castille Records". The Music Network. May 2021. Retrieved 11 April 2026.
- 1 2 Hau Latukefu (July 2020). "Brisbane's Lisi has released his highly anticipated debut EP titled Average Man and it's the feature this week". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 11 April 2026.
- 1 2 Peak chart positions in Australia:
- For "Stand For": "The ARIA Report: Week Commencing 19 October 2020". The ARIA Report. No. 1598. Australian Recording Industry Association. 19 October 2020. p. 4.
- ↑ "Lisi NZ Singles Chart History". Official New Zealand Music Chart. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
- For "Fists Up": "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 15 May 2020. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
- For: "Look At Me Now: "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 23 April 2021. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
- For: "Baby We On" "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 26 November 2021. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
- For: "Pray for More" "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 15 April 2022. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
- For "Olé": "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 31 March 2023. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
- ↑ "Co- Owner & Director @lisi4300 single "Say Less" is certified Gold in Australia!". Facebook. 7 May 2021. Retrieved 11 April 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 5 "New Zealand single certifications – Lisi". Radioscope. Retrieved 22 May 2026. Type Lisi in the "Search:" field and press Enter.
- ↑ "Stand For". YouTube. Retrieved 2 October 2020.
- ↑ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2022" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 11 April 2026.
- ↑ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2026 Singles" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 3 March 2026.
- ↑ Johnson, Jacob (9 April 2022). "Kiwi MC Melodownz releasing gospel rap". 1News. Retrieved 15 April 2022.