maitreya began his career as part of live Christchurch Hip Hop band NILSTATE gaining a cult like following and a reputation for unpredictable & explosive performances.  Moving to Auckland in '96, maitreya joined DARK TOWER who took the nation by storm touring to sold-out venues all over the country and collaborating with such artists as Dave Dobbyn, The feelers and Tiki Taane.  In '01 maitreya went solo recording with NZ Hip Hop legend DLT, Nesian Mystik and Pete Wood of Salmonella Dub as well as becoming a popular on air personality at Auckland radio station Mai FM.
          

In '03, maitreya took his skills to the Mecca of Hip Hop, New York City, where he secured an internship at Roc-a-Fella Records (Jay-Z).  For the next three years, he worked for Roc-a-Fella and immersed himself in New York's Open Mic scene, eventually getting his own show Illegal in and around the Lower East Side.  In 2005 he released an album/mixtape ILLEGAL ALIEN hosted by The Game's DJ, DJ Kris-Stylz and sold 500 copies on the streets of New York.

 In '06, maitreya hit SellaBand.com with a fresh repertoire of songs and became in immediate sensation, crowd-sourcing 50K in just 7 months.  The album, produced by The Silence & maitreya, was recorded in New York, London and New Zealand and mastered at Universal Mastering Studios New York by the legendary Vlado Meller (Kanye West, Public Enemy, Run DMC...).