Growing up in Christchurch,  New Zealand, maitreya  discovered hip-hop at age 12 on his  living room TV…Run DMC's "Raising Hell" brought a  glimpse of  New York to a  generation  of kids in  New Zealand  who took  Hip Hop  culture and ran with it.   The year was 1989 and New Zealand's first Hip Hop crew Upper Hutt Posse had  just delivered a landmark album "Against The Flow".  Ten years later  UHP  founding  member DLT was to become maitreya's teacher and mentor.

maitreya began his music career as founding member of live Hip Hop band NILSTATE  which gained a cult-like following around Christchurch with a  reputation  for unpredictable  & explosive  performances.   He  spent  his youth like a lot of Christchurch kids, growing up with personal loss, drugs and alcohol.  School was a non-event until fortune had it that he was kicked out of his Year 10 class and sent to a Year 7 Maori language lesson. 7 years  later  he was the first  Pakeha (European NZer)  to graduate from  University  in a  Maori Ceremony and Te Reo Maori  (Maori language)  had become deeply ingrained into his music and flow.

maitreya had moved to Auckland, becoming  a  member  of  DARK TOWER who took the nation by storm in '00, touring the country to sold out venues.   Now under the wing of DLT, his perceptions and understanding of Hip Hop & spirituality were deepening. He took a couple of years to develop his style and recorded an album in anticipation of a move to New York, in the meantime he became a well-known On Air Personality on radio station Mai FM.   It was at this time that DLT gave him the moniker maitreya which means a 'Future Teacher'.

In '03 maitreya took a leap of faith and his thirst for learning to the Mecca of Hip Hop, New York City.   He hit the ground running, securing an internship at Roc-a-Fella Records (Jay-Z).  For the next two years he worked for    Roc-a-Fella and  immersed himself in New York's Open Mic scene.   He  continued  to develop  his  style             and hustled his mix tape "ILLEGALALIEN" ft The Game's DJ, DJ Kris Stylez to an impressive 500                       street sales eventually getting his own show "Illegal" in and around the Lower East Side.