A descendant of Ngāti Rangiwewehi, Ngāi te Rangi and Ngāi Tahu, Sonny graduated Hato Pāora College and developed his passion for creativity and love for te reo Māori. Before becoming a media professional Sonny supported the young Marist’s as one of the team's facilitators. Sonny has developed shows and worked with multiple networks, including TVNZ, Discovery, Nickelodeon, and Whakaata Māori. Before starting his own agency, Sonny led national initiatives in health, justice and education, where he worked with Māori academics and communities to develop human-centred solutions. With his partner Kiriana Hautapu (Ngāti Raukawa) they own and operate Ata, a full-service social media management agency that designs and leads national digital campaigns.