For the past 17 months, the University of Otago bachelor of music student has been coming to terms with having to replan his life as a result of hearing interference.
This week, which is the National Foundation for the Deaf's Deaf Awareness Week, he gave what could be his last performances as a drummer because he has tinnitus, often the first sign of hearing damage.
The tinnitus, in his case, is a high pitched ringing in his ears, which is as loud as normal conversation, and is combined with a condition called hyperacusis, which makes his hearing more acute.
Mr Dawa said the condition made loud noises seem louder, making them "even more damaging".
The ringing began during a university assessment.
He was playing drums, wearing standard earphones which were connected to a metronome which was conveying a beat to his ears.
The combination left him feeling ill, and the next day he woke up with ringing in his ears, something he regarded as typical after attending a loud concert or listening to loud music.
When it did not go away for a week, he realised something was "massively wrong".
The ringing has not stopped since, and he is not expecting it will go away.
As well as making him reassess his hoped-for professional music career, it has also changed his social life, as he finds it difficult being in loud environments such as bars, nightclubs or parties.
Mr Dawa has been playing drums since he was 10.
He played in the jazz band at Logan Park High School and in the band The Thought Police before going to university.
He has been playing with the five-piece Sunset Cinema this year, and has been involved in musical productions and teaching drums.
He had planned to go to jazz school after the completion of his degree this year.
Now he is facing the prospect of having to give up all these things, and is considering whether to look for another career.
Before the incident, 17 months ago, he had always worn ear protection when playing, and most of the time when listening to other bands.
He is now an advocate for wearing earplugs at loud events, pointing out that for young people, wearing them now could save their hearing and allow them to enjoy music in their 40s and 50s.
He has distributed earplugs to friends, and always takes spares with him to any loud events. He said earplugs were rarely offered at music events, in his experience.
While his actual hearing loss was quite minimal, his condition still made it difficult to discern various parts of music.
He urged people to take the risk of hearing loss more seriously.
"If you can't hear someone from 2m away, chances are you're in a dangerously loud environment . . Prevention is the best medicine."
