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- Israel Kamakawiwo'ole. Music of Hawaii, Reggae, Jazz. 143 votes. As a symbol of Hawaiian pride and cultural resurgence, Israel Kamakawiwo'ole's powerful voice resonated throughout the islands and beyond.
- Ledward Kaapana. 45 votes. The virtuosic guitar playing of Ledward Kaapana has captured the hearts of countless fans around the world since his musical journey began decades ago.
- Don Ho. Pop music, Music of Hawaii, Traditional pop music. 75 votes. Few entertainers have left such an indelible mark on Hawaiian culture as the iconic Don Ho, whose legendary status persists even decades after his death.
- Eddie Kamae. Music of Hawaii. 28 votes. As a true innovator and pioneer in Hawaiian music, Eddie Kamae is renowned for his skillful ukulele playing and his role in revitalizing traditional music in the islands.
- Israel Kamakawiwo’ole
- Jack Johnson
- Bruno Mars
- Bette Midler
- Don Ho
- Jake Shimabukuro
- Moe Keale
- James Mercer
- Arthur Lyman
- Mike Starr
Israel Kamakawiwo’ole, whose name means ‘the fearless eye, the bold face,’ was a musician and activist who fought for Hawaiian sovereignty. Still influential in Hawaiian music, he was named “The Voice of Hawaii” and his fame has done a lot for making Hawaiian instrumentslike the ukulele more popular in recent times. Both of his parents worked at th...
Raised on the North Shore of Oahu, Jack Johnsonis a musician, filmmaker, and at one time a professional surfer. He is also an environmental activist, working to clean oceans. Known for his soft rock acoustic pop music, his debut album, Brushfire Fairytales, topped the charts. In 2012, Johnson did a 7-show acoustic tour of the Hawaiian Islands, whic...
Of all the musicians from Hawaii, Bruno Marsis the most famous and one of the best-selling musicians of all time, with eleven Grammys to his name. He was born in Honolulu to a musical family; his parents met while his father played percussion to his mother’s hula dancing. He rose to local fame early, becoming known around Hawaii for his Elvis imper...
Otherwise known as “The Divine Miss M,” Bette Midler has won Golden Globes, Emmys, Grammys, and Tony awards, a career spanning over 50 years. Born and raised in Honolulu, Midler was voted “Most Dramatic” in her senior year of high school. Her first ever paid acting role was in the movie Hawaiias an extra. Some of her most iconic Billboard hits are ...
Born in Honolulu, Don Ho was a pop singer and actor who started his musical career after he bought a keyboard at a music store while training for the Air Force in California. He began his singing career at his mother’s bar, Honey’s, which became a hotspot for entertainment. Ho signed with Reprise Records and released the hit single “Tiny Bubbles,” ...
Famous ukulele playerJake Shimabukuro is a fifth-generation Japanese-American musician and composer born in Honolulu. He started playing the ukulele at age four, taught by his mother, an accomplished ukulele player and singer in her own right. He is most famous for his complex fingerwork and the way he uses the simple ukulele to play numerous music...
Moe Keale was an American musician famous for his ukulele playing and traditional Hawaiian folk music, as well as an actor. One of the only people born in the 20th century with full Hawaiian ancestry, he learned songs passed down among generations on the ukulele by the age of four. He used his Hawaiian heritage to act in shows taking place on the i...
Born in Honolulu, James Mercer is a musician most famous for founding and leading the indie rock band The Shins. He was born and partly raised in Hawaii because his father was in the US Air Force, but also grew up in Germany and England. He married his now-wife Melisa Kula on Waimanalo Beach in Hawaii, where Kula was born. Mercer plays numerous ins...
Arthur Lyman was a unique jazz musician who rose to fame for playing the xylophone, vibraphone, and marimba and popularized a style of faux-Polynesian music which was called “exotica.” Born in Oahu, he was an indigenous Hawaiian and started playing music as a child with his seven siblings and father at USO shows on army bases. Lyman’s “exotica” mus...
Born and raised in Honolulu, Mike Starr was a rock musician and the original bassist for the band Alice in Chains. Alice in Chains was formed in Seattle, first a heavy metal band that later moved towards the grunge scene, and was regarded by many as second only to Nirvanaas an influential grunge band. Starr was one of the first celebrities to publi...
- Israel Kamakawiwoʻole. Israel Kamakawiwo’ole is a singer and activist who also goes by the stage name IZ. He is one of the most famous Hawaiian musicians ever, and has been coined “The voice of Hawaii”.
- Keali’i Reichel. Carleton Lewis Kealiʻinaniaimokuokalani Reichel, better known as Keali’i Reichel, is a popular Hawaiian singer, songwriter, and personality.
- Jake Shimabukuro. Jake Shimabukuro is a ukulele star from Hawaii and is thought to be one of the best players of all time. His career took off when he recorded the soundtracks for two Japanese films.
- Ledward Kaapana. Ledward Kaapana is a talented Hawaiian musician who plays steel guitar, bass guitar, and ukulele. He has won numerous awards and also holds four Grammy Awards nominations in the Best Hawaiian Music Album category.
Popular music in Polynesia is a mixture of more traditional music made with indigenous instruments such as the nose flute in Tonga, and the distinctive wooden drums of the Rarotonga, and local artists creating music with contemporary instruments and rhythms, and also a blend of both. In the 1980s, Fijian stars like Laisa Vulakoro and Lagani ...
French Polynesian musicians (1 C, 17 P) American Samoan musicians (1 P) Cook Islands musicians (4 P) Tokelauan musicians (2 P)
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Jun 1, 2004 · He set off a light in my creative spirit and inspired me to play Hawaiian music.“ Gabby, often referred to as “The Brown Album,“ signals the start of Pahinui's music-making with sons Martin ...
Oct 15, 2023 · The Modern Harmonies of Polynesia. Polynesian music evolved alongside Polynesian culture in the present day. Polynesian artists are fusing old and modern by weaving their rich cultural heritage into current tunes. Contemporary Pop from Samoa: Samoa has created dynamic modern music that reflects the changing times.
