Hawaiian recording artists Hoku Zuttermeister and Sistah Robi Kahakalau will headline Saturday’s Hoolaulea at Hulihee Palace.
Post-parade festivities get underway at 11:45 a.m. The Hawaiian music and art festival will feature dozens of vendors selling their crafts, plus traditional-practitioner demonstrations including poi pounding and tapa cloth making.
Zuttermeister has garnered many accolades in Hawaiian music since the release of his first album “Aina Kupuna,” which won six 2008 Na Hoku Hanohano Awards including Hawaiian Album of the Year, Male Vocalist of the Year, Entertainer of the Year, Hawaiian Language Performance and Most Promising New Artist.
Released this spring, “Kuu Pua Sakura” is Zuttermeister’s second album and features many songs that are near and dear to his heart. Growing up in a family filled with rich hula traditions, he will be sharing some of his favorite hula mele at Saturday’s free concert in Kailua-Kona.
He will also perform other songs that he learned through the years from composers like Frank Kawaikapuokalani Hewett, Al Makahinu “Pops” Barcarse and Chad Takatsugi. Some are mele spanning the islands, from “Kaulana Niihau” to the haunting mele of “Ohelo Beauty,” with references to Hawaii island and a few surprises along the way. Zuttermeister is also honored to share his first original composition and title song, “Kuu Pua Sakura,” written for the love of his mother.
An instantly recognizable voice, Hawaiian singer/guitarist Kahakalau mixes the sounds of her native islands with elements of reggae, pop, singer/songwriter, folk, and rock balladry, plus the occasional touch of jazz and R&B. Her linguistic skills are as eclectic as her musical tastes — she’s fluent in English, French, Hawaiian, and Tahitian, and all four tongues show up on her recordings.
Kahakalau began her solo career with 1995’s “Sistah Robi,” which made her a star in Hawaii and won several Hawaiian music awards. The follow-up, “Keiki O Ka’Aima,” appeared in 1997 and solidified her status as Hawaii’s female vocal sweetheart. She is known for many time-honored songs, highlighted by “Pii Mai Ka Nalu” and “Makua,” not to mention those signature duets with the Hawaiian Style Band (“Love and Honesty”) and Kealii Reichel (the Diane Warren-remake “Every Road Leads Back to You”).
