At first glance Kamakakehau Fernandez and Brittni Paiva may not seem to have much in common. But take a second look, and similarities appear. They are both Na Hoku Hanohano Award winners, they play the ukulele and they will be premiering new material July 23 at the first Hawai‘i ‘Ukulele Festival at the Kapiolani Park Bandstand.
The festival came about after Roy Sakuma announced in 2022 that he was retiring after 52 years as the founder and producer of the Ukulele Festival Hawaii. The new event was created by Amy Hammond of Special Events Hawaii in partnership with the Kala Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to the preservation of Native Hawaiian culture.
“By celebrating the ukulele, we are honoring the spirit of aloha, fostering a sense of unity and appreciation for diverse musical traditions,” Kala Foundation CEO Clint Kalaola said. “It is a celebration of not only the ukulele but also the talented artists who bring it to life.”
In a letter dated July 5, Sakuma gave his support to the festival.
“Ukulele Festival Hawaii is happy to see the celebration of the ukulele continued through your inaugural event at Kapiolani Park, the birthplace of the world’s first and original ukulele festival in 1971,” he wrote. “May your ukulele festival be blessed and full in bringing communities together and spreading the joy of the ukulele.”
Fernandez and Paiva will be sharing the concert stage with Kris Fuchigami, Ku‘uipo Kumukahi, Zanuck Lindsey, Kimo Hussey, Kalei Gamiao and Corey Fujimoto.
Paiva, born and raised on the Big Island, broke out as a Hoku Award winner when her debut album, “Brittni X 3,” won the most promising artist award in 2005. She won two more Hokus in 2013. Since then, Paiva has also played guitar in Los Angeles and stepped out of the spotlight to play ukulele as a member of island vocalist Chardonnay’s band.
“It’s been a crazy bunch of years,” Paiva said. “Getting back into performing, and I’ve been doing a lot of production for other artists, so that’s been kind of like my side venture. I have my own studio at my house and I’ve had numerous vocalists and instrumentalists come in and do stuff, so it’s been a lot of fun.”
On Paiva’s set list is the song she’ll be releasing as her next single, “Heartbeat Melody.” She wrote it with suggestions from Chardonnay.
“I wanted to take a more vocal approach to how I write a melody line,” Paiva explained. “Having her input, and just the way she approaches a melody, it just really works so well with the song. So it’s kind of taking the ukulele into like a hip-hop, pop type of vibe.”
Fernandez is bringing Hawaiian language and music to a new generation of students. Raised as a native speaker, he received a Native Hawaiian immersion education from preschool through high school, then made a memorable debut on Oahu in 2002 when he was the only contestant to sing and play traditional Hawaiian music in a popular statewide talent contest. Fernandez won the Richard Ho‘opi‘i Leo Ki‘eki‘e Falsetto Contest in 2003 and received a Hoku Award in 2013.
Since then, Fernandez has been balancing commitments as a touring musician and teacher of Hawaiian language and chant. These days, he’s also working on songs for his next recording, and he plans to play some of them at the festival. He’ll also be playing some classics.
“I’ll be doing a few songs off of the album ‘Wahi Mahalo,’ taking it back to Maui,” Fernandez said, who grew up on the Valley Isle. “I always love paying homage to my roots, so I’ll be doing some songs from the east side of Hana.”
Some of those songs about Hana are “traditional songs that have been sung by many different artists.” But he also plans to do an original of his own from the old days, “He Mele No Hina.” The song was inspired by his first visit to Molokai and got radio play back in 2012.
“I’m involved in so many ways,” Fernandez said of his multifaceted commitment to Hawaiian culture. “I’m just always grateful to God for bringing things to me that allow me to still do what I love doing, which is performing and entertaining, and most of all, just bringing value to people’s lives in every way that I can.”
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Hawai‘i ‘Ukulele Festival
>> Where: Kapiolani Park Bandstand
>> When: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. July 23
>> Cost: Free
>> Info: hawaiiukulele festival.com
