Kuana Torres Kahele (born September 7, 1978) is an American musician, vocalist, songwriter, record producer,

dancer Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoi ...

, and educator from

Hilo, Hawaii Hilo () is a census-designated place (CDP) and the largest settlement in Hawaii County, Hawaii, United States, which encompasses the Island of Hawaii. The population was 44,186 according to the 2020 census. It is the fourth-largest settlement i ...

. Known primarily for his original acoustic compositions, Kahele arranges traditional

Hawaiian music The music of Hawaii includes an array of traditional and popular styles, ranging from native Hawaiian folk music to modern rock and hip hop. Styles like slack-key guitar are well known worldwide, while Hawaiian-tinged music is a frequent part ...

as well, performing and recording with instruments such as ʻukulele, guitar,

ipu Ipu is a percussion instrument made from gourds that is often used to provide a beat for hula dancing. There are two types of ipu, the ipu heke (), which is a double gourd made by taking two gourds of different sizes, cutting them and joining t ...

, and bass (to name a few). The majority of his lyrics are written and performed in the

Hawaiian language Hawaiian (', ) is a Polynesian language of the Austronesian language family that takes its name from Hawaii, the largest island in the tropical North Pacific archipelago where it developed. Hawaiian, along with English, is an official language o ...

. After learning Kane Hula and Haku Mele (Hawaiian composing) in his teens, in 1995 Kahele co-founded Nā Palapalai, a Hawaiian music group that has released a number of albums. Several have charted in the top five on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' Top World Albums chart, and the group has won a large number of

Nā Hōkū Hanohano Awards The Nā Hōkū Hanohano Awards, occasionally called the Nā Hōkū Awards or Hoku Awards, are the premier music awards in Hawaii.Berger, John"A night of Na Hoku Hanohano" ''Honolulu Star-Advertiser''. May 22, 2011.Haug, Kawehi"Hoku awardees shine ...

, including Group of the Year. Kahele released his first solo album, ''Kaunaloa'', in 2011, which reached No. 2 on the Top World Albums Chart and won Kahele five Nā Hōkū Hanohano Awards, including Male Vocalist of the Year. He has released several charting solo albums since, and in 2014 released two volumes from his ''Music for the Hawaiian Islands'' series. Also in 2014 Kahele voiced the lead character in ''

Lava Lava is molten or partially molten rock (magma) that has been expelled from the interior of a terrestrial planet (such as Earth) or a moon onto its surface. Lava may be erupted at a volcano or through a fracture in the crust, on land or un ...

'', an animated short film by

Pixar Pixar Animation Studios (commonly known as Pixar () and stylized as P I X A R) is an American computer animation studio known for its critically and commercially successful computer animated feature films. It is based in Emeryville, Californi ...

. Kahele regularly teaches cultural workshops around the world. In Japan he runs the Kuana School of Hawaiian Music & Culture, teaching 200+ students in

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

Fukuoka is the sixth-largest city in Japan, the second-largest port city after Yokohama, and the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The city is built along the shores of Hakata Bay, and has been a center of international commerce since ancie ...

and

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2. ...

Discography

Group albums

* 1999: ''Akoni And Da Palapalai Patch: Kaona'' * 1999: ''Johnny Lum Ho: Hālau O Ka Ua Kani Lehua'' * 2002: ''Nā Palapalai: Makani ʻOluʻolu'' * 2003: ''Nā Palapalai: Hula Leʻa Magazine Vol. 3 (Japan)'' * 2004: ''Nā Palapalai: Keʻala Beauty'' * 2006: ''Nā Palapalai: Ka Pua Hae Hawaiʻi'' * 2007: ''Johnny Lum Ho: Canʻt You Hear Me Calling?'' * 2007: ''Nā Palapalai: Disneyʻs Hawaiian Album (E Komo Mai)'' * 2009: ''Nā Palapalai: Nanea'' * 2010: ''Nā Palapalai: Best Of Nā Palapalai'' * 2012: ''Nā Palapalai: Haʻa'' * 2018: ''Nā Palapalai DVD: Hoʻopili Hou'' * 2020: ''Nā Palapalai: Back To The Patch'' * 2020: ''Nā Palapalai: Ka Nani Vol. 1'' * 2020: ''Nā Palapalai: Ka Nani Vol. 2'' * 2020: ''Nā Palapalai: Greatest Hula Hits''

Solo albums

* 2011: ''Kaunaloa'' * 2012: ''Hilo for the Holidays'' * 2013: ''Kahele'' * 2014: ''ʻOhai Aliʻi (Single)'' * 2014: ''Music For The Hawaiian Islands: Vol. 1 Hawai'i Keawe (Hawai'i Island)'' * 2014: ''Music For The Hawaiian Islands: Vol. 2 Kahelelani (Ni'ihau)'' * 2015: ''Music For The Hawaiian Islands: Vol. 3 Pi'ilani (Maui)'' * 2015: ''Music For The Hawaiian Islands: Vol. 4 Manookalanipō (Kaua'i)'' * 2017: ''Music For The Hawaiian Islands: Vol. 5 Lānaʻikaʻula (Lānaʻi)'' * 2017: ''Music For The Hawaiian Islands: Vol. 6 ʻĀina Momona (Molokaʻi)'' * 2018: ''Back To Hilo For The Holidays'' * 2019: ''Music For The Hawaiian Islands: Vol. 7 Kākuhihewa (Oʻahu)'' * 2021: ''Nani Waiʻale''

Filmography

References

External links