Cover Photo: Antonio Agosto
Photo: American Songbook, Lincoln Center

Kalani Pe‘a

Singer/Songwriter

THREE-Time GRAMMY® AWARD WINNER – Regional Roots – 2022, 2019, 2017
5-time Na Hoku Hanohano Award-Winner, including Male Vocalist of the Year in 2022

“Gifted with a gorgeous voice and a flair for composing resonant Hawaiian songs, his debut album established him as a major, innovative figure in contemporary Hawaiian music.” – Maui News

“Kalani Pe ‘a holds an important place in the history of Hawaiian music… [His] third album…displays the depth and brea of his talent as a vocalist and songwriter in vivid style.”  — Honolulu Star-Advertiser

“One of Hawai’i’s brightest new stars…His soulful voice showcases his many influences from classical, R&B, and soul, but his ʻike (Hawaiian knowledge) and love for our culture keeps it right where it needs to be” — Jaz Kaiwikoʻo, producer and radio personality

Kalani Pe’a is a charismatic performer with a gorgeous voice, powerful presence, and captivating style not-to-be-missed. His most recent release Kau Ka Pe’a garnered his 3rd Grammy win in Regional Roots, and in Hawai’i, won him Na Hoku awards for Song of the Year and Male Vocalist of the Year for 2022. 

He took home his 2nd Grammy Award in 2019 for his second CD No ‘Ane’i [We Belong Here], a release that hit the top of the iTunes and Billboard’s World Music Charts. His debut album E Walea won him his first Grammy® Award for “Best Regional Roots Music Album” in 2017, also winning the Na Hoku Hanohano Award (Hawai‘i’s “Grammy) for Best Hawaiian Contemporary Album, making Hawaiian music history as the only album to win both a Grammy and Na Hoku. E Walea also hit the top of the iTunes and Billboard World Music Charts. Most recently his Purple Hawaiian Christmas release won the Na Hoku Award for Best Contemporary Album in 2023. He now has 5 Na Hoku awards to his name. He was honored by the Hawai‘i State House of Representatives with an official proclamation in 2017: “It is vital that Native Hawaiian culture and the arts be perpetuated for future generations: Kalani Pe’a is a tourchbearer.”

Kalani Pe’a made his New York debut to a sold-out audience in 2020, the first Hawaiian artist to perform in Lincoln Center’s American Songbook. The year prior, he made his debut at the prestigious Merrie Monarch hula competition, singing one of his original songs for the hula group that went on to win the top honor. He is honored to be a WAA (Western Arts Alliance) Native Launchpad Artist, a program that aims to further the careers of U.S.-based indigenous artists. In May 2021, Kalani was selected as a featured artist for Spotify and Amazon Music campaigns during AAPI (Asian-American Pacific Islander) month, gracing billboards on over 120 transit shelters in New York and San Francisco, and was nominated for Folk Alliance International Artist of the Year in 2022.

Self-described as “Hawaiian contemporary soul”, Kalani Pe‘a was awarded a prestigious Native Arts & Cultures Foundation Fellowship in 2018 and named an Artist in Business Leadership Fellow 2019 by the First Peoples Fund. With his passion for perpetuating Hawaiian language and culture, his music features his original and classic Hawaiian songs alongside his affectionate bilingual (Hawaiian/English) arrangements of his R&B favorites – a nod to the western music he grew up with.

Kalani Pe‘a’s Hawaiian Christmas
Celebrating good cheer with traditional, Hawaiian, and original songs of the season
Kalani Pe‘a’s Hawaiian Christmas show is a celebration of the warmth and special “aloha” of the Holiday Season, sharing much-loved songs from both western and Hawaiian roots. His Christmas Single earned him a Na Hoku award in 2021, and he released his first Christmas CD, Purple Hawaiian Christmas, in 2022 in time for the holiday season, winning him the 2023 Na Hoku Award for Contemporary Album of the Year.

“Peʻa totally commits himself to every song and is able to deliver with much passion using his wide vocal range”, noted Kalani’s award-winning record producer Dave Tucciarone.

TOURS with 3-pc band (guitar, bass, drumkit)  

Kalani Pe’a WAA/AMW Showcase Mini-performance

E Na Kini

Program: Na Mele: Traditions in Hawaiian Song

Music Video: Ke ʻAʻa O Nā Lani