Hawaiian
A broad island-rooted music category that spans chant, string-band traditions, and later popular forms, with the steel guitar and ukulele as some of its best-known sounds.
Origins and context
Native Hawaiian musical traditions, later shaped by Western instruments and performance practices in the islands.
History
Hawaiian music grows out of Native Hawaiian musical practice and was reshaped through contact with Western instruments after the late 18th century. The steel guitar became one of its most influential voices in the early 20th century, with Joseph Kekuku widely credited as its inventor, and Hawaiian performers helped spread the sound far beyond the islands. By the 1930s and after, tourism and mass media carried Hawaiian sounds to mainland audiences, while artists such as Sol Ho‘opi‘i and later Israel Kamakawiwo‘ole helped keep the style in public earshot. The Hawaiian Renaissance of the 1970s renewed attention to traditional forms and language, and that revival remains a major part of the genre’s modern story.
Notable artists
- IKIsrael Kamakawiwo'ole
- SHSol Ho'opi'i
- GKGeorge Kahumoku, Jr.
- DKDennis Kamakahi
Essential listening
- 1
- 2
Explore connected genres
Sources and further reading
- How the Hawaiian Steel Guitar Changed American Music
- Hawaiian Pop Music Style Overview
- Hawaiian Musician Dennis Kamakahi Donates His Guitar
- Apple Music
Israel Kamakawiwo'ole remains one of the best-known Hawaiian artists and is documented on official Apple Music and Spotify artist pages.
- Hawaiian Music Archives