Israel Kamakawiwo'ole

Entertainer, musician, and social reformer

• Born: May 20, 1959
• Place of Birth: Honolulu, Hawaii
• Died: June 26, 1997
• Place of Death: Honolulu, Hawaii

Israel Kamakawiwo'ole is one of the best-known Hawaiian musicians in the world. During his life, he used his notoriety to support the preservation of traditional Hawaiian culture and Hawaiian sovereignty.

Areas of achievement: Entertainment, music, social issues

Early Life

The gentle giant of Hawaiian music, Israel Kaanoi Kamakawiwo'ole was born on May 20, 1959, in Honolulu, Hawaii. Bruddah Iz, as he would be called later in his life, was the third of four children born to Henry “Tiny” Kaleialoha Naniwa Kamakawiwo'ole of Oahu and his wife, Evangeline Keale of Niihau. Kamakawiwo'ole’s family lived in Kaimuki to be near his mother’s parents, who lived nearby in Palolo valley. He was introduced to music at an early age by his parents and grandparents. His grandparents’ home, where he spent much of his youth, was often filled with family and friends who would play music at backyard parties and informal gatherings. It was there that Kamakawiwo'ole learned to play the ukulele by the age of six.

Kamakawiwo'ole’s maternal grandfather was a great influence in his life. Besides staying with his grandfather in the home at Palolo, Kamakawiwo'ole accompanied him each summer to the island of Niihau. There, Kamakawiwo'ole learned to speak Hawaiian. (A privately owned island, its residents speak Hawaiian as the primary language.) Kamakawiwo'ole’s summers there would resonate with him, influencing his style of music and his themes of Hawaiian sovereignty. His grandfather died when Kamakawiwo'ole was nine years old.

In addition to his grandfather, his parents introduced the young Kamakawiwo'ole to music through their participation in the church choir and his father’s job at a Waikiki nightclub. At Harris Kaleikini’s Steamboat Lounge, where his father worked as a bouncer, the entertainers would encourage Kamakawiwo'ole to perform with them even though he was only ten or eleven years old. At sixteen, Kamakawiwo'ole joined his brother Henry (“Skippy”) to entertain aboard the Ale Ale Kai catamaran. Because many Hawaiian music venues were closing, the family moved from its central Honolulu location to Makaha on the Waianae Coast while Kamakawiwo'ole was still in high school. Although Kamakawiwo'ole resisted the move, it would begin his professional musical career.

Life’s Work

In Waianae, Kamakawiwo'ole met Jerome “Jerry” Koko, another musician. Their friendship and interest in music would grow. Israel and Skippy Kamakawiwo'ole formed a band with Koko that also included Mel Amina, Louis “Moon” Kauakahi, Abraham Nahulu, and Sam Gray. Selecting a name that represented them well, the Makaha Sons of Ni’ihau performed first at high school events in Nanakuli. They soon attracted the attention of a local disc jockey, Honolulu Skylark. With her help and encouragement, the group performed on a telethon for muscular dystrophy research and became well known throughout Hawaii. Their first booking at Uptown Yoko’s in Kapahulu near Waikiki earned them ten dollars each. Other bookings in Kaimuki nightclubs soon followed. The group featured a blend of traditional Hawaiian music, contemporary sounds, and Hawaiian themes. They recorded their first album, No Kristo, in 1976, which was followed by several others over the next few years.

Although Skippy was the leader of the group, Israel Kamakawiwo'ole was the emcee on stage and the primary vocalist. Much of the group’s repertoire featured songs that supported the growing movement toward Hawaiian sovereignty. These works reflected his growing concern about the self-governance movement of the Hawaiian people. In 1980, the group released what would become their signature song, “Hawaii 78.” The song became the anthem of the growing sovereignty movement. In the beginning, Israel Kamakawiwo'ole was not as enthusiastic as his brother about the sovereignty movement. However, he became an ardent supporter of the movement following Skippy’s untimely death on October 1, 1982, at the age of twenty-eight. Skippy died only a couple of weeks following Israel’s marriage to his high school sweetheart, Marlene Kuupua Ah Lo, on September 18, 1982.

His brother’s early death greatly affected Kamakawiwo'ole, but he and the rest of the group continued to perform and record. The group’s music increasingly began to reflect their support of the movement toward Hawaiian self-determination. Kamakawiwo'ole’s childhood summer visits to Niihau would serve as his inspiration as well as provide him with the knowledge of Hawaiian culture and language needed to sustain the sociopolitical work of his brother. In 1990, Kamakawiwo'ole recorded his first solo album, Ka ’Ano’i, which earned the Na Hoku Hanohano Award for Best Contemporary Hawaiian Album. He received the Na Hoku Hanohano Award for Best Male Vocalist from the Hawaii Academy of Recording Artists. Despite the release of his solo album, Kamakawiwo'ole continued to be a part of the Makaha Sons of Ni’ihau; three years later, however, he would go his separate way.

Significance

As a solo performer, songwriter, and recording artist, Kamakawiwo'ole continued his support of Hawaiian sovereignty. His voice and music became the rallying cry for many Hawaiians as they sought to restore Hawaiian nationhood. For Hawaiians living in the mainland United States, Kamakawiwo'ole became an important connection to their native land. However, his popularity was not limited to Hawaiians only. When he was interviewed on National Public Radio (NPR), they played his rendition of “Somewhere over the Rainbow.” Kamakawiwo'ole’s version of the famous song appealed to people worldwide and has been featured in several films.

Kamakawiwo'ole died of respiratory failure on June 26, 1997, at the age of thirty-eight, leaving behind his wife, their daughter, and his sister. Immediately following his death, Kamakawiwo'ole was the third person to lie in state at the Hawaii State Capitol rotunda. Nearly ten thousand people paid their respects to Bruddah Iz.

Bibliography

Carroll, Rick. IZ: Voice of the People. Honolulu: Bess, 2006. Print.

De Mello, Jon. “Biography.” Official Site of Israel IZ Kamakawiwo’ole. Mountain Apple Company, n.d. Web. 3 Feb. 2012.

Jackson, Blair. "Remembering Bruddah Iz: 25 Years After His Death, Israel Kamakawiwo'ole Still Melts Hearts and Inspires." Ukelele Magazine, 2 Sept. 2022, ukulelemagazine.com/stories/iz-20-years-after-his-death-israel-kamakawiwoole-still-melts-hearts-and-inspire-ukulele. Accessed 20 Aug. 2024.

Kois, Dan. Israel Kamakawiwo’ole’s Facing Future. New York: Continuum, 2010. Print.