New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Summer is upon us and we're getting in the mood with the band of reggae legend Bob Marley, The Wailers, kicking off the month of June at Blue Note Hawaii. Another reggae icon, Maxi Priest, returns to the stage by popular demand and six-time GRAMMY(R)-winning jazz bassist Christian McBride makes his Blue Note Hawaii debut. Comedy takes center stage with the return of comedian Rita Rudner and the hilarious wellRED Comedy Tour: From Dixie With Love Featuring: Trae Crowder, Drew
Morgan & Corey Ryan Forrester.
Summer means many local favorites including GRAMMY(R) nominated songstress Raiatea Helm and Kuana Torres Kahele presenting his tribute to the island of Kauai. Tributes include a unique approach to the music of The Beatles, with Beat-Lele, featuring the use of the ukulele in its homage. Mindy Smokestack gathers her group of friends to pay tribute to the music of
Amy Winehouse and the Dae Han Ensemble presents the music of Donny Hathaway. Former sumo champion "Konishiki" Saleva'a Atisano'e appears for the first time bringing his unique style of singing and rapping in English and Japanese. The month wraps up with an intimate evening with Anuhea & Friends, the incomparable Willie K and a CD release party for Guidance Band.
A 15% kama'aina discount is available to residents for most shows. This is available online with code MAHALO15, as well as in person at the box office. Parking is validated at the OHANA East Hotel for $6 for four hours, and at the Outrigger
Waikiki for $15 for four hours valet.
The full June Blue Note Hawaii lineup includes:
The Wailers
May 30-June 2
Tickets: Table and Booth Seating $55, Bar $45
Showtimes: 6:30 & 9:00 p.m.
Doors: 5:00 & 8:30 p.m.
The Wailers continue to bring their revolutionary sound to fans around the world. Since 1981, founders Aston Barrett and and
Junior Marvin have carried on the mission to "keep The Wailers together," just as Bob requested, affirming: "By doing that, you keep me alive through the music." The Wailers are presented in partnership with Island 98.5.
Raiatea Helm
June 3
Tickets: Premium $35, Loge $25, Bar $15
Showtimes: 6:30 & 9:00 p.m.
Doors: 5:00 & 8:30 p.m.
Raiatea Mokihana Maile Helm made history in 2006 as Hawai'i's first solo female vocalist ever to receive a GRAMMY(R) Nomination for her sophomore CD "Sweet and Lovely." She now claims six Na Hoku Hanohano awards, tours extensively, and collaborates with Hawaiian greats such as The Brothers Cazimero and The Makaha Sons.
Beat-Lele: Ukulele Tribute to The Beatles
June 4
Tickets: Premium $35, Loge $25, Bar $15
Showtimes: 6:30 & 9:00 p.m.
Doors: 5:00 & 8:30 p.m.
Beat-Lele is comprised of four Beatle-loving musicians who hail from the island of Oahu. Having performed for numerous years as a
Beatles tribute band on the islands, they decided to reinvent themselves and fuse the beautiful music of the
Beatles with their passion of playing ukulele's.
Tribute to Amy Winehouse: Smokestack & Friends
June 6
Tickets: Premium $35, Loge $25, Bar $15
Showtimes: 6:30 & 9:00 p.m.
Doors: 5:00 & 8:30 p.m.
Local group Smokestack and friends pays tribute to the late Amy Winehouse. Winehouse was known for her deep expressive contralto vocals and her eclectic mix of musical genres. Her album "Back to Black" (2006) won five GRAMMY(R) Awards, tying the then record for the most wins by a female artist in a single night.
Kuana Torres Kahele Presents Manokalanipo: A Tribute to Kaua'i
June 10
Tickets: Premium $35, Loge $25, Bar $15
Showtimes: 6:30 & 9:00 p.m.
Doors: 5:00 & 8:30 p.m.
Kuana Torres continues his tribute to the Hawaiian Islands with a night dedicated to Kauai, featuring special guest Kainani Kahaunaele. Kuana has been involved in the music and hula scene of Hilo since he was 6 years old, training as a kane dancer under legendary Hilo kumu hula Johnny Lum Ho. Kuana continues his
Music for the Hawaiian Islands with his tribute to Kaua'i.
Island 98.5 Rocksteady Reggae Series: Maxi Priest
June 14-16
Tickets: VIP $75, Premium $55, Loge & Bar $45
Showtimes: 6:30 & 9:00 p.m.
Doors: 5:00 & 8:30 p.m.
Only a handful of singers succeed in transcending their genre without losing the essence of who they are.
Superstar Maxi Priest is one of those artists whose own unique vision has led him to tremendous international success, being the first reggae artist to have a No. 1 hit worldwide.
Maxi Priest is presented in partnership with Island 98.5.
A 90s Diva Revue: Josh Kaye & Friends
June 17
Tickets: Premium $35, Loge $25, Bar $15
Showtimes 6:30 & 9:00 p.m.
Doors: 5:00 & 8:30 p.m.
Josh Kaye and friends present a night in tribute to the divas of the 90s, featuring music by Aaliyah, Monica,
Janet Jackson, Erykah Badu, Ms. Lauryn Hill,
Mary J. Blige and Mariah Carey. Joining Kaye are local vocalists Riya Davis, NJ Chang and Chardonnay.
Josh Kaye & Friends: "
It Had To Be You" CD Release Concert
June 19
Tickets: Premium $35, Loge $25, Bar $15
Showtimes 6:30 & 9:00 p.m.
Doors: 5:00 & 8:30 p.m.
Simply the Best: Jazz With Aloha, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting, promoting and improving the quality and appreciation of jazz in Hawaii, is releasing its first album entitled "It Had to Be You." This album of jazz standards will bring together many of Honolulu's finest jazz musicians and mainland artists who frequent the island's jazz clubs.
"Konishiki" Saleva'a Atisano'e
June 20
Tickets: Premium $35, Loge $25, Bar $15
Showtimes: 6:30 & 9:00 p.m.
Doors: 5:00 & 8:30 p.m.
Konishiki Yasokichi born Saleva'a Fuauli Atisano'e, is a Hawaiian-born Japanese-Samoan former sumo wrestler. He was the first non-Japanese-born wrestler to reach ?zeki, the second-highest rank in the sport. After sumo, he began to turn his talents to music, most notably with his collaboration with
Rimi Natsukawa as well as L-Burna on the song "Livin' Like Kings." He often sings and raps in a mixture of English and Japanese.
Hawaii News Now Jazz
Legends Series: Christian McBride's New Jawn
June 21-22
Tickets: Premium $45, Loge $35, Bar $25
Showtimes: 6:30 & 9:00 p.m.
Doors: 5:00 & 8:30 p.m.
Six-time GRAMMY(R)-winning jazz bassist Christian McBride can be likened to a force of nature. He's collaborated with artists from Chick Corea to The Roots, and even hosts his own weekly radio show on NPR and
Sirius XM. The Philadelphia native has become one of the most requested, most recorded, and most respected figures in the music world today. Christian McBride is presented in partnership with Hawaii News Now.
June 23-24
Tickets: Table & Booth Seating $35, Bar $25
Showtimes: 6:30 & 9:00 p.m.
Doors: 5:00 & 8:30 p.m.
Accompanied by her full band, Anuhea will play all her hits including "Higher than the Clouds" and "Simple Love Song," tell the stories behind them and even take questions from the audience. Don't miss this special behind-the-scenes evening of music and storytelling with one of Hawaii's most beloved artists.
The
Music of Donny Hathaway: The Dae Han Ensemble
Featuring Nick Kurosawa and Smokestack
June 25
Tickets: Premium $35, Loge $25, Bar $15
Showtimes: 6:30 & 9:00 p.m.
Doors: 5:00 & 8:30 p.m.
Dedicated to the sounds of Jazz and Hip-Hop Fusion, The Dae Han Ensemble pulles influence from the sounds from the past, to blend with the present. The Ensemble will be performing a tribute to jazz pianist Donny Hathaway. Hathaway fused the sounds of R&B, gospel, jazz, classical, and rock throughout his career and is best known for duets with Roberta Flack.
Willie K
June 26
Tickets: Table & Booth Seating $45, Bar $30
Showtimes: 6:30 & 9:00 p.m.
Doors: 5:00 & 8:30 p.m.
The Hawaiian phenomenon Willie K is undoubtedly the only artist in the world who can go into an Irish pub in the middle of Maui and play anything from indigenous acoustic Hawaiian music to jazz, reggae, rock, country and even opera leaving everyone within earshot slack-jawed in astonishment.
Blue Note Comedy Series: Rita Rudner
Presented by On Stage Hawaii
June 27
Tickets: Premium $55, Loge $35, Bar $20
Showtimes: 6:30 & 9:00 p.m.
Doors: 5:00 & 8:30 p.m.
A house-filling favorite in Las
Vegas since she opened as one of the hottest tickets in town in June 2000, Rita Rudner is known for her epigrammatic one-liners. She has sold one and a half million tickets and became the longest-running solo comedy show in the history of Las Vegas, while being named Las Vegas' "Comedian Of The Year" nine years in a row.
Guidance Band CD Release Party
Presented by On Stage Hawaii
June 28
Tickets: Premium $35, Loge $25, Bar $15
Showtimes: 6:30 & 9:00 p.m.
Doors: 5:00 & 8:30 p.m.
Childhood friends Keith Batlin and Ryan Brandvold are the founders and songwriters for Guidance Band. Keith and Ryan began performing together with several groups during high school in Hawaii. The highly anticipated sophomore album "
Good Life" features both GRAMMY award winner Mykal Rose of
Black Uhuru and dancehall queen Sister Nancy.
wellRED Comedy Tour: From Dixie With Love Featuring: Trae Crowder, Drew
Morgan & Corey Ryan Forrester
June 29-30
Tickets: VIP $50, Table & Booth $35, Bar $25
Showtimes: 6:30 & 9:00 p.m.
Doors: 5:00 & 8:30 p.m.
Trae Crowder, Drew
Morgan and Corey Ryan Forrester are stand-up comedy and writing partners. The trio has been touring nationally to sold out clubs and theatres in support of their best-selling book, Liberal Redneck Manifesto: Draggin Dixie Outta the Dark.
Blue Note Entertainment Group, founded in 1981 by
Danny Bensusan, is a multi-faceted entertainment company that owns and operates New York's Blue Note Jazz Club, B.B. King Blues Club & Grill, Highline Ballroom, Subrosa, and Lucille's Grill; The
Howard Theatre (Washington D.C.); and Blue Note Jazz Clubs Worldwide (Tokyo and Nagoya, Japan and Milan, Italy, Beijing, China, Napa, California, and Rio De Janeiro, Brazil). The company also programs the Regattabar Jazz Club (Cambridge, MA). Blue Note Entertainment Group presents shows outside of its club network. The annual Blue Note Jazz Festival was established in 2011 and has since grown to become the largest jazz festival in New York City each June. Subsidiaries of Blue Note Entertainment Group include the GRAMMY(R)-nominated record label Half Note Records, whose catalogue includes over fifty titles recorded live at New York's Blue Note Jazz Club, as well as Blue Note Travel, Management Group and Media Group.
