Photo: Hilary Hosia.
GIFF JOHNSON
An incredible array of music talent will be on display at Saturday’s Spring Break Beach Bash in Laura — as music majordomo Daniel Kramer amps up the excitement on the third anniversary of the April concert and beach activity program.
Last week, hit singers from the Solomon Islands — star singer Chris Young and Pheatz of the South Pacific’s top band, Onetox — flew into Majuro for this week’s events. Monday, a slew of talented artists from Hawaii and the mainland arrived, further charging up the excitement factor heading into the weekend. In addition to performing at Saturday’s Laura Beach concert, the Hawaii and US talent will also perform Friday at the Marshall Islands Resort.
Local music fans will be treated to a music extravaganza at Laura Beach featuring:
• Members of one of Hawaii’s top bands, Rebel Souljahz, with keyboardist Sherwin Milne deBrum and vocalist Tunez Moananu here for the concerts. Rebel Souljahz is known globally for hit reggae music.
• Kaipo Kapua: A top Hawaiian music writer, producer and performer who plays everything from island reggae and contemporary Hawaiian music to rhythm and blues and hip-hop.
• Eli Mac, an American Idol finalist in the third season, who has recorded with Motown and headlined concerts in the US and elsewhere. Her song Guava Jelly, produced by Bob Marley’s son Stephen in Jamaica, won the Hawaii Music Awards’ Single of the Year in 2009.
The Spring Break program also features lots of games and competitions with prizes for participants throughout the day from the 10am start.
Power 103.5 DJ Yastamon gave listeners a taste of what’s to come this weekend with his interview of the incoming musicians Monday afternoon at the station. The musicians offered lively comments about their music and careers — talk that was mixed with live songs from the different artists. Last week, Yastamon featured Chris Young from the Solomons, who broke into the music scene with his first song at the tender age of 11. Now he’s in the capital with Onetox’s Pheatz to entertain local residents.
Lest anyone think Saturday’s Spring Break concert is featuring international musicians only, think again. Local musicians will be featured during the day, with performances by Krosalina — the winner of last year’s Power 103.5 Talent Search contest; Boya, a finalist in the 2017 Talent Search competition; and Julia, one of the top singers from last year’s contest.
Two other local singers with a growing international reputation will be on tap Saturday: Barab and Zeah.
Barab’s just-released song, “Let’s Forget the World,” is a collaboration with Les Anjolok and Kakke, which was produced at Bar Studios in Hawaii. That’s just one of many hits in his repertoire.
Zeah’s first release with Chris Young of the Solomons, “Havoro Roviana,” hit number one in the Solomon Islands. This was followed by “Litaku,” a collaboration with Sean Rii and Paeva from the Solomons, shot to number one on the Pacific Top 20 chart and stayed at the number one spot for four months.
This is the message: If you want to enjoy an amazing music show, Saturday’s Spring Break Beach Bash is where you’ll want to be.
Read more about this in the April 27, 2018 edition of the Marshall Islands Journal.