No doubt about it, San Diego based, Hawaiian themed combo, Slack Key Ohana, is having a pretty good year. In early April their latest album Hawaiian Cowboy entered the I-Tunes World Music Chart at #1. Then on April 30, they took home a trophy from the San Diego Music Awards, winning in the Best World Music Song category for their song, “Nahenahe Ka Leo o Ka Wahine U’i.” It’s Slack Key Ohana’s second SDMA win, following 2022’s Best World Music Album score for their self-titled debut release.
On July 2 Slack Key Ohana performs at The Belly Up Tavern, alongside Hawaiian music virtuoso, Tavana.
Formed in 2021, mixing traditional island folk sounds with a vintage pop edge, Slack Key Ohana was an instant hit, quickly becoming a clubland and festival favorite throughout the South-western U.S. and Hawaii.
The group’s core members are Brian Witkin (guitar, vocals, lap steel) and Kamaka Mullen (vocals, guitar) for acoustic gigs, with the band rounded out by Carol Witkin (ukulele, vocals) and Joe Witkin (U-Bass, vocals). For select shows and recordings, add Rand Anderson on (pedal steel) and Sean Witkin (drums). “Ohana” means “family” in Hawaiian, and all of my immediate family performs together with this band,” Witkin said.
For larger shows, Slack Key Ohana even incorporates Hula dancers. “I love performing with dancers, it adds so much to the concert experience,” Witkin said. “I’d love to have Hula at every show where possible, as dance is a very important part of Hawaiian culture.”
What was the inspiration behind the group? “While I’ve been a musician my entire life, my love of the islands and Hawaiian music inspired me to learn the art of Slack Key guitar, which is how I met Kamaka,” he continued. “He started out as my Slack Key guitar teacher, then we recorded and produced Kamaka as a solo artist and the band came after that. So, the band started organically as we had already been working together.”
While work has already begun on writing for Slack Key Ohana’s follow up to Hawaiian Cowboy, Witkin notes it will be a while before any studio recording takes place. “We have enough originals now to track a new album and we play a lot of them live at our shows. However, we are still promoting Hawaiian Cowboy, so I don’t expect the follow up to be out this year, but we will probably have a least a few more singles and possibly another live album out before the holidays.”
Witkin is happy with the band’s growing fanbase and oppor- tunities, but for him the best thing about Slack Key Ohana hits much closer to home. “My favorite thing about Slack Key Ohana is that it enables me to do what I love, make music, and with my family!”
www.SlackKeyOhana.com
