Hapa

Hapa is a contemporary Hawaiian group founded on Maui in 1983 by singer-guitarists Barry Flanagan and Keliʻi Kaneʻāliʻi. The name is the Hawaiian word for "half," also used in Hawaiʻi for people of mixed ancestry. Flanagan is a New Jersey native who relocated to Maui around 1979-1980 to study kī hōʻalu (slack-key guitar) and haku mele composition, while Kaneʻāliʻi is a Honolulu native. The two worked together on Maui for nearly a decade, blending traditional Polynesian textures and rhythms with elements of pop and world music before making their first recording.

In 1993 the duo released their self-titled debut album, which Pacific Records describes as the biggest-selling CD by a group or duo in the history of recorded Hawaiian music; The New York Times called Hapa the most successful musical act from Hawaiʻi in recent history. The debut earned six honors at the 1994 Nā Hōkū Hanohano Awards, including Album of the Year and Group of the Year. Follow-up albums including In the Name of Love, Namahana, and Maui reached the Top Ten of Billboard's World Music chart, and in 1994 the group became the first Hawaiian act to perform at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival.

Hapa's lineup has changed over the years, with Flanagan remaining its constant founding member. Keliʻi Kaneʻāliʻi left the duo in 2001; later members have included bassist and vocalist Nathan Aweau, and the current lineup pairs Flanagan with singer-songwriter and producer Kenneth Makuakāne. Flanagan and Kaneʻāliʻi reunited for performances at Blue Note Hawaiʻi beginning in 2018.