Letter From The Editor

Metro-031816-editorWhen my friends and I were in our teens, we thought the coolest thing to do was to walk down Kalakaua Avenue in Waikiki. Seriously, we must have walked up and down that street dozens of times. I know, I know, I’m not sure why either now, but I think it had something to do with the feeling of anonymity, a sort of escape.

Another part of the fun, too, was that we loved watching the street performers. One of our favorites was a young girl — also in her teens at the time — who played the ukulele like we’d never seen before. Her performances were always so high-energy — she’d bust out rock songs and dance around. Just catching her sidewalk performance was worth the hour-long bus ride.

Well, that girl turned out to be Taimane Gardner, who in the intervening years has become an internationally known ukulele player. She’s moved on from the streets of Waikiki and from the cover songs she used to play and writes and produces her own music. On March 25, she plays a show at Hawaii Theatre. It’s stocked with new tunes, and it’s designed to be as much a visual experience as a musical one. See the full story here.

One of the things that I found most interesting is that Taimane told me that she actually almost quit music once. She had tired of playing gigs in Waikiki. But then when she discovered that she could create her own music and get more experimental with the ukulele, it kept her going. A reminder, perhaps, that a shift in perspective can change everything.

We’re all about music in this issue. I also had the chance to interview half of Psychemagik, an electro duo from London, who is coming to play at Bevy later this month (here). Meanwhile, lifestyle columnist Anton Glamb explores the connection between music and the brain. And if you’re hitting the festival circuit this summer, tech columnist Christa Wittmier has some apps that will help you out.