{"id":163657,"date":"2022-08-17T12:58:44","date_gmt":"2022-08-17T22:58:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=163657"},"modified":"2022-08-17T14:29:58","modified_gmt":"2022-08-18T00:29:58","slug":"rapper-wins-third-na-hoku","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2022\/08\/17\/rapper-wins-third-na-hoku\/","title":{"rendered":"Kanaka \u02bb\u014diwi rapper sets sights on master\u2019s, wins 3rd N\u0101 H\u014dk\u016b"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 2<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>
\"Punahele
Punahele Kutzen holds his third N\u0101 Hok\u016b award<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Deep-rooted emotion, hope and faith can be found interwoven in hundreds of hip hop lyrics composed by University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> at M\u0101noa College of Education<\/a> graduate student Punahele<\/strong>. The educational administration major captivates audiences with heartfelt rap compositions. His latest recording, The West Above All<\/em>, captured a N\u0101 H\u014dk\u016b Hanohano Award for Hip Hop Album of the Year in July. This summer\u2019s 45th annual awards ceremony, hosted by the Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> Academy of Recording Arts, marked the third time the hip hop artist landed an award for a solo album.<\/p>\n

“My music is used as a tool to stand against anything that is harmful to ʻāina<\/span> (land, water or the planet),” Punahele expressed. “As a Native Hawaiian from M\u0101kaha, I also want my music to heal and uplift my culture and community.”<\/p>\n

\"Punahele
Punahele Kutzen<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Punahele earned his bachelor\u2019s degree in ethnic studies<\/a> in spring 2022 and plans to graduate with his master\u2019s in spring 2023. The k\u0101naka ʻōiwi<\/span> (Native Hawaiian) scholar hopes to work with at-risk youth teaching place-based learning alongside poetry and hip hop, all while incorporating Hawaiian cultural practices and ʻōlelo<\/span> Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> (Hawaiian language).<\/p>\n

“UH<\/abbr> has helped me and my academic career by connecting me with great teachers and colleagues,” Punahele said. “I am thankful to people like Kumu Jon Osorio<\/strong>, Kumu Noʻu<\/span> Revilla<\/strong>, Professor Rod Labrador<\/strong> and Dr. Ruben Enrique Campos<\/strong> for making me feel like a kid from M\u0101kaha could share my story while uplifting my culture and community through academia. The best of my academic career is yet to come.”<\/p>\n