{"id":229290,"date":"2026-02-10T14:29:15","date_gmt":"2026-02-11T00:29:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=229290"},"modified":"2026-02-10T15:28:30","modified_gmt":"2026-02-11T01:28:30","slug":"modern-mele-olelo-hawaii-scholar-japan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2026\/02\/10\/modern-mele-olelo-hawaii-scholar-japan\/","title":{"rendered":"Modern Mele: UH<\/abbr> ʻ\u014dlelo Â鶹´«Ã½ scholar bridges Japan"},"content":{"rendered":"
Reading time: <\/span> < 1<\/span> minute<\/span><\/span>
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Tom Noʻeau<\/span> and Nicholas Kealiʻi<\/span> Lum<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As Mahina ʻ\u014clelo Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> (Hawaiian Language Month) draws attention to the growing vitality of ʻ\u014dlelo Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> (Hawaiian language), a recently released mele Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> (Hawaiian song) offers a compelling example of how the language is taking root far beyond the islands, this time through a rare partnership between a University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> at Hilo PhD<\/abbr> student and a young recording artist from Japan.<\/p>\n[vc_row][vc_column][vc_video link=”https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=z4Nzx25h0b8″ el_aspect=”169″ align=”right” el_id=”wrap-video-right”][vc_column_text]\n

Award-winning Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> musician and UH<\/abbr> Hilo Hawaiian language<\/a> graduate student Nicholas Kealiʻi<\/span> Lum composed Waikīkī<\/em>, a mele recorded as a duet with Tom Noʻeau<\/span>, a Japan-born musician and trained ʻ\u014dlapa hula (hula dancer). Collaborations like this remain uncommon in Hawaiian music, even as hula has flourished in Japan for decades, with an estimated two million dancers nationwide.<\/p>\n

Modern mele Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span><\/h2>\n
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Lum\u2019s debut album, “Pewa”<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Lum developed Waikīkī<\/em> through the Daniel and Lydia Makuakāne Endowed Scholarship and Fellowship<\/a>, which supports his ongoing creative research following his 2023 debut album Pewa<\/em>. Praised by listeners for its modern vibe and R<\/abbr>&B<\/abbr>-influenced sound, Pewa<\/em> reimagines traditional mele Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> in a contemporary context while centering cultural resilience and linguistic vitality, values that continue to shape Lum’s work.<\/p>\n

Lum said the song the pair recorded in a Kalihi studio was shaped with intention toward visitors, particularly from Japan, Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span>’s largest international tourism market. “What would be so cool is when tourists come here that they don’t just go surfing and go to a lūʻau, but they actually have an educational piece, as well,” he said.<\/p>\n