Happy New Year! Ohana has gently ushered in 2023. We look forward to what this year has in store for us and look back to yesteryear for a little motivation to keep going.
Last year, we continued to see & feel the effects of the pandemic but proceeded with caution and aloha. We’re happy to say we created some great memories along the way!
2022 saw a new season of Ohana Sessions! This series was started in 2021 as an attempt to stay connected with our ukulele artists and community during the shutdown.
Last year saw a great lineup of acts that ranged from experimental, classical, jazz, 80’s pop, soft rock, island reggae, country, and more. The question asked was “How do you Ohana?” and everyone came with their answer! We are grateful for everyone who participated in our series and brought their "A" game to the stage.
Choose a session from the dropdown menu located at the top-right corner of this video!
The Ohana Sessions is a permanent playlist on our YouTube channel that you can access anytime! Enjoy this archive of pre-recorded jams created on our Ohana ukuleles by the folks that love them.
(fot. Ewelina Jaśkowiak)
Lorenzo Vignando (a.k.a. Ukulollo), together with Vittorio Win Fioramonti, make up the Ukulollo Dynamic Duo. Back in 2020, they received great fanfare after their amazing Ohana Session in the beautiful countryside of Lucca, Italy. So we were beyond thrilled when they touched down here on the mainland for some fun gigs with Ohana Ukuleles in tow!
Last March, they were featured artists at the Gaithersburg ukulele festival and brought the house down with their performance! They also met with fellow Ohana artist, Lisa Webb. Click on the image below to hear their impromptu song just for us.
The party didn’t stop there, because the Dynamic duo continued further west and paid a visit to our headquarters. Once here, they treated us with more dynamic performances including a couple of special Ohana mini-sessions:
Everyone was curious to see how the return to an in-person NAMM show would go. It was definitely a lower turnout than past years, but we managed to see so many friendly faces that made it all worth it. Thank you to all of our dealers, artists, and fans who attended. We introduced some new models, including a new Cynthia Lin Signature model! Check out our NAMM 2022 blog recap.
Touted as the largest ukulele festival in Los Angeles, Ohana was proud to sponsor their return to in-person in September 2022. It was a flurry of activity that came and went, but our Ohana artists and friends were in full effect. We invited Lisa Webb from Nashville, Tennessee, to visit and experience our local community.
We had a booth with our tech specialist, Jason, helping the good folks out at the festival with ukulele set-ups, string changes, and other inquiries. An open mic was also in full force that day with a handful of brave souls showing how they Ohana. And the giveaway winner of the day went home with a special Ohana Ukulele.
This year saw a new addition to the program and we spent an extra day together on "Ohana Family Sunday" to showcase a variety of great ukulele artists and players. Included in the line-up were Ohana artists Alissa Hunnicutt, Lise Lee, Lisa Webb, and more!
To celebrate our FB Group's milestone of 1K and counting, we asked everyone to share their ukulele story. We appreciate the time and effort taken to share your stories with us and we are proud to be a part of your family. Click this hashtag #Ohana1kgiveaway to read some great stories of folks and their Ohana ukuleles.
Something different and new! Ohana wanted to empower you to vote on and support your fellow ukulele players. We asked users to submit a holiday video playing on their Ohana. The video with the most votes won and the winner was from Brazil!
We love our family and fans in Brazil and they’ve shown so much love over the years. We appreciate that and are so happy that one of their own was our challenge winner. Congratulations, Eliel Carvhalo!
Votes aside, his performance was a delight to hear and watch. We also want to give a special shout-out to all our participants, with the most voted videos being from Canada and the US. Click on their boxes (below) to hear their submissions. Mahalo, 'ohana!
Speaking of Brazil, Ohana has worked with a handful of great musicians and teachers there who we know you’ll love. Joao Tostes is a masterful player with an established university dedicated to the ukulele. More great Brazilian artists we work with include Jonas Loi and Jenifer Cabrera. Both whom we’ve met through Joao! And the family keeps growing.
Devin Scott conducted a mini-tour of a handful of Ohana authorized dealers across the USA. We followed along and he gave us a glimpse into each local uke spot. After watching Devin's Aloha! Ohana series, check out the rest of our dealer pop-ups and community events on this playlist!
We are going to continue sharing our newer models and what we currently carry from our tried and true collections. Ohana is looking forward to another NAMM Show and some not-to-be-missed uke festivals! Here’s to a new year with new resolutions. There’s always room to improve, grow, and level up in life. Your ukulele playing is no different!
Join our Facebook group and keep in the know of what our community is up to. Let’s keep tabs on each other. ;) Tabs…Get it?
