Encore presentations: May 9 at 1:30 p.m. on KHNL • May 15 at 12:30 p.m. on KGMB
Television broadcast available in ‘ōlelo Hawai‘i, via SAP Instructions »
Mahalo to everyone who participated in our first-ever fan favorite vote on our website! It goes without saying that each and every composition is a precious pua in this lei aloha ‘āina finely crafted by our students. This vote is not a reflection of the quality or value of any particular mele. Instead the vote represents our community of students, family, and friends who, for the first time, were able to participate in this beloved tradition and demonstrate their love for our haumāna and their mele.
Song Contest 2021: Celebrating 101 years
This year, we continue this two-year declaration of aloha ‘āina with the 101st Song Contest, honoring the next 100 years of resiliency, transformation and innovation for our lāhui. The remaining seven mele aloha ʻāina created for this special milestone celebration will be presented for the first time in this year’s re-imagined broadcast.
I Mau Ke Aloha ‘Āina — So that Aloha ʻĀina perseveres
On this, the 101st year of Song Contest, we recognize that we are kūpuna for the century to come. Students worked in the traditional practice of haku mele to create new compositions commemorating important stories of our lāhui today.
These stories are the kīpuka, the oases, of aloha ‘āina that continue to grow across our pae ‘āina. These mele, composed and performed by students at Song Contest 2021, capture and commemorate these kīpuka aloha ‘āina, helping to define who we are for the next 100 years.
Mele aloha ʻāina
Moved by the stories contained within, our haumāna created music videos in early 2020 for each of the new compositions. They took the newly composed words and music and provided a visual to create a multi-sensory experience for each mele.
Junior women
Director: Isabella Kealohilani Poepoe
Home: Kailua, Oʻahu
Mele: Nā Kia Aloha ʻĀina o Waimakaohiʻaka
Nā Kia Aloha ʻĀina o Waimakaohiʻaka, like all the other mele in this year’s competition, is special because it is for our future generations and to lift our lāhui. We tell the stories of the land special to us so our keiki will know better how to take care of the land.
Senior women
Director: Keila Mokulehua
Home: Kapolei, Oʻahu
Mele: He Aloha no Kalaupapa
He Aloha No Kalaupapa is a significant mele for the Hawaiian community because it commemorates Kalaupapa and the patients who lived there. If it weren’t for the thousands of Native Hawaiians who sacrificed living a normal life, we, as moʻopuna and as the next generation, wouldn’t have access to the resources that they did not have.
Junior men
Director: Gunner Sekio-Kaialau Hatcher
Home: Nānākuli, O‘ahu
Mele: ‘Āina Waiwai
ʻĀina Waiwai is our way of honoring the natural beauty of Kauaʻi and the elements that make it, and every island, worth protecting. We, as kanaka of this land, have a responsibility to take care of it. Through the concept of wai, we can learn about the cycle of destruction and creation.
Senior men
Director: Seth Asano
Home: Moanalua, Oʻahu
Mele: He Waʻa, He Moku
Hōkūleʻa is still on a journey to bring this whole world together with every destination. This newly composed mele, He Waʻa He Moku, is about bringing different cultures together strengthening us all.
Sophomore co-ed
Director: Keolamauloa Pilayo
Home: Kamuela, Hawaiʻi
Mele: Pualu i ka Pono o nā Wai
The message of our mele, Pualu I ka Pono o Nā Wai, is to not give up on our culture. We can’t hit a roadblock and then just stop. We must be like the water and continuously flow. When water is blocked by a dam, it will still move.
Junior co-ed
Director: Chase Kaleopono Kamikawa
Home: ʻAiea, Oʻahu
Mele: Hulihia Papalauahi
Hulihia Papalauahi is about aloha ʻāina. Aloha ʻāina connects us all because it is in our blood as Hawaiians. Hulihia Papalauahi is both an anthem and healing song for the people of Papalauahi in Puna. We are paying homage to that community and all they have been through while also paying honor to the land that truly belongs to Pele.
Senior co-ed
Director: Noe Hussey
Home: Kailua, Oʻahu
Mele: Kuʻu Maha Lehua
The lehua is one of the most culturally significant plants for Hawaiians; it is affiliated with multiple akua and practices and is in danger of disappearing due to Rapid ʻŌhiʻa Death. Kuʻu Maha Lehua reminds us to consider the ʻōhiʻa lehua as more than just a species, it is a part of our ʻāina, but it is also a part of our culture.
Videos and media
Ola nā ‘Ōiwi Aloha ‘Āina
Class of 2020 Co-Ed Performance
Aloha e ku‘u one hānau
E mau loa i ka mālamalama
A pūlama mau i ka lei ho‘oheno
Lei hanohano a‘o nā kūpuna
Hui:
E ola nā ‘ōiwi ē
E ō nā iwi a‘o ku‘u iwi
‘O ke koko a‘o ku‘u koko
Me ke ēwe a‘o ku‘u ēwe
Me ke ēwe a‘o ku‘u ēwe
E ala mai e ku‘u lāhui ē
Nā koa o ke aloha ‘āina
E kū kia‘i mau e nā mamo aloha
A‘e kuleana like kākou
Love to my birthsands
May you remain ever-vibrant
And always care for the cherished lei
Honorable adornment of the elders
Hui:
The natives thrive
Endure forever, bones of my bones
Blood of my blood
Kin of my kin
Kin of my kin
Arise, my nation
Warriors who love this land
Continue to stand and protect, beloved descendants
And bear this responsibility together
I Ola Kaho‘olawe
Class of 2020 Women’s Performance
E lana mālie ‘oe i ke kai o Kanaloa
He ‘āina aloha nui ‘ia a ka lāhui
E hui, alu like i ola Kaho‘olawe
E ō mai e nā hoa aloha ‘āina, e ō mai ē!
Eō! (Eō e Kaho‘olawe!)
Eō! (Eō e Kohemālamalama!)
Eō! (Eō e Kanaloa!)
Mai ka lā hiki a ka lā kau
He ‘āina weliweli, a he ‘āina aloha
Kaumaha ka Uakea, he waimaka
Pā mai ka makani haowela
Eia Kaho‘olawe
Hānau hou ‘o Kanaloa
Hui:
I ola Kanaloa
I ola kākou
Eō!
‘Eu mai nā ‘iwa lanalana
Ma Kuheia i ‘āuna ai
‘Au nā koa hao kila e ho‘omalu mai
‘Awekuhi lawe i nā pua hinahina
E alu like ai
Nā hoa aloha ‘āina
Puka mai Makali‘i, he au no Lono
Ho‘i i ka piko hole pelu o Kanaloa
He ala i ka hiki, he ala loa
Ua lawe nō a lilo ku‘u Moku
Ulu nā pua aloha ‘āina
Ola mau ‘o Kanaloa
Eō!
Eō!
‘Ane hiki mai, ‘ane hiki mai, eō
There floating calmly in the sea of Kanaloa
Is an island beloved by the lāhui
You gather us, unified so Kaho‘olawe lives
Heed the call, patriots of this place, respond!
Respond, Kaho‘olawe!
Respond, Kohemālamalama!
Respond, Kanaloa!
From the beginning of time
A ravaged land, a land that is loved
The Uakea rain is heavy with tears
The wind blows, burning the skin
Here is Kaho‘olawe
Kanaloa is born once more
Hui:
So Kanaloa thrives
So we all thrive
We are here!
The ‘iwa birds stir and rise
At Kuheia they gather and assemble
The brave swim and seek protection
The tentacle of Kanaloa brings us
To join together
The aloha ‘āina
Makali‘i bursts forth, the time for Lono
Let us return to the piko of Kanaloa
This is the path to the future
My land has been returned, won back
The aloha ‘āina grow and prosper
Kanaloa will live on forever
We are here!
We are here!
We are arriving, we are arriving, respond!
Ka Leo Kupa o ka ‘Āina
Class of 2020 Men’s Performance
Hanohano ka leo kupa o ka ‘āina
Ke kāhiko ‘oi kelakela o nā moku
Mikololohua mai Hawai‘i a Kaua‘i
Kauahe mikioi piko o Lehua
Hui:
‘O ka ‘ōlelo ka ‘aiali‘ilani (e ola ai)
Ka mana nui ‘oia‘i‘o (e lanakila ai)
E noke mau i ka make‘e ‘Ōlelo Makuahine
Ku‘u lei momi mau loa
Waiwai ka no‘eau hulu kūpuna
Pa‘ahana i ka ‘olu o La‘i Aloha
‘Ō‘ili ka waiho a ka wena āiwaiwa
‘Īkoi welo mau nō nā mū‘ō
Ua pa‘a, ua paepae ke kahua hale
Hale ua noe o ka uka o Mānā
Leo pū‘ā punua ho‘ōla mauliola
I ō mau a mau ku‘u kulāiwi