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It all began back in 1994 where 3 young and talented men of Maui, began their musical journey.

Lukela Keala, Akoni Dellomes & Makapu Hoopii attended Baldwin High School and was enrolled in the music class. Day after day they would have little jam session’s but always tried to perfect what they played. As the year went by, their talents allowed them to perform in front of an audience for the first time at Brown Bags to Stardom. Although they took 2nd place to ballerina dancers (Ha Ha Ha!). It didn’t stop them. Former Baldwin High school teacher, Kevin Brown plays a great role in their music history today. He was the ukulele and slack key guitarist teacher but also Lukela’s uncle. He taught them the values of becoming a musician but most important, to be humble. Since then Lukela, Akoni and Makapu strived on to become the entertainers they are today.

“Down in the Valley” became their first hit back in 1999. This album made them well-known not only in Hawaii, but also in the Mainland and as far as east coast. Three years later, Ekolu came out with their second debut album called, “Shores of Waiehu.” This album gave Hawaii a little twist of its own unique style. Hits such as “Just one Night” and “Shores of Waiehu” took up a lot of air time on the local radio stations in Hawaii.

Ekolu has traveled to many parts of the United States. They’ve been to Alaska, Seattle Washington, Portland Oregon, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Colorado, Japan and played in front of crowds up to 15,000 plus people. They enjoy every moment of sharing their music with people all over the world. Every trip they take truly becomes a memorable moment. Ekolu has a lot of achievements in their musical journey in Hawaii. Their main goal is to share their music with the rest of the world.

On their free time, the Band loves to spend the day at the beach and reminisce on all the wonderful gigs they did. Individually, Akoni enjoys surfing, Makapu loves to free dive and Lukela enjoys writing music, and spending time with his family. These talented men are the best of friends, but most of all brothers.

Finally the long awaited album “Back to the Valley”, The 3rilogy is here. It’ll take you on a journey through the fun times Ekolu encounters living on the Valley Isle. The Title cut, “Back to the Valley” gives everyone the chance to experience the Valley Isle like you never seen it before. If you missed there first album “Down In the Valley” or there second album “Shores of Waiehu” , you’re in for a treat. The 3rd album is what you been waiting for.

It’s Like adding sugar to your tea, It’s even sweeter. While listening to their smooth voices and unique style‘s, it makes you realize that Ekolu is the next big thing. Not knowing what to expect, this album stirs up a twist. With the sweetest voice along with a little bit of reggae and a little bit of Spanish, Lukela sings a song called “Antonia”. Its rare to find him singing Hawaiian songs, yet alone here he is singing a Spanish song for all to enjoy. Needing no introduction, everyone knows the bands lead guitarist, Akoni Dellomes.

On this Album he sings a song called Critical Liquid. Written, sung and arranged by him, this song speaks of how he wakes up every morning waiting for the swell to come and when it hit’s, you know where to find him. Makapu Hoopii, the bass player of the band adds his own flavor to the table by singing a song called Mercy. He sings this song with emotion and originality. If you’ve seen him on stage, you know that he is a ball of fire. Working on this album, the boys got the chance to be their own producers and work along side an awesome engineer, Brett Fovargue. It takes time, energy and effort to complete a project like this. If this album puts a smile on your face and Joy in your heart, this show’s that Ekolu has reached their greatest achievement.

While ‘Down in the Valley’ was their introduction, ‘Shores of Waiehu’ is the break out album of Ekolu. This album gives a view of something very special. Every area of this project overflows with Ekolu’s talents. It starts with the album being co-produced by Lukela and Akoni. The album was also blessed with the engineering and keyboard talents of Na Hoku award winner David Tucciarone. The growth in the boys composing is shown by nine of the twelve songs being originals. The vocal talents of Ekolu are enhanced by the addition of Makapu Hoopi’i. The album also had contributions from artists and musicians like Fiji, Max Rabaka, Ben Vai, Jenson Richards, and Creed Fernandez.

The popularity of this album is shown by a spot of Billboards World Music charts, the #1 position of various songs on numerous radio stations, and by the sight of fans singing along to every song. “Shores of Waiehu” sets the standard for today’s Hawaiian music.