Singer-songwriters
Shawn Pimental and Lehua Kalima – Hawaiian musicians, singers, songwriters, producers, entertainers – have joined forces. Their music features Hawaiian and folk-inflected original songs pairing Lehua’s soaring vocals and with Shawn’s harmonies and superb guitar mastery, sharing their prodigious talents as lyricists and composers. Their easy-going style, witty banter, eclectic musical tastes, and dedication to the purity of the music and their Native Hawaiian culture sets this duo apart from the rest.
Shawn Kekoa Pimental is a 5-time Na Hoku Hanohano Award winner and Grammy-nominated music producer, artist, and performer. He has toured the world as a Musical Director and Band Member for many artists, sharing the stage with Janet Jackson, Colbie Caillat, Maxi Priest, Steel Pulse, America, Jack Johnson, Keali‘i Reichel, and more. He has a long-standing performing and musical partnership with Kaumakaiwa Kanaka‘ole, has produced records for numerous Hawaiian and reggae musicians, and has composed and produced music for Mike Post, Disney and other Award-Winning shows.
Lehua Kalima, one third of the group Na Leo Pilimehana since 1984, has been performing for over 30 years. With her roots in Hawaiian music and her passion for folk and pop, Kalima has penned and recorded over 35 songs both with Na Leo Pilimehana and as a solo artist. A recipient of over 20 Na Hoku Hanohano awards with Na Leo, she also won an unprecedented 3 individual awards as a songwriter for Songs of the Year and a Na Hoku Award for her first solo album Rising in Love. In 2015, Lehua was honored to receive a Native Arts & Cultures Foundation Fellowship Award.
Together, they create songs that celebrate the beauty of their island home, with Lehua’s fluency in Hawaiian language informing their lyrics and its deeper meanings. Their repertoire of original compositions are written by Lehua, Shawn, and other Native Hawaiian composers, and together they create the musical arrangements, which exhibit their signature lush harmonies and rich vocals. Notes a fan of Lehua: “Her ability to convey her feelings through musical poetry is amazing…a heart of gold and the vocal versatility to succeed in any market…
