Hawaiian Music Radio: Slack Key, Ukulele and Island Sounds
Published
You can listen to Hawaiian music radio online in any browser, with no download and no account: open 72FM, search for "hawaiian", and press play. Stations on Oahu and Maui play Hawaiian music on the air, internet stations play slack key and ukulele all day, and island reggae streams from Los Angeles — and from a beach station in Japan.
Hawaiian music all day
- Hawaiian Rainbow — Hawaiian music around the clock, the most-voted Hawaiian station in the directory.
- Ukulele Island — ukulele music, from Hawaii.
- Aloha Joe's Tiki Radio — exotica, lounge and Hawaiian music.
On the air in Hawaii
- 94.7 KUMU — Hawaiian adult contemporary and classic hits from Honolulu.
- KPOA-FM 93.5 Lahaina — Hawaiian adult contemporary from Maui.
- KMNO Mana'o Radio 91.7 FM MAUI — community radio from Maui, with Hawaiian music among rock, folk and jazz.
- KOKO-LP 96.3 FM — low-power community radio playing Hawaiian music and Hawaiian pop.
Island reggae and further afield
- NIO 106.3 LA Island Radio — island reggae and tropical music from Los Angeles.
- Shonan Beach FM 78.9 — a beach station from Kanagawa in Japan, mixing jazz with Hawaiian music.
The sound
Hawaiian slack-key guitar, kī hōʻalu, loosens the strings into open tunings so the guitar rings; the steel guitar was invented in the islands in the 1880s; and the ukulele arrived with Portuguese immigrants from Madeira around the same time. Israel Kamakawiwoʻole's ukulele medley of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" and "What a Wonderful World", from his 1993 album Facing Future, carried the sound around the world. Island reggae — sometimes called Jawaiian — is the other half of what Hawaii's stations play today. Reggae radio online goes further.
Listening from elsewhere
Hawaii keeps Hawaii–Aleutian Standard Time, ten hours behind UTC all year, with no daylight saving: morning in Honolulu is evening in London.
A route in
- Hawaiian Rainbow, for Hawaiian music all day.
- 94.7 KUMU, for Honolulu radio.
- Ukulele Island, for the ukulele.
For the rest of the islands' stations, Honolulu radio online is next.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a radio station that plays Hawaiian music online?
Yes — Hawaiian Rainbow, Ukulele Island, 94.7 KUMU and KPOA-FM 93.5 Lahaina are in the directory. Search for "hawaiian" on 72FM — no download and no account, with the daily free listening included.
What is slack-key guitar?
Kī hōʻalu: Hawaiian guitar played in open tunings, with the strings loosened so the guitar rings.
Is there ukulele radio?
Yes — Ukulele Island plays ukulele music, and Aloha Joe's Tiki Radio mixes Hawaiian music with exotica.
What time is it in Hawaii for live radio?
Hawaii–Aleutian Standard Time, ten hours behind UTC all year — Hawaii does not use daylight saving.