40 Years of Kapena: A Legacy of Music with Kelly Boy De Lima

Kelly Boy De Lima from Kapena joins the show! We talk story about his musical journey and the evolution of Kapena in Hawaii. The conversation dives into the band's origins, cultural impact, and the transition to a family band legacy.

What we discuss with Kelly Boy De Lima:

• Kelly Boy De Lima's transition from surfing to music
• The formation and rise of Kapena in the Hawaiian music scene
• Growing up on the west side of Oahu and cultural influences
• The significance of Kapena’s music in Hawaiian culture
• Tips for visitors to engage with Hawaiian culture and history
• Upcoming tour dates and performances of Kapena
• Insights into the songwriting process and stories behind the songs

Resources mentioned in this episode:

• Kapena's website for tour dates and band information
• Kapena's music on Spotify

👉 Full show notes and resources can be found here: hawaiisbesttravel.com/episode129

Chapters

• 10:12 The Birth of Kapena Music
• 16:58 Songwriting and Legacy
• 21:39 Hawaii Travel News Update
• 31:14 Memorable Performances
• 34:55 Tips for Visiting Hawaii

Transcript

129-Kapena

[00:00:00] Kelley Boy DeLima: Coming up on Hawaii's best. I would enter the surf contest and on the breaks, China asked me, Hey, killer boy, can you get the ukulele and go on microphone set up? Would you, would you mind jamming in between the, you know, the sessions and stuff and it was, Oh, shoot. So I'll go surf my heat. Then I come back under the banyan tree and start playing my ukulele and start singing.

[00:00:22] Kelley Boy DeLima: And then I soon realized that singing was, uh, I think I would get a little bit more further in life playing my ukulele and singing than I was a surfer, you know? 

[00:00:33] Well, that's a clip from today's interview with Kelly Boy DeLima from the band Kepena. And on today's episode, we talk about all about how this amazing band started on the beaches of Waikiki.

[00:00:44] He talks about what life was like growing up on the. West side and how he met his wife from the east side. That was a great story to just to hear. And also just about what life was like growing up on Oahu. He offers some great tips for people visiting the islands as well. So you don't want to miss this one.

[00:01:02] Let's go ahead and let's jump right on in.

[00:01:16] Announcement: Aloha. Welcome to Hawaii's Best. Here, you'll learn what to know before traveling as we discover Hawaiian culture. Local businesses and the experiences that make Hawaii one of the most incredible places in the world and now your host Brian Murphy 

[00:01:35] Well today is a special episode We have Kelly boy de Lima from the band capenna on and they are in the middle of their don't say goodbye tour 40th anniversary of the original capenna and if you're lucky enough to be on the islands, they do have Some dates still available You They're playing tomorrow night in Kona on the island of Hawaii, and then on Kauai, they're playing on August 24th, and then on Oahu on August 31st at the Waikiki Shell.

[00:02:08] And then if you're on the west coast, like myself, they're coming to the ninth island, Las Vegas on September 21st. So. If you happen to be around, check out this once in a lifetime opportunity for the original Capenna, their 40th reunion, Don't Say Goodbye tour. So pumped for these guys, and I can't wait for you to hear more about Capenna and their legacy and the mark they have left, not only in Hawaii, but around the world as well.

[00:02:40] My conversation with Kelly boy was originally recorded a couple years ago, actually, and I've edited it in a way to make sure that the topics are relevant to today as well. So I hope that you get a lot out of this conversation. There's some tips on what to know when traveling to Hawaii, and also just great to hear some of the history about Campana.

[00:02:59] And I just want to encourage you to go ahead and check them out on Spotify and hear some of their, you know, You know, some of their great hits and Cappenna is still making music today with Kelly Boy's family, his kids, and also his one of his grandkids. So it's cool to see the legacy continuing to move on.

[00:03:18] Alright, so here's a little bit more about Kelly boy. His musical journey began in 1984 when he competed with his two Tungan brothers in brown bags and We talked all about what that is It's such a cool story behind that and and how capenna has been such an incredible Presence on the islands, but also how their music has reached across the globe.

[00:03:46] Kelly boy has toured all over the world, spreading that capenna music that fans first fell in love with his genuine personality, captivating stage presence and timeless music has made him one of the hardest working musicians in the business. We impact all of that and more in today's interview. Enough of my yakking, let's go ahead and we're going to talk story with Kelly Boy DeLima.

[00:04:18] Kelly Boy, I just want to say thank you so much for coming on Hawaii's Best today. How are you doing? Oh, I'm doing 

[00:04:24] Kelley Boy DeLima: great, Brian. Thank you. And, uh, yes, uh, things are beautiful today in Hawaii. We got a little bit of rain over here on the Kaneohe side, uh, but it's, uh, in the 80s and, uh, you know, all is well.

[00:04:38] Kelley Boy DeLima: That's amazing. Have you always lived on the east side? Um, I'm originally from Wai'anae, Makaha. Uh, those beautiful beaches out there in Makaha. I grew up out there surfing at Makaha Surfing Beach. And, um, there's a place that we call, um, Cabanas or Turtle Beach. We used to body surf there. And so I grew up all along, along that, that coast on the west side.

[00:05:01] Kelley Boy DeLima: My dad's family are all from there. Had a great time growing up, um, on the, on the West side, uh, it's beautiful. And, and, you know, we used to camp down there from like, there's a beach called pray for sex. There's Makua and there's just, uh, all these different beautiful areas. There's Yokohama down all the way towards the end, as you're going to cut in a point.

[00:05:24] Kelley Boy DeLima: And, uh, As kids, we would go all the way around cutting a point on my dad's old dots and truck would wind up on the opposite side on locally here in Haleiwa on the North Shore. So, uh, it was, uh, it was a great time out there in Makaha and Wai'anae growing up. And then I, I met my wife in my. Uh, 19, 20 years old and we got married and she's from Wimanalo now.

[00:05:49] Kelley Boy DeLima: She's from the east side over the Kovalau. Oh, 

[00:05:54] the Capulets 

[00:05:56] Kelley Boy DeLima: Right, right. East meets west, you know, and uh, she said, I'm not moving that far away from my family and Wimanalo. And so we. Kind of compromise. And I've been here in Kaneohe now for about 30 years 

[00:06:10] now. Okay. Yeah. You explain a little bit what life was like growing up on Hawaii, but maybe a little bit more story about just kind of growing up, running around.

[00:06:17] You know, 

[00:06:17] Kelley Boy DeLima: especially for, you know, you know, the visitors and, and, you know, those that come to the islands here in Hawaii, you know, surfing is like a culture thing. Music is a culture thing. It's, it's stuff that have been passed down. You know, we've seen our parents and our grandparents, you know what I mean?

[00:06:34] Kelley Boy DeLima: Uh, either be fishermen or a waterman or You know, all sorts of, you know, things that we do here in Hawaii. A lot of kids, you know, play sports, baseball, basketball and stuff, but there's all, most of the local kids, especially you'll find it on the outer islands, Molokotni, Maui, the big island, you know. The Big Island kids, they grew up picking opihi, which is little, you know, shells of, uh, lulz that grow on the sides of our rocks and really a delicacy.

[00:07:04] Kelley Boy DeLima: I mean, you gotta, you gotta, uh, be very experienced, very watchful when you're doing that kind of thing, but, you know, those kinds of things. So I grew up just like that, you know, going to, um, around Mokule'i Hill, like I was saying, and, uh, in my dad's dachshund truck from Wai'anae, Mokule'i here and go right on to the point of Kaena Point.

[00:07:24] Kelley Boy DeLima: Where there's a big, um, lighthouse out there and we would pick Vanna. Vanna is like this sea urchin. It's a sea urchin with the, you know, the pricklies and, uh, in the Vanna is, oh, that's, it's like a delicacy too. So we would pick that as kids. We would go fishing. We would camp down there at Kāhena Point in Mokulei on the Mokulei side of Dillingham Field.

[00:07:49] Kelley Boy DeLima: It's actually where the gliders take off out there on Dillingham. Right. I remember as a kid growing up out there with my grandpa and grandma and mom and dad would leave us for the whole three months. That's when all schools would get off during summertime and every school would be off for three months.

[00:08:06] Kelley Boy DeLima: There wasn't no, you know, year round school or where you go back to school this, you know, after a couple of, no, this was all Hawaii was like, get off at the same time. And, uh, I remember my father in law and my grandfather was pure Portuguese. My grandmother was pure Hawaiian. So I would get two sides of the food, you know what I mean?

[00:08:26] Kelley Boy DeLima: The food, uh, them shipping it out down at the beach and, and mom and dad would actually, um, come to the beach and then they would leave all the kids with our, you know, all the cousins and it would go to work. And then after work, they come back to the beach and we would camp for three months. You know, so we would be fishing, we would be crabbing, and uh, I remember my dad them coming and they would go night diving quite a bit and I remember them going out one time and night diving and my dad bringing back this big, I mean this big white eel, I mean that The EO was there, you know, it was about as big as like my leg, thigh, you know, huge eel.

[00:09:07] Kelley Boy DeLima: And I was like, what the heck are we gonna do with this, you know? And, and my grandfather cooked it in this vinegar style, this Portuguese Way called Uh huh In do. Okay. And, uh, you know, I mean, you know, Hawaii, we get all these different cultures and, uh. Flavors and, uh, yeah, there's a whole fusion. It's just, you know, it's just one big multi pot, you know, Brian, you know, yeah.

[00:09:29] Kelley Boy DeLima: And, uh, so my grandfather cooked, oh, this is the best. Oh, I still can taste. I was a kid, you know, and I still can taste it in my mouth. But that's the kind of stuff that we would do, you know, surfing. Takes you back. Yeah, yeah. It takes me back. Surfing and diving and. Watching my father then go diving and, and, and just growing up, you know, that life and, uh, it's, it's great times in Hawaii and, you know, you know, local people, they love to, um, to share the culture.

[00:09:55] Kelley Boy DeLima: They love to, uh, I know we have plenty of family that come from the mainland and stuff, and they're just so. They just wanna soak in everything, you know? Yeah. Right. This, that, and the other. So it's a, it's a good life here. 

[00:10:07] Yeah. Now what about music? Was that model growing up as well? Like where did, where did that come from?

[00:10:12] Kelley Boy DeLima: Well, you know, the, the whole music thing started in intermediate school. Okay. And it kind of was linked to my surfing and, you know, I, um, I thought I was gonna be a pro surfer when I was growing up. I was this skinny little kid that was, you know, after I left Wai Eye. I moved to the Kaimuki area and it was in intermediate high school time and I grew up on Waikiki beach.

[00:10:32] Kelley Boy DeLima: I became a Waikiki beach boy. I would run for a lot of uncles. If you needed coffee or you needed one drink, I was your man, you know? Anyway, you know, I gave surf lessons and, and Took people out on the canoe outrigger, you know, in Waikiki Beach and I lived that life and that's pretty much how I learned, you know, I had beach boys, friends, kids that were all growing up with me.

[00:10:54] Kelley Boy DeLima: James Willis, uh, was a dear friend from the Big Island and another kid that I grew up with, uh, Kunia Godera, who is a grandson of, um, our legendary Gabby Pahinui. From the Pahinui family. He was one that really inspired me, um, and his abilities on that ukulele. But it was during that time running around on the beach, I would take my ukulele, I would give them to one of the beach boys on Waikiki beach.

[00:11:19] Kelley Boy DeLima: Like, uh, Ako Imai, Imai Kalaniyani had a group called Intangibles here. They did four part, the four part Hawaiian harmonies and, uh, that old surfer style, you know, and, uh, I was just, you know, so I would give up my ukulele and I'd be watching the chords. Anyway, um, China Uemura, who organized these big China's surfboard meets longboard meets, I would put on these surf contests down in Waikiki.

[00:11:45] Kelley Boy DeLima: I would enter the surf contest and on the breaks, China would ask me, Hey, Kelly boy, can you get your ukulele and go on microphone set up? Would you, would you mind jamming in between the, you know, the sessions and stuff? And I was, Oh, shoot. So go. surf Mikey. And I come back onto that abandoned tree and start playing my ukulele and start singing.

[00:12:05] Kelley Boy DeLima: And then I soon realize that singing was I think I would get a little bit more further in life when singing than I would than I was a surfer, you know. 

[00:12:16] So about what year was, was this around? 

[00:12:19] Kelley Boy DeLima: Oh, that was in the eighties. In the eighties. Yeah. Yeah, definitely early eighties. 

[00:12:24] So things were really starting to kind of build up?

[00:12:27] I graduated 

[00:12:27] Kelley Boy DeLima: in 84, so. Yeah, that was, that was around the intermediate and the kind in the, in the eighties, definitely. Yeah. And it was, uh, it was 85. 

[00:12:37] You started Copenha? 

[00:12:38] Kelley Boy DeLima: Um, 80, 85, I started the, the Copenha that I would go on for the next 20, 30 years with. 

[00:12:44] Oh, okay. Yeah. Maybe unpack that a little bit. How'd that start?

[00:12:47] Kelley Boy DeLima: So in 84, I entered the Brownbacks to stardom, which was equivalent to like American Idol or the Voice, the Hawaiian version of American Idol. And it was high schools that competed against each other and the finalists would compete at the Waikiki show. Okay. I tell you what, Brian, this thing was loaded. It was.

[00:13:07] Kelley Boy DeLima: We never had internet. We didn't have any, maybe we couldn't download somebody's song or, or, or, you know, you go to Tower Records and you buy your CD or cassette, but I'm not as old as he tracks. So, um, you get your cassette and man, I tell you, it was just phenomenal. It was a phenomenal turnout that Waikiki show.

[00:13:30] Kelley Boy DeLima: I mean, you'd have 10, 000 people in the Waikiki show. It was phenomenal. And another 4, 000 outside just listening and hanging out and tailgating and potlucking and doing all of that stuff. And it was huge. And, uh, I entered with a couple of friends of mine from school in 84. And we were, um, against that year, uh, the guys that won was Naleo Pili Mehana.

[00:13:53] Kelley Boy DeLima: Oh yeah. Three girls, they did their original and they just blew everybody out of the park. And it was, it was awesome. But. That was my first time entering the brown bags. And then the next year I entered with my group with the two Tongan brothers, Teva, Teva and Teva. Okay, that was in 85, but they had an elimination process, which was, um, before we got to the show before you just win for your school and you go, you go straight, you would win at your school and then you'd go straight to the show.

[00:14:22] Kelley Boy DeLima: But the next year. We won for the school and then the top three from our school would compete another high school top three, and they called it Hawaii High, and we didn't make it out of that round to go to the Waikiki show, but we went other places after that in our career was just a lot of, you know, stuff, you know, the groundwork and, uh, and then we went on and traveled and, and won, uh, You know, countless, um, which is, uh, equivalent to the Hawaiian Grammys for those of you guys that don't know.

[00:14:53] Kelley Boy DeLima: And I got a couple in the back there all in my, I see that in the back there, you know, just a contemporary group of the year, album of the year and on, on different, you know, years and stuff. And, you know, it was just, uh, it's just been a wonderful journey. You know, the music has been a wonderful, of course, then went for about 20 years.

[00:15:13] Kelley Boy DeLima: So for the past, I would say. 10 to 15 years now, um, I've been performing with my children, which has been another, you know, like another season and another chapter in my life, you know, which has been, I think the biggest blessing for me. I bet. You know, like I was telling you earlier, you guys about culture here in Hawaii, culture is really important.

[00:15:36] Kelley Boy DeLima: You know, it's, it's stuff that, you know, the language is what is passed on. Our language is not something that we just, you know, figure it out and let's, you know what I mean? It's, it's, it's a cultural thing, just like the music. So my dad taught me, I'm teaching my kids and now my grandkids are performing too with us.

[00:15:53] Kelley Boy DeLima: You know, it's just the circle of life, you know, and, and to Hawaiians, you know, it's very important. It's a very, It's our culture, like, so the music, surfing, uh, everything to do that is, you know, is to do at Ohana. And I guess the Ohana is, you know, the family unit is the biggest, you know, bond here in the islands, as you well know.

[00:16:13] Kelley Boy DeLima: So, yeah, the kids are carrying on, they're carrying on the legacy and, uh, You know, the beautiful thing is I get to sit back and still breathe in and I'm alive and I'm enjoying every moment of this. 

[00:16:26] That's incredible. You hit it on the head. As you were talking, the word, this legacy just kept popping into my, to my head and it just must be super cool seeing You know, your family carrying this on and seeing some of the fruits, you know, out of these, you know, how many years, you know, that's, that's incredible.

[00:16:44] It's one thing to pick up the ukulele, any instrument and like, Hey, I think I have this talent I've been getting. I should, I should, you know, refine it and, and, and press into it. But then on the other side, there's this whole songwriting journey. And maybe talk a little bit about that. When did you discover or what was the songwriting process like for you or what is 

[00:17:05] Kelley Boy DeLima: it like for you currently?

[00:17:06] Kelley Boy DeLima: Well, I'll, I'll talk about a song that I wrote. It's called Kalena Cool. I wrote this for my daughter. I kind of shot myself in the foot writing this one because now the other two kids are like, wow, that works a lot. 

[00:17:18] Gee, thanks dad. We know his favorite. Thanks a lot, I 

[00:17:21] Kelley Boy DeLima: don't really know who the favorite is, but it just, you know what?

[00:17:25] Kelley Boy DeLima: This. You know, a lot of people think that you just sit down at a table and you just start writing and, and normally that's what it is. You know, it's, it's about experiences and it's about, you know, things that you've been through through life. And, and, you know, basically music is like, I mean, I'm sure I can answer for everybody.

[00:17:42] Kelley Boy DeLima: It's like the soundtrack of our life, right? Any, you know, I mean, you can remember when, shoot, I remember when rock the boat, don't rock the boat, that was in the seventies. Why not? You know what I mean? And you know that that's the kind of songs that come up and it's like, boom, you just, you're right back to exactly.

[00:18:00] Kelley Boy DeLima: I'm just like, I remember that where I was walking and where I was anyway. So it was like that, but in this song in particular, yeah, well, that's the process of songwriting, I presume. But in this time particular, I dreamt. I was dreaming and I dreamt the melody and I woke up from my sleep and I came to the table over here that I'm sitting on same living room.

[00:18:27] Kelley Boy DeLima: I've been here for Kalena was three months old when we moved into this house. She's 28 now. She was nine months old when I wrote the song Kalena cool. So it was right here came to this table and I started writing the lyrics. And it just came, the melody, everything just coming, funny faces, and he's trying, you know, and it's like, and, and that was like a very unique process, I guess, of the songwriting for me with that one.

[00:18:53] Kelley Boy DeLima: And that thing became, you know, I mean, honest to God, Brian. Yeah. We just did a baby party, you know, in Hawaii we celebrate baby parties for you. Oh yeah. Know baby luaus are very, very, that's a thing. . Yeah. It's a thing. You know, it's a huge thing. Everybody has a baby luau and it's because of, you know, another cultural thing, if the kids in Old Hawaii would make it for a year was a celebration.

[00:19:18] Kelley Boy DeLima: You know, because anyway, I won't get, you know? 

[00:19:20] Sure, yeah. You can fill in the blank. Yeah. 

[00:19:22] Kelley Boy DeLima: Anyway, so the, the B blue laws are very important to, uh, local people, so. I want to say maybe a year or two ago, I wrote this song 28 years ago, guys, you know what I mean? So they hired us to come and play for our baby Luau.

[00:19:37] Kelley Boy DeLima: And the baby's name was Kalena. Cool. You know what I mean? And there's so many Kalenas named after, you know, the song, after all of these years. And I'm like, what a timeless thing. Yeah. Songwriting is, you know, it's like, you know, I mean, I could have, I wrote that song 28 years ago and people still named their kids Kalena and they won.

[00:19:57] Kelley Boy DeLima: to, you know what I mean? They want to, you know, hire you so that they can play for their brand new babies, you know, birthday party, clinic, you know, and it's, yeah, it just blows me away how much an effect music has on, on our lives and everybody's life in general. 

[00:20:14] Yeah, it definitely speaks to the soul in ways that words can't sometimes.

[00:20:19] I totally agree with that. 

[00:20:21] Kelley Boy DeLima: Yeah. And you know, I tell the kids that we have a responsibility, you know, when we're, when we're out there performing, that's why it always comes from, from a good place, you know, when we perform, because we have a responsibility because, you know, I mean, we are, the soundtrack for a lot of people's lives.

[00:20:38] Kelley Boy DeLima: And you know what I mean? I mean, I get it all the time. Right. This one kid told me, bro, Kelly boy, I remember he, he sent me a message on Facebook. He said, I remember when the first Coppana cassette came out, me and my friend, we heard about this group on KCCN radio, and we caught the bus from Holly Eva. All the way to Ala Moana Shopping Center, just so that we could get the Copenna cassette tape and brah, we had them and we carried it all the way back on the bus back to Hale'iwa and popped it in and you know, countless stories and I'm like, brah, thank you.

[00:21:16] Kelley Boy DeLima: I just, I said, brah, I'm, I'm forever indebted, brah, you know, thank you. You know, you don't realize how much the music touches people, you know, like I tell the kids all the time. You know, we have a responsibility to, to keep it up, keep going and keep singing from the heart, you know, totally.

[00:21:39] We'll be right back with my conversation with Kelly boy, but I want to give an update on some Hawaii travel news. There's been a lot of talk about the Hawaii hotel workers strike, and I want to give a update on the latest as of August 16th. So if you're planning a trip to Hawaii, it's important to be aware of the Some recent developments that could impact your visit and here are some of the key points to keep in mind Regarding the hotel workers strike nearly 5 000 hotel workers in waikiki have authorized a strike Which could affect several major hotels including the hilton hawaiian village hi hat regency waikiki beach resort and spa Moana surf rider the royal hawaiian sheridan princess kaiulani Share it in Waikiki and Waikiki Beach Marriott Resort and Spa.

[00:22:24] The workers are demanding better wages, fair workloads, and proper staffing to ensure quality service. If the strike is called, it could lead to disruptions in services such as front desk operations, housekeeping, and food and beverage delivery. The impact on services during a strike, you may experience changes in the availability and quality of services at these particular hotels.

[00:22:48] This could include longer wait times, reduced amenities, and potential cancellations of certain services. So it's advisable to check with your hotel directly for the most current information regarding their operations. This strike would affect only these Waikiki hotels. So you may want to look for alternative accommodations on the island of Oahu.

[00:23:10] There are some, but not a lot of options outside of Waikiki that you may want to consider. However, many are not as budget friendly as those within Waikiki. One of those is Turtle Bay Resort on the North Shore. The Kahala Hotel and Resort just down the road from Waikiki near Diamond Head. The Ko'olina Resort area on the west side of the island.

[00:23:30] And also on the west side in Kapolei, there are some hotels there we have stayed at and love staying at the Residence Inn in Kapolei. So you may want to look in that. It's not on the beach, but it is local to a lot of the activities and amenities, especially out on the west side. And it's only, uh, 30, 40 minute drive, depending on time of day into the city of Honolulu.

[00:23:54] So be sure to stay up to date on the developments of this strike, especially if you're planning to stay in one of those hotels in Waikiki. All right. Now back to my conversation with Kelly Boy.

[00:24:10] Now, playing with the kids, maybe going back even a little further. What was that transition like, you know, doing the family band? 

[00:24:17] Kelley Boy DeLima: It was like a change of duty. It's like, like, you know, things kind of sell into place. There was no animosity. We never, ever broke up with, with my original group. It's just, you know, people moved on, you know, you know, life goes on, you know, even with my kids, they're all grown up, they're getting married and I have grandkids now and it's like their life has moved on, you know, I'm trying to pull them back and say, no life moves on.

[00:24:44] Kelley Boy DeLima: And that's what happened with the two brothers, you know, yeah. Brand team on T Rub. You know, in Tonga, um, even the Tongans, you know, they're Polynesians too, so they have a heavy culture, which is heavily placed on the oldest child, especially in Tongan families. You know, when the kupuna or the parents get older, their responsibility is to take care of that and kind of, so, you know, Timo what had happened was he just kind of moved into that, you know, that place in life where he had to take care of mom and dad and, and, and move into that responsibility.

[00:25:17] Kelley Boy DeLima: And they're heavy in the church, uh, Tongan church as well. He just had to step up, you know, and the music, you know, he couldn't really keep, keep going with the, how we were, you know, we were going about things and it kind of just worked out really cool because Coppana joined in as our keyboard player. And then Timo.

[00:25:37] Kelley Boy DeLima: got married and he moved back to Tonga to go help the parents out too, which was a guitar player. And then Kalena Kuh came in, she jumped on keyboards, Kapena moved back to drums. And then, you know, but I thought only these kids during this time, you know, they was into drum lessons, saxophone lessons, trumpet lessons.

[00:25:57] Kelley Boy DeLima: drumming, piano lessons. They took piano, classical piano since they were five years old. So they all play piano. They all can drum. Kalena went to drum lessons too. So Kalena jumps on the drums too. I don't know. It was just, I like to say divine appointment for them to be in that office. Then they're, they're holding now is carrying on the next generation of Copenhagen.

[00:26:19] Kelley Boy DeLima: It's just been such a, uh, a great. I, I cannot believe it. You know, you know, like the piano teacher would call me up. She was, you know, Kelly boy, there are families. That come to me and they have multiple children too. And maybe one of them, you know, got some talent, maybe two, but all of your kids, you know, she's like, all of these kids just, what do you mean?

[00:26:44] Kelley Boy DeLima: Great. Uh, the guy, but I, you know, to be honest, Brian, I, I, it was a grueling time because bro, I was like this drill sergeant, you know what I mean? It's like general daddy, you know what I mean? Like get on your lessons. And while the other kids were outside playing kickball and playing, you know, Whatever they're doing outside, these guys was in the house, you know, practicing.

[00:27:04] Kelley Boy DeLima: Okay. You got 45 minutes on the truck, right? 45 minutes. And then when you guys are done with your 45, everybody switch. So, you know, they worked hard for it. They really did. And when the time came, like you said, yeah. All right. We transition. Um, it was all, you know, as we say in the islands, Pono, it was all good.

[00:27:24] Kelley Boy DeLima: You know, like when one hand just slipping into one glove and you know, the kids in Hawaii. You know, and I stress the culture thing and the Ohana thing. If I chose any other group members to fill the shoes of my original group, Coppano, Coppano wouldn't be here today. But the locals look at you and they says, Oh my gosh, that's Kelly boy and all of his kids.

[00:27:52] Kelley Boy DeLima: Right. They can get because it's all about Ohana. Like I told you here in Hubba, you know, right. Again, so charged, you know, people come up to me daily. Okay. Every day I get a, I get some kind of, and it's like, wow, what a blessing to perform with your children and to, you know, to do this with the, with the kids.

[00:28:09] Kelley Boy DeLima: And, uh, I really believe that, uh, that's what's taken us, you know, from the eighties and now we're here and we're still continuing on, you know. 

[00:28:17] Cause each one of them in their own right is an amazing and accomplished musician. 

[00:28:22] Kelley Boy DeLima: Totally. 

[00:28:22] Yeah. Obviously. Yeah. These huge shoes of, you know, capenna. Right. But, you know, to feel right.

[00:28:29] And, but they're amazing musicians in their own, I mean, they, they work, you can definitely tell they earned it. 

[00:28:35] Kelley Boy DeLima: They worked really hard for it and, uh, it might be scarred a little bit. Daddy scars are okay. But they're okay. They're good. They're good. They're good standing citizens in the community. So 

[00:28:51] You perform about was it like six nights a week most of the time seven Oh, seven.

[00:28:57] Okay. Wow. 

[00:28:58] Kelley Boy DeLima: On the Sundays, normally we take off, you know, for church and stuff, but if you get, uh, we're also priests and worship, you know, leaders for our, in our church. So we have that responsibility too. It's not really a responsibility. It is a joy, you know, to get into church and to, to do that. But, uh, yeah, that's, it's one of our other jobs is to do that.

[00:29:18] Kelley Boy DeLima: But, um, You know, my father in law is a pastor. I'm married a pastor's daughter and my father in law always used to say, you know something, if you're working and you have work, it's a blessing. And if you get work, especially as an entertainer. Please go take, do your job. God is, wants to bless you, you know?

[00:29:35] Kelley Boy DeLima: And so we wouldn't shy away from, you know, although we don't work on the Christian, we don't work on Sundays and no, my father in law would encourage it. And he says, you got on job. It's a blessing, recognize it. You know what I mean? Some of the times, you know, we would, we would, um, a lot of times we get gigs on the Sunday, on a Sunday night evening, but yeah, so we worked in we work in Waikiki.

[00:30:00] Kelley Boy DeLima: To answer your question, Mondays, we're at the Hale Kulani Hotel, Tuesdays, we're at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel, Wednesdays, I'm at, uh, I do a solo thing, but all of my kids, remember now, during the week, they all do solos, so Kepena plays the grand piano at the Moana on Wednesdays, I do a solo at the Surf Jack, Kalena does a solo piano gig at Maji, Manji almost some Italian restaurant and then Thursdays, the Royal, I think, I think Thursdays, I think the Moana beach.

[00:30:33] Kelley Boy DeLima: Okay. Yeah. The beach bar at the Moana. So that was our studies. We're doing the, the, the Sheraton Waikiki on Fridays, but then we kind of be changed the times on that. So about maybe a year or two now, we've been out and down on Fridays, but we get casuals, you know, like baby parties or a wedding or something on a Friday or, or even we perform at the different restaurants or clubs, you know, different, uh, venues.

[00:30:58] Kelley Boy DeLima: And then we do just this huge bunch of, um, like baby party from baby parties to weddings to birthday parties, anniversary parties. 

[00:31:09] So from the humble environment of your living room into playing at the show. I'm just super curious, playing across the world and even in Waikiki, is there like one experience, one performance that you go back to and you're like, that was that one night that was just magical?

[00:31:27] Is there one performance or is there like a season or multiple performances that just kind of flood your mind? 

[00:31:33] Kelley Boy DeLima: Me and uh, you know, there's so many, when you, when you say that there's so many things that come up, emotions and feelings and stuff that come up in my mind. There's been so many wonderful experiences, you know?

[00:31:46] Kelley Boy DeLima: Yeah. I remember a lot of them were at the Waikiki show. It was a FM 100 birthday bash. And you know, we started that off with, with the old school guys, Kapana, Israel Kamakawiwo'one, Willie K. And you know, Willie K just passed away. Israel is, has passed. And I remember standing up on stage, Roland Cozumaro, it was me, Willie, Roland, and Israel were on the stage and I had this old sketchy little video that I still have of the four of us up there on stage at the Waikiki show.

[00:32:19] Kelley Boy DeLima: You know, those are high points, uh, definitely. And look, all three of them have gone on home and they're all jamming in heaven. No, there was one year at the Waikiki show when FM 100. which is the radio station here for those of you yet visitors out there tuning in. FM 100 was uh, the radio station that posted these big called birthday bashing and they lasted for I think 22, 23 years and we played for every one, all 22 of them or 23 of them.

[00:32:50] Kelley Boy DeLima: But one year in particular, this was before cell phones and before Well, it was the days when people only had lighters and, uh, you know, no cell phone lights on the camera and stuff. They were giving away these flashlights, these little flashlights that, you know, you turn on and, you know, kind of, you know, hang at the end of your key and you're lost here.

[00:33:13] Kelley Boy DeLima: So it was, I think they gave like the first 5, 000 people that came through the gate. And these, You're talking about 10, 000 people that would attend these concerts, you know, So the first time I thought I was thinking I'm backstage and I'm like man All these people got these lights and it's like what what what do I do?

[00:33:28] Kelley Boy DeLima: It had to have been I would say maybe six years into the birthday bash. Maybe I did six of them already I stopped to myself. What could I do to incorporate these lights and stuff? So I sang danny's song which is um, We recorded it also, but it was a logins and masina tune Uh, even though we ain't got money, I'm so alone and you know, everybody knows that song, right?

[00:33:54] Kelley Boy DeLima: So I, I started off this thing and when we changed to the chorus, even though we ain't got money, I yelled on the mic for the technician to shut down the whole house, you know, the lights and Rob, right? These guys, it was flashing there. I said, and the whole white thing, his shell was lit, man. And you know what, long story short, after that, every year we had to do daddy's song and, you know, and then it evolved from, it evolved from the, those lights to lighters and then it evolved to cell phones, you know, going crazy.

[00:34:34] Kelley Boy DeLima: That was one of many, just so many, 35 years I've been, you know, doing this and it's been a wonderful journey, you know, to say the least. 

[00:34:45] That's incredible. Yeah. All those years and you've seen Waikiki transform and re evolve and you've seen many people, you know, come and go. Yeah. If someone's coming to the islands, maybe for the first time or, or year after year visiting, what was, what would be something that you would want them to know coming to the islands, just kind of being prepared?

[00:35:05] Kelley Boy DeLima: To come wanting to learn something about the islands and our culture. Because it's very rich, you know, our culture is very rich. You have it right there in Waikiki, you know, um, surfing is, uh, is, uh, something that I would always suggest, you know, because it's, you know what I mean, the Lukahanomoku and Markupuna, you know, that was their life, you know what I mean, surfing and the Waikiki beach life.

[00:35:30] Kelley Boy DeLima: And, and then, you know, especially going around the island and getting the experiences of everything. culturally. Iolani Palace is a good one, you know, learn about, you know, history and, you know, our queen, Diliwu Kalani and, you know, it's just a lot of rich heritage. So dive into it, you know, even like the Arizona Memorial, you know, that is a lot of history too.

[00:35:55] Kelley Boy DeLima: You know, my father in law, who just passed away last year with He would sit, I would sit with him. I was married to, I'm married to his daughter for 32 years. So I, you know, I knew him from my twenties and he was a little boy when Pearl Harbor happened, you know, and he actually waved at the, at the, the planes going over.

[00:36:12] Kelley Boy DeLima: He lived where the Honolulu airport is. And a little fun fact for you guys. That not too many people know, but that area was called Damien track and it was track homes that they, and it was right where the Honolulu, uh, Honolulu international or Daniel K. Inouye airport. I stand corrected now is it was main track.

[00:36:32] Kelley Boy DeLima: So right next to the Honolulu airport is. Pearl Harbor right next door. So he was a little boy. He was about six, seven years old. And he remembers those zeros, you know, coming over, you know, coming right over their house and they were low. Wow. He said they were low. And all of a sudden, you know, these bombs went off and fire.

[00:36:53] Kelley Boy DeLima: He said, he saw fire a mile up, you know, just. Going, you know, I just chaos and, you know, siren going and it makes me, you know, it takes me like to another place when these old timers, you know, they tell you. So like I said, getting back to my, my point, a lot of history over there and, uh, you know, it, it, it, It even, uh, has a deeper respect for me when you hear it from the mouth of somebody that experienced it, like my father in law, you know, that kind of stuff and, uh, go around and, uh, enjoy, uh, Matsumoto's in Haleiwa and, uh, just, you know what, what is unreal about Hawai'i?

[00:37:32] Kelley Boy DeLima: And I like people to, to know, especially visitors is the food. The food is just incredible because we have this, you know, this mix, you know, pot of different cultures that are infused in, in our food here in Hawaii, bro. That is, I would say, you know what I mean? I know a lot of people just want to get onto that beach and it's like, let me get some suntan, let me get into that water.

[00:37:54] Kelley Boy DeLima: And that's all good. And well, we'll get into, go up to um, Waimea. Waimea Valley and oh yeah, but it's nice stuff. Yeah. Rich 

[00:38:04] history there too. 

[00:38:05] Kelley Boy DeLima: Yeah. So, you know, take, take the time to kind of, you know, uh, go over your game plan or, you know, even as locals, we like to go to the, believe it or not, the Polynesian cultural center too.

[00:38:17] Okay. 

[00:38:17] Kelley Boy DeLima: Yeah. I love to spend the day. Sometimes we go, you know, maybe one before a year and then we go and we go visit all the villages and then you get that real quick injection of what, You know what I mean? What all the different Polynesian islands are, you know, and how they're our brothers and sisters and how we are all kind of connected, you know, so 

[00:38:36] that perspective, good stuff, 

[00:38:38] Kelley Boy DeLima: but good love and and stop by one of those stands on the side of the road that sells ice cold coconuts.

[00:38:45] Kelley Boy DeLima: Or pineapples and stuff. Get some, even the locals do that. 

[00:38:51] Even the locals do that. So, you know. Kelly boy, this, oh man, we could, I could keep talking to you forever, man. And I could too, I'm Portuguese. This is great. I have family who are Portuguese as well, yes. Yes, yeah. Kelly boy. This has been real. I, I truly appreciate you and everything that you've, you've done.

[00:39:13] Oh, thank you, Brian. Anytime, anytime you need me, you know, 

[00:39:17] Kelley Boy DeLima: anytime. I'm good. 

[00:39:20] Well, a big mahalo to Kelly Boy for his time and coming on today. My biggest key takeaway was Not only is capena an amazing band you can tell that they're so genuine the heart behind capena is so real the perspective no matter what we go through we always have music and to always do our best to look on the bright side of things and i just love that outlook that kelly boy And his whole family just portray.

[00:39:47] Well, I just want to say thank you so much for joining me today. If you enjoyed this conversation with Kelly boy, I would just love to hear your feedback to drop a rating and review on Apple podcasts. And I just totally appreciate that. But until next time, be well, Aloha. 

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