Kōkua Japan San Francisco Benefit Concert

Kōkua Japan San Francisco Benefit Concert

It's official: The Hawaiian-themed free concert and fund-raiser for Japan's earthquake and tsunami victims will take place Saturday, April 2, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. in San Francisco's Japantown Peace Plaza. Called Kōkua Japan San Francisco (kōkua is Hawaiian for "help"), the event will solicit donations for the Northern Japan Earthquake Relief Fund. Proceeds from raffle tickets and commemorative T-shirt sales will also go into t...he fund, created by the Japanese Cultural and Community Center of Northern California.

Organized by concerned members of the Bay Area's Hawaiian and Asian American community, the benefit will feature a first-rate lineup of musicians and dancers, including:

* Hawaiian music acts Steven Espaniola and friends, Faith Ako and friends, the 'AHAmele 'Ukulele Group, Ho'omana, Side Order Band (featuring Chris Kamaka and Asa Young) and JD Puli and friends;
* Hula from Nā Lei Hulu I Ka Wēkiu of San Francisco, Ke 'Olu Makani 'O Mauna Loa with kumu Mealana Manuel of Volcano, Hawai'i, and Ka Liko Pua O Kalaniākea of Fremont, plus 'ōte'a (Tahitian dance) from Merahi O Tehani of Union City;
* Diverse local bands such as Feelosophy (funk, soul), Project Gojira (fusion) and Native Elements (reggae) and Styme & the Pimp Jones Luv Orchestra (funk, rock, ska.)

NBC newsman and stand-up comic Mike Inouye will emcee the show, with breaks for raffles of donated merchandise. Kōkua Japan San Francisco's organizers were arranging with the Hawai'i Lieutenant Governor's office this week for Hawaiian Airlines to do a speedy airlift of 200 "Aloha" T-shirts from Hawai'i. Designed by the Grp Home collective to raise money for disaster relief following the March 11 9.0 earthquake, the fast-selling T-shirts have inspired a Hawai'i-wide initiative called Aloha for Japan. The T-shirts will cost $25, of which $15 will go to disaster relief (the rest covers materials, Hawai'i sales tax and event logistics.)

Funds raised will be collected by the nonprofit Northern California Cherry Blossom Festival (which takes place the following two weekends in Japantown), which will turn the check over to the earthquake fund managed by Union Bank and JCCCNC, which promises 100 percent of proceeds will go to direct relief. Other contributors to the Kōkua Japan San Francisco event include Osaki Creative Group, which designed an equally cool logo (see below); Sandy Lee of the city's Parks and Rec department, which manages the Peace Plaza; Aloha Warehouse, Colortone Digital, Sound Innovations and Susie Kagami. (Note: I also provided the organizers some public relations advice, but I would have promoted this event here anyway, given the close -- and overlapping -- ties of the Bay Area's communities with roots in Hawai'i and/or Japan.)

And it's not the only Hawaiian-themed fund-raiser: This Saturday (March 26) you can also help raise money for the JCCCNC's Northern Japan Earthquake Relief Fund by attending one of three special screenings of "Hula Girls," an award-winning 2006 film based on the true story of a Japanese town that created a Hawaiian-themed resort after its coal mining industry shut down in the 1960s.

Japan's nominee for the 2007 Academy Award for Best Foreign Film, the poignant comedy is subtitled and features original music by Jake Shimabukuro (who plays the Palace of Fine Arts Saturday--more about that tomorrow.) And making it more poignant: It's set in Fukushima prefecture, site of the Dai-ichi nuclear power plant severely damaged in the March 11 earthquake/tsunami.

The movie screens at 2, 4:30 and 7 p.m. at VIZ Cinema, 1746 Post St. (between Octavia and Webster in Japantown.) Click here to buy tickets, starting at $10 (since it's a donation, you can pay more; 100 percent of the proceeds will go to the earthquake relief fund.)

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/hawaii/detail?entry_id=85313#ixzz1HYcnLjse


Event: Kokua Japan SF
Day/date: Saturday, April 2, 2011
Time: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Place: Japantown Peace Plaza, Post and Buchanan streets, San Francisco
Admission: Free
Contact: Edgar @ Aloha Warehouse, (415) 346-7553

Details: A diverse group of Bay Area Hawaiian bands, dance troupes and other performers will provide entertainment, while donations, and raffles will help raise money for earthquake and tsunami relief in Japan. Funds raised will be directed to the Northern Japan Earthquake Relief Fund, which is administered by the nonprofit Japanese Cultural and Community Center of Northern California. Organizers of the nonprofit Northern California Cherry Blossom Festival, which takes place the following two weekends in Japantown, will collect the funds during Kokua Japan SF.

The lineup of free entertainment by Bay Area bands and dance troupes includes:
Sideorder Band featuring Chris Kamaka & Asa Young (Hawaiian)
Steven Espaniola and Friends (Hawaiian)
Faith Ako & Friends (Hawaiian)
Nā Lei Hulu I Ka Wēkiu (hula)
Ho'omana Hawaiian Band (Hawaiian)
'AHAmele 'Ukulele Group (Hawaiian)
Ke 'Olu Makani 'O Mauna Loa (hula)
Feelosophy (funk, soul)
Project Gojira (fusion)
Native Elements (reggae)
Merahi O Tehani (Tahitian ʻōteʻa)
JD Puli & Friends (Hawaiian)
Fog City Swampers (rock)

Official press release coming soon!