Aloha E Na Hoaloha
( " Greetings Friends ")
2007 GRAMMY AWARD WINNER (Hawaiian Music Catagory)
FEATURED VOCALIST/GUITARIST ON WALT DISNEY'S LILO AND STITCH 2 DVD (Stitch Has A Glitch) and LILO AND STITCH 2: ISLAND FAVORITES CD singing the song "ALWAYS".
My name is DENNIS, but my close friends and family call me "KAHEKILI" (kah-hay-kee-lee) meaning "The Thunder" in Hawaiian and "TRAHERN" by the English/Welsh side of the family meaning "Strong As Iron". My family originates from the island of Moloka'i, as you can see, pictured in the background of my Myspace page.
I'm Hawaiian/Chinese/Portuguese/German/English/Welsh, 5'8", 190, black hair, brown eyes, and I have 5 tattoos that I wear with pride and will be getting more soon. I was born in Hawaii and presently live on the island of Oahu in the city of Honolulu, enjoying my laid back lifestyle. I like to wear black leather with boots. Black is my favorite color and Aries is my zodiac sign.
I am also a professional musician, a guitarist, a composer, songwriter of over 400 songs, and a recording artist with Dancing Cat Records under Producer and Grammy winning new age pianist, GEORGE WINSTON, based in Santa Cruz, CA. I belong to the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP), and the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) having had small roles in both television and movies. I now record under my personal record label, DK Productions. I have been in the music business for 39 years.
My musical background is in Classical Music Composition and Orchestration which has led me to writing some of Hawaii's most popular songs sung today and danced by Hula Halaus (schools) around the world. I was formerly a member of the legendary Hawaiian Music Group known as the "SONS OF HAWAII" from 1973 - 1995 as a songwriter, singer, and guitarist. I now do solo guitar work and perform in concerts, usually with my son David, across the USA, Japan, and Canada. I haven't been to Europe yet but want to perform there in the future.
I have recorded 20 cds and albums and have won numerous musical awards . I perform concerts all over the U.S.A, Canada, and Japan. I've played at the prestigious Wolftrap Barns and Amphitheater in Virginia 6 times and the Kerrville Folk Music Festival in Kerrville, Texas, being the first Hawaiian folk singer to perform there.
I've performed on the Prairie Home Companion Radio Show with host GARRISON KEILOR back in 1989 in a live broadcast out of Hawaii and jamming with the likes of the late legendary guitarist, CHET ATKINS, TAJ MAHAL, and reknown fiddler, JOHNNY GIMBLE. I've performed again with bluesmaster, TAJ MAHAL, in Boulder CO on the national radio program broadcast of E-TOWN, performed on a NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIO broadcast from Washington D.C. and appeared on CNN News during their coverage of Hawaii in 2002 broadcasted around the world.
Probably the most memorable highlights of my career in music has been meeting these legends in the music business, great delta blues guitarist the late Muddy Waters, Chet Atkins, Stevie Wonder, Willie Nelson, Taj Mahal, Johnny Gimble, Arlo Guthrie, Prairie Home Companion host and creator Garrison Keilor, my good buddy Chicago blues guitarist Dave Specter, and new age pianist and Grammy winner George Winston, my record producer.
Actors that I've met and some of whom I've had the pleasure of working with in Hawaii include Richard Boone, Brian Keith, Jack Lord, James McArthur, Kam Fong, Zulu, Comedian Bill Dana, Jim Nabors, and Moe Keale.