Hawaiian guitar great celebrates AANHPI Month at Bay Area concert

Local Hawaiian slack key guitar fans should know that one of the very best in the business — the Bay Area’s own Patrick Landeza — is set to perform at Yoshi’s in Oakland on May 6.

And it most definitely should be a great night of slack key guitar, hula, stories and, of course, plenty of aloha.

Berkeley native Landeza’s musical journey began with the Hawaiian songs passed down by his mother — Frances Kawaipūloʻu Kuakini O'Sullivan Landeza — who grew up in Hoʻolehua, Moloka‘i. Young Landeza quickly became fascinated with kī hō‘alu (Hawaiian slack key guitar) and went on to study with some of the absolute masters of the instrument/genre — notably, Cyril Pahinui, Raymond Kāne, George Kuo and Dennis Kamakahi.

Landeza has since grown to become a hugely significant Hawaiian music artist in his own right. One of his more impressive accomplishments is that he became the first first mainland-born-and-raised artist to win a Nā Hōkū Hanohano Award (Hawai‘i's equivalent of the Grammys) in 2013. And he’d add a second Nā Hōkū Hanohano Award in 2021.

The singer-songwriter-guitarist, who is also an author, educator, concert producer and businessman of various endeavors, visits Yoshi’s with his acclaimed Patrick Landeza & Sons trio, featuring Justin Firmeza on Hawaiian steel guitar and keyboard as well as Danny Landeza on bass.

The concert will include “both traditional slack key classics and original compositions, blending Hawaiian tradition with jazz influences and contemporary storytelling,” according to information provided about the show. “Together, they carry forward the music entrusted to Patrick by his family and mentors, ensuring its vitality for generations to come.”

The concert is being held in celebration of Asian American, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander Month (AANHPI), which is also known as Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month.

“AANHPI month allows me to return home and perform in the Bay,” says Landeza. “Always excited to play at Yoshi’s — and especially with my sons. This concert calls awareness to the month and that we on the mainland have a voice, can make a difference and be who we are as kānaka (people) living outside the island.”

Showtime is 8 p.m. and tickets are $25-$49, yoshis.com.

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This story was originally published April 28, 2026 at 11:21 AM.