OokTown - The Ukulele Podcast

Guests: Mary Agnes, Robin Hosts: Stuart Yoshida, Doug Brown Well, the heat goes on, as we live through the hottest summer on record, and we can’t get enough of GNUF. So in this episode we invited back Mary Agnes, one of the founders of the Grand Northern Ukulele Festival, and Robin, long-time GNUF volunteer and Guiness Book Record holder, along with a rich tranche of topics from Doug Brown. Subscr...

Guests: Bernadette, Matt Stead, Phil Doleman, Peter Luongo, Boris Mogievski, Elisabeth Pfeiffer, Marc Gallagher, The Mayor of Dorkshire, Uke Dad Host: Doug Brown From far across the Pond, we bring you this special edition of the OokTown Podcast recorded at the Grand Northern Ukulele Festival in Huddersfield, England, with many new and returning guests, all interviewed by my co-host Doug Brown! Mak...

Guests: David Blake Hosts: Stuart Yoshida Links: - The Kanakapila Project website https://www.kanikapilaproject.org/ - Tickets for Live Concert and Dinner for Kapi’olani Medical Center on 4/30 in Oahu (with Jake Shimabukuro, Kimmo Hussey, Zanuck Lindsey and Roy Sakuma): https://buytickets.at/thekanikapilaproject/853722 - Donation Link to help Kapi’olani Medical Center for Woman and Children fund a...

Guests: Marlén Rodriguez-Wolfe Hosts: Stuart Yoshida, Doug Brown While the snows falls on Los Angeles and solar flares pummel the earth, we find our warm and safe spot for wellness with the CEO of the Ukulele Kids Club, Marlén, and learn about the history, programs, and Big Hairy Audacious Goal of the UKC for 2023. PLUS, hear about how you can help kids in Ukraine, AND the return of Casa Bonita in...

Guest: Brittni Paiva Hosts: Stuart Yoshida, Doug Brown Hey, Internet, we’re back! And we have a GREAT show for you with the amazing Brittni Paiva, Hawaii homegrown ukulele performer, producer, and songwriter who has shared the stage with Santana and Tommy Immanuel, and she’s just getting started! She shares her humble roots growing up in the small town of Hilo, and she surprised us years ago with...

Guest: James Hill Hosts: Stuart Yoshida On the show this fine spring day is James Hill to tell us about his collaborative ukulele album called Uke Heads, where you can get to play on his album, get an NFT Uke Head picture of your own, and get your ticket to a once-in-a-lifetime experience to help him make music! Plus, we learn that Tony Danza had a talk show. All coming up next... on the OokTown P...

Guest: Victoria Vox Hosts: Stuart Yoshida, Doug Brown Like the arrival of Spring, we welcome back long-time friend of the show Victoria Vox, who brings us soooo songs that she performs live from her upcoming new album, as we get to hear her loop her way through Nirvana in REM, talk about how art inspired her to write new songs, and catch up on all her ukulele happenings. Links: - Victoria Vox: htt...

Guests: Cali Rose Hosts: Stuart Yoshida, Doug Brown Coming to you straight outta Culver City just outside the City of Angeles, Cali Rose - yes, that’s her real name - comes to talk to us about the beginnings of the CC strummers, affirms the power of the ukulele in music therapy, and takes us through her journey from studying nursing to full-time musician. So buckle up all you pandemic pluckers and...

Guest: Marlowe Hosts: Stuart Yoshida, Doug Brown Not even a power outage could prevent Marlowe from joining the show, and we’re so glad she persevered! Coming up next is a stellar ukulele artists who’s traveled from her home state of Michigan to seek her fortune in LA. Find out all about her musical journey, and stick around because to the end to hear an exclusive sneak peak of a song from her upc...

Guests: Bernadette Hosts: Stuart Yoshida, Doug Brown With the new school year right around the corner, what better way to kickstart your education than a podcast with the YouTube sensation and ukulele teacher Bernadette from Bernadette Teaches Music. Hear her incredible story of teaching school in a small town in  California, to getting ukuleles into the classroom in Okinawa, Japan, and then comin...

Guests: Kimo Hussey Hosts: Stuart Yoshida, Doug Brown Summer is here, and we so hope this marks the beginning of the end of the pandemic! On this show, well, we must have said his name three times, because Kimo Hussey is making an appearance to school us on teaching music, ukulele, and the origins of Hawaiian ukulele music. You'll want to hear him talk story with us, so stick around because it's a...

Guests: Gerald Ross, Victoria Vox, Matt Stead Hosts: Stuart Yoshida, Doug Brown Welcome to part two of our 100th episode and 10th anniversary show. We have one of our first guests back on the show, Gerald Ross, plus fan favorites Victoria Vox and Matt Stead. Our show is loaded with reflections on past shows, what new things we started doing over the last year, how to collaborate over the internet,...

Guests: Lucy Laforge, Aaron Keim Hosts: Stuart Yoshida, Doug Brown We’ve reached a milestone I never expected to happen: This is our 100th episode and 10th anniversary show. Somehow, there’s symmetry and meaning there, but I’m not quite sure what it is. Come join Lucy of Lucy and La Mer, Aaron Keim of the Quiet American duo as they join us for a very special two-part show. Support us on Patreon: h...

Guests: Michael Kohan, Stephen Cox Hosts: Stuart Yoshida, Doug Brown Like Meghan Trainor says, it’s “All About That Bass.” That’s right, it’s time we revisited the U-Bass. And with us we have first time guests Michael Koh-han(d), a U-Bass gear-geek and Patron of the show, and Stephen Cox, bass instructor with his own YouTube channel. Come with us to explore all things U-Bass, strings, amps, and al...

Guests: Lisa Kljaich, Phil Doleman Hosts: Stuart Yoshida, Doug Brown Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/ooktown Make a donation: https://donorbox.org/info-ooktown-com-ooktown-podcast-donations There’re all kinds of things about online ukulele instruction that’s been fermenting while we’ve been in lockdown, and guests Lisa Kljaich and Phil Doleman to let us know what been growing in the...

Guests: Meredith Harper, Brad Bordessa, Molly Lewis Hosts: Stuart Yoshida, Doug Brown Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/ooktown Make a donation: https://donorbox.org/info-ooktown-com-ooktown-podcast-donations On our first Podcast of the new year, we welcome first time guests Meredith Harper and Brad Bordessa, plus one of our favorite internet pals is back: Molly Lewis! Sit tight for s...

Guests: Gerald Ross, Mary Agnes Krell Hosts: Stuart Yoshida, Doug Brown Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/ooktown Make a donation: https://donorbox.org/info-ooktown-com-ooktown-podcast-donations ‘Twas the night before solstice and all through the Podcast, we had Mary Agnes and Gerald Ross give us an amazing fun broadcast. Come with us as we figure out what we can salvage from this dum...

Guests: Andy Andrews, Aldrine Guerrero Hosts: Stuart Yoshida, Doug Brown It's our Kama'aina episode with Hawaii residents Andy Andrews and Aldrine Guerrero joining me and my co-host, Doug Brown, to talk about ukulele thankfulness, maintaining your ukulele, the state of the ukulele in Hawaii, Craig and Sarah's new gig with the Ukulele Festival Hawaii, and WAIT FOR IT... an original song about Loco...

Guests: Dani Joy, Marlowe Hosts: Stuart Yoshida, Doug Brown t’s Halloween, a blue moon, and we’ve got fire in the sky! Come along to hear what first time guest, singer-songwriter Dani Joy and returning guest and ukulele instrumentalist Marlowe have to say about scary gig stories, what to do with your ukulele in lockdown, how to arrange cover songs, and much, much more. Support us on Patreon: https...

Guests: Matt Stead, Ben Hassenger, Jeff Krebs Host: Stuart Yoshida It’s officially the Fall in the year of the Pandemic, and this month we dive into Retail-palooza. On the show we’ve got returning guest Matt Stead of The Uke Room in the UK; Ben Hassenger, the unofficially-official ukulele ambassador of Michigan; and Jeff Krebs of Yooptone music. Come join us for a conversation about how they’ve be...

Guests: Stephanie Epstein, Heidi Swedberg Hosts: Stuart Yoshida, Doug Brown We’re taking a break from the Pandemic to talk about ukuleles and music therapy. And I guess we said their name three times on the show, because we have Stephanie Epstein, president of the Ukulele Kids Club charity. And and also joining us is regular guest Heidi Swedberg, performer extraordinaire. And did you know that Ker...

Guest: Ben from Ukulele Roadtrips Hosts: Stuart Yoshida, Doug Brown This could be the start of a Bromance as we welcome back Ben from Ukulele Roadtrips to have another Nice-olation podcast on ukuleles and the Pandemic. It soon goes off the rails as we bounce from Batman tee-shirts, to Swedes, to GNUF, and to a box of ukuleles falling the stairs, and that’s just in first 15 minutes. You might just...

Guests: Erin & Jeff, Mandi & George Hosts: Stuart Yoshida, Doug Brown We’re coming to you on the Summer Solstice in the year of the pandemic, and it’s part two of our “Nice-olation” podcasts. Only this time our focus is on performers. And we get to hear great punditry from our dual duets of Erin and Jeff, AKA Victor and Penny, and Mandi and George (AKA Opera-lele). Shoutouts: * Janet Klein & the p...

Guests: Sarah Goodroad, Mary Agnes Krell, Ben Hassenger Hosts: Stuart Yoshida, Doug Brown It’s May 2020 in the year of the pandemic, and we’re still hunkered down trying to figure out how to do things like: having virtual ukulele strum along and festivals! And we’ve got an all-star panel of guests with Sarah Goodroad of the Boulder Ukulele Group, Mary Agnes Krell of GNUF, and Ben Hassenger, the se...

Guests: Ray Ortega, Abe Deshotel Hosts: Stuart Yoshida, Doug Brown While we hunker down in place, I’m holding a special Podcasters summit to talk about Ukulele in the time of the Corona Virus Pandemic. Special guests Ray Ortega of the Podcasters’ Studio, Abe Deshotel of the Ukulele Podcast, and my co-host Doug Brown join in to share their thoughts on making it through these difficult times. Oh, an...