HONOLULU (KHON2) - If you are looking for something to do this evening, you may have a little extra time.
What opened up at 4:30 p.m. at the lower parking lot of the Pearlridge Center right next to the old Sears is the first-ever Aloha Made Festival.
To find out more about this, we met with the event organizer Noa Laporga.
You do a really great job with doing a lot of events around town, but this is the first time you are doing the Aloha Made Festival.
What is so unique about this festival?
"Well, we just wanted to showcase a lot of the local vendors. Everyone here is from Hawaii. But we wanted to combine the market aspect with concerts, you know. Smash it all together," said Laporga.
"We have fifteen vendors. Its small right now, but it is a good amount of people to get started for our first one. We are thinking annual or bi-annual. Its going to be cool, cool stuff. All ages fun, but we have a beer garden because I have a bar too."
One thing though that I think is fascinating, the live entertainment, Kapena, had just come on stage.
But even prior to that, the music that is being played is more from the golden era of Hawaiian or Hawaii music.
Can you share a little bit about that?
"We have the legends. I wanted to go back and showcase a lot of the people I love listening to," said Laporga.
"I wanted the vibe and esthetic to be a little different. Feel good. We have our DJs from the EP Bar spinning all old school vinyl records throughout and between bands. And of course, Kalapana, the legends, Kapena, Pati and Norm. It is that big timeframe from 70s to 80s, 80s to 90s. They are all relevant still."
You have been creating, as mentioned, some fun events and most famously, I think would be the Haunted Plantation at the Hawaii Plantation Village.
What are some other things that we can expect for the rest of the year?
"Yeah, I know so random this event from what we usually do. Me and my co-organizer we do a lot of the pop-ups with 17A Productions," said Laporga.
"A lot of seasonal stuff, holiday bar, Winter Wonderland, Nightmare Bar. We have brick and mortar's too which is our bar Skull and Crown Trading company as well as Obake in Honolulu. We just had the power outage for 4 nights so we had to toss everything, but we are open again tonight. So, if you are not here, go and support the Chinatown and our local businesses over there. Skull and Crown shoutout and Obake Honolulu."
That is a great point.
With all the vendors and tenants in Chinatown with the power outage finally being restored, it's a great place to go and support.
Again, if you can't come here, this is going to be closing, at least in this parking lot, at 10 p.m. which will then lead into the after-party with Koauka.
But if you cannot support them here, go to Chinatown and support them.
For more information about 17A Productions, click here.
For more about the Aloha Made Festival, click here.