As KTUH’s influence has grown in the past decade, so has the success of the bands it supports. The station’s dedication to promoting local talent has helped these bands secure more opportunities, from live shows to collaborations with other musicians and industry professionals.
Over the years, KTUH has become a necessary resource for local bands, allowing them to transition from unknown acts to more established names within Hawai’i’s music scene. Through its continued commitment, KTUH has been helping local artists grow, connect, and thrive.
The promotion events held by KTUH may seem very prominent now in Hawai’i’s music sphere, but it went through a lot of obscurity these past few years and is now holding more events than before. Angela Burns frequently attends KTUH events, observing the notable differences between now and before.
From reggae to indie rock, KTUH delivers an alternative sound that keeps Hawai’i’s music scene vibrant, while fostering community connections through engaging, diverse programming.
“I joined KTUH at the beginning of the year,” she said. “Prior to joining it was during the pandemic and I didn’t see many events, but it’s more prominent now. They’ve been stepping it up and hosting many more events; the crowds are pretty good too.”
Initially focused primarily on airplay, the station now incorporates a range of promotions, such as live in-studio performances, interviews, and special events that give local artists direct access to listeners. These live sessions not only showcase the talent of local bands but also create a personal connection with the audience, allowing for greater visibility.
The 2024 Harvest Mixer held on the UH campus center this past November by KTUH collaborated with the Associated Students of the University of Hawai’i brought a number of bands to UH Mānoa, featuring Tuesday on Mars and the Ragamuffs.
Marketing and development director at KTUH Onofre Ramiscal Jr. was also present at the mixer, helping with organization and promotion of the events, typically held in Hemenway courtyard.
“We’ve had a few events this year, including an open mic series that ran with our radiothon,” he said. “Every now and then we do collaborative events with the campus center like tonight.”
It’s not just the artists that benefit though—KTUH also fundraises at these events and collaborates with other organizations.
“The main reason is our fundraiser, a lot of it is collaborative—if anyone wants to reach out and do a collab we’re definitely down for that,” Ramiscal said. “We haven’t done any stand-alone events other than the radiothon.”
Although there’s no specific type of music KTUH promotes, its primary interest is with local artists.
“We try to do local to get their name out and we prefer that,” he said. “They give us a good time and a good turnout at the event. A lot of the harvest mixer was at the campus center so we drew names of bands and they provided the meals for students.”
Program Director at KTUH Angela Burns commented on how KTUH finds new artists to promote.
“We usually promote on Monday Night Live by reaching out with social media posts and offering to be featured on MNL,” Burns said. “A lot of artists from the islands send us music and we’ll put it into our rotation. We’re trying to have more events and invite local artists to perform for us, to promote their music and KTUH at the same time.”
The program has become an important part of KTUH’s commitment to supporting the local music scene, allowing bands to not only share their music but also connect with fans in real-time. Over the years, Monday Night Live has played an important role in helping emerging artists build a presence in the community and gain recognition both locally and beyond.
Christopher “Kominiko” Natale is a singer for Tuesday on Mars and expressed appreciation for the events that KTUH holds at UH Mānoa.
“I feel like our type of music just caters to this age group; it’s practically a perfect audience,” Natale said. “I think more interactions like this is the best thing for small artists like us, to help us get our name out there.”
He added, “We have to do everything you can think of. We have no manager, no booking agent- we compose, we record, we produce and promote our own stuff and get the word out ourselves. All the self promotion and social media presence is done by us, so you have to really try to get yourself out there.”
The future for the small artist scheme here in Honolulu seems to be very promising, as their growth will continue to be fostered by the events KTUH promotes. Ramiscal says, “I’d say we hold maybe a couple each term—I don’t know if we have anything set for spring term yet.”
Although the next term is not set in stone yet, rest assured that good things are in store for small artists here and for those tuned into KTUH.
