24 Hours with Jake Shimabukuro

All photos courtesy Jake Shimabukuro

7:30 A.M. Coffee at Talk, Kaimuki

10:00 A.M. Rock & Roll Hall of Fame phone interview

2:30 P.M. Cookies at home, Kaimuki

9:30 P.M. Bumped into old friends post-show, Honolulu

6 P.M. CST Backstage, Chicago

8 P.M. CST On stage with bassist Jackson Waldhoff, Chicago

7 P.M. CST Scoping out the tour merch, Chicago

11:00 A.M. Weekend fishing, North Shore

5:30 P.M. Walk Squeaks around, Kaimuki

From Japan to Honolulu to Los Angeles to Wisconsin to ... the tour stops seem endless. But ‘ukulele virtuoso Jake Shimabukuro always comes back to where his heart is — right here in Hawai‘i, more specifically Kaimuki. But whether he’s on the road abroad or simply driving along H-1, the humble musician exudes aloha. We caught up with Shimabukuro when he was coming and going during his mainland tour a few months ago and got a glimpse of his day-to-day life...

Morning coffee is must. I can’t start the day without having a nice hot cup of joe. If I’m at home, I’ll brew it myself or maybe head down to one of the coffee shops on Wai‘alae Avenue. But if I’m on the road, a latte from a local coffee shop does the trick as well..

So the timing isn’t too early or too late because of time zones, I try to schedule out-of-state interviews and Zoom calls during midmorning. I just had a Zoom call with someone about the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland where one of my Kamaka ‘ukulele is on display!

When it’s lunchtime, I grab a quick bite to eat and give my setlist a last look to make sure everything’s squared away. While I’m on tour, it becomes more about the day-to-day involved with the concerts I have. Last winter, I was doing our holiday tour, so I got the chance to perform some holiday hits in addition to my usual repertoire. That was a lot of fun!

In the afternoon, I try to take a quick nap to gear up for the evening’s performance. However, if I’m back home in Hawai‘i, I’m on afternoon dog-walking duty. I’ll take my dog, Squeaks, out for his walk. We just go down a few blocks through the neighborhood. Afterwards, we play in the backyard and toss a Frisbee or ball around. I make sure to spend extra time with him during those times when I’m on tour in Asia or the mainland so he doesn’t miss me too much.

On the weekends, you may find me doing all sorts of different things. My family loves to fish, so we may be out doing that. I have a sweet tooth as well — cookies baking in the oven at my house is not unusual.