Born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii, Jake s life has always centered on the ukulele. Known for his powerful strumming on the ukulele, Jake s performances incorporate elements of thoughtful, sophisticated arrangements with spontaneous, improvised passages. Being influenced by legendary ukulele players like Eddie Kamae, Ohta-San and Peter Moon, Jake also credits icons like Bruce Lee and Michael Jordan as a source of inspiration.
Jake began his music career in the mid-90 s, performing at local coffee shops and in 2002, he became the first ukulele player to sign with Sony Music Japan. While his well-received solo releases positioned Jake as an established musician in Hawaii and Japan, his career skyrocketed when his cover of While My Guitar Gently Weeps went viral on YouTube with more than 13 million views, opening the rest of the world s eyes to Jake and his unique playing style.
In the years since the YouTube clip aired, Jake has released 10 domestic albums and collaborated with an array of artists that include Yo-Yo Ma, Jimmy Buffett, Bette Midler, Jack Johnson, Ziggy Marley, Michael McDonald, Bela Fleck and The Flecktones, and Tommy Emmanuel. He s played at Bonnaroo, SXSW, the Playboy Jazz Festival, Fuji Rock Festival, the influential TED conference and along the way has earned comparisons to musical innovators such as Jimi Hendrix and Miles Davis.