Created for students and alumni of Kamehameha Schools Kapālama around the world, Hoʻokūkū Hīmeni brings together years of data, information, and media to help the Kamehameha ʻohana relive their favorite Song Contest memories.

This site was created by Bryson McFeeley, KSK '11. It is neither affiliated with nor endorsed by Kamehameha Schools.

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What's New in 2023?

Aloha! Since last year's Song Contest in 2022, there have been some updates to the site:

• Sample score sheets have been updated to reflect the actual judges' score sheets for 2023.
• A list of past Song Contest judges, sorted by contest and sorted by name, has been added.
• Song associations are being added, linking together classes who performed the same song throughout history. For an example, see last year's senior coed, Pāʻauʻau Waltz, which has been performed at least 4 times in the past.
  This is a work in progress.
• Person credits are also being added, linking together people who have contributed to Song Contest in multiple ways, such as former song directors who have also served as song arrangers or even Song Contest judges.
  This is a work in progress.
• Competition orders are being added, answering the question: "Who sang first that year?" For an example, see Song Contest 2022.
• Missing director names, dating back to 1972, have been mostly filled in.

Contact

Send me an email

Please feel free to email me using the link above with any comments, suggestions, or contributions; or if your name is listed anywhere on this website and you wish to have it removed.

Scope

This site is dedicated to the Kamehameha Kapālama Song Contest, with information dating back to 1970. We currently have very limited data before 1970. In addition, we don't cover Kamehameha Maui's ʻAha Mele, and we don't currently provide information for older Song Contest features that no longer exist, such as the junior division competition and prize songs.

Videos

All videos displayed on this site are publicly available on YouTube or Vimeo, and are linked here for convenience. However, they're not under our control, so they could be deleted or made private without notice. For inquiries about deleted videos, or videos that aren't available on YouTube, you can email me or try contacting the Kamehameha Schools Archives for advice.

University of Hawaiʻi affiliates have access to a streaming archive of full Song Contest broadcasts from 1984 to 1995. A UH login is required. Non-UH affiliates should refer to the library's FAQ for possible access.

Sources

The following sources were consulted while compiling information on this site. Please note that list is not comprehensive.

• Official Song Contest websites: 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023
• Kamehameha Schools Archives
• "Kamehameha Schools Song Contest" on Wikipedia
• Kamehameha Song Contest video collection. Sinclair Library, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.
• Ka Naʻi Aupuni, 2008-2011 editions (physical copies), and various editions from 1980–1990 (Ancestry.com)
• "Song Contest 2000"

Contributions

Mahalo nui to the following visitors for contributing information to the site! If you have any information that I am missing or find any inaccuracies, please feel free to contact me to share what you know.

• Anonymous for song and director names, points scored for Classes of 1981-1990
• Dillon L. for song and director names, points scored, and contest themes for 1980-2003 contests
• K. K. for song and director names, contest theme, and hōʻike theme for 1995 contest
• Lilinoe P. for linking videos of 2007 contest
• Primrose T. for contest themes for 1996-1998 contests and director names for Classes of 1994, 1998

Notes

The header image features my class, the Class of 2011, standing ready to perform our junior co-ed song, He Wahine Holo Lio.