The Green

roots · rock

The Green is a reggae band from Oahu, Hawaii, formed in 2009 by a group of singer-songwriters fronted by vocalist Caleb Keolanui, with Zion Thompson and JP Kennedy on guitars, Ikaika Antone on keyboards, Brad Watanabe on bass and Leslie Ludiazo on drums; several members write and sing lead, which is central to how the band's records are built. Jordan Espinoza took over on drums in 2011, and the current lineup is Keolanui, Thompson, Antone, Watanabe and Espinoza. Its self-titled debut arrived in 2010 on Shee Handsome Devil Records and reached number nine on Billboard's Reggae Albums chart; Ways & Means (2011), Hawai'i '13 (2013) and Marching Orders (2017), all released by Easy Star Records, each went to number one on that chart, followed by Brand New Eyes in 2021. The song Love I stayed on the Billboard Reggae chart for sixty-nine consecutive weeks. The band has won multiple Na Hoku Hanohano Awards, including Reggae Album of the Year in 2011, 2013 and 2017 and Artist of the Year in 2013. It has played the Warped Tour and California Roots, recorded with J Boog on several tracks and with Kolohe Kai on Day by Day, and appeared with Bruno Mars at his Honolulu stadium shows in 2018. Its most recent album, Titles, was made collectively at the band's own Ka Ma'o Studios in Honolulu, mixed by Veer Dhaniram, mastered by Mario Lawrence and given cover art by the Hawaii-born artist Kamea Hadar; the title track threads references to the band's earlier song titles through its lyrics. The group also runs Ka Ma'o, a nonprofit that mentors emerging Hawaii musicians.

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