Makena
So I read recently that duo Makena are on the Grammy Award preliminary ballot for the contemporary folk/americana category. (What the heck is americana? I guess at least they’re in this category, and not world music or something.)
I didn’t really know much about Makena, and so I took a peek at their website, and their blog, and their podcast. They self-describe themselves as mellow acoustic pop. Makena is a Hawaiian word for “abundance” and clearly, Sienna and Toast, who make up Makena, have an abundance of talent, energy, and passion for what they do.
They blog, they share coming out stories, they rescue cats, they bring pidgin to the mainland *and* they record music too. Not to mention the fact that Sienna and Toast are about to celebrate their fourth anniversary. Phew!!
Here’s to anyone who can successfully navigate the world of mixing business and pleasure, making the personal political, and maybe winning a Grammy thrown in for good measure.
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interesting, cuz two nights ago i heard the name Makena and thought it was really pretty. then this post come up with definition and erything!
From Wikipedia:
Americana is a loose subset of American roots music, that is perhaps best defined as “classic American music” — ranging in style from folk, country blues, bluegrass, alternative country, rockabilly, neotraditional and roots rock.
I’m not sure that helps us understand what Americana actually means. But bluegrass and country blues are definitely “American inventions.”
But maybe you’re saying that music is hard to categorize and that maybe we shouldn’t try to categorize. Instead musicians should self-categorize. I’m sure musicians hate being packed into a box. Hmmm… sounds like everybody has identity issues. =P