One of Hawaii’s most popular bands, founded by Kelly Boy De Lima, Tivaini “Tiva” Tatofi and Teimoni “Timo” Tatofi, Kapena will launch their 40th reunion tour at the Maui Arts & Cultural Center on August 10.

“This is a celebration of 40 years,” Kelly Boy De Lima explains. “For 20 years, the original Kapena went hard, and then for these last 20 years when they (Tatofi brothers) went back to Tonga, my kids took over and propelled Kapena for the next 20 years. So this is a celebration of all of that. We want to celebrate the people, the years, and all of the music.”

Amazed by the group’s longevity, De Lima says, “I just feel grateful that I got to do what I love to do for so many years and it lasted from generation to generation. I haven’t slowed down because I feel I have a responsibility to continue on, because where I go, people are singing along to your songs and they’re enjoying themselves. I don’t want to walk away from that.”

Since their inception, Kapena has released more than 20 albums and won many Na Hok Hanohano awards. Founded in 1984, they achieved widespread success with a signature sound which creatively blended contemporary Hawaiian music with Polynesian and reggae influences, and flavors of country and pop. Some of their most popular songs include “Masese,” “Tropical Lady,” “E Piko,” “Reggae Train,” and covers of “Red, Red Wine,” Hank Snow’s “Nobody’s Child” and Doris Troy’s “Just One Look.”

Friends at Kaimuki High School, De Lima and the Tatofi brothers competed in the Brownbags to Stardom contest, and recorded their live debut album “Satisfaction Guaranteed” in 1986.

Initially, the group wanted to emulate the sound of Hui Ohana. “We all thought we’re going to be the Hui Ohana,” he recalls. “I was big on Dennis Pavao, Ledward Kaapana, and Nedward. Dennis was a really close friend of the family, and Dennis and my uncle talked story, and he said, ‘Dennis, you got to go give the boys some advice.’

“Dennis, who was living on Maui the last years of his life, he sat me down, and he said, basically, ‘there’s already a Hui Ohana.’ He said, ‘you’ve got a gift to do all kind of different genres of music, go out there and find your sound.’ I remember I walked away crying. I was like, man, I cannot be the Hui Ohana. So me and Tiva and Timo said, we’re going to do Polynesian songs and do all of these different songs. We recorded ‘Masese,’ and started writing a couple of our own songs. We got our own sound. I did the eulogy at Dennis’ funeral up in Maui, and I told them the story. He was my hero. He basically really unlocked something in me. That put us on another path.”

“Satisfaction Guaranteed” included their crowd-pleasing adaptation of “Red, Red Wine,” and earned them the Hoku for Most Promising New Artist. Then their sophomore release, “Kapena,” captured Hoku awards for Group of the Year and Hawaiian Album of the Year. Again, it reflected their diversity, ranging from the Tahitian song “Tipi Tipi” to a cover of Ringo Starr’s “Act Naturally.”

The musicians have fond memories of Maui. A Lahaina gig marked their first outer island show. “We played the Lahaina Broiler,” he recalls. “My dad was our manager, and said, ‘we got a call from Maui. They want to bring you up.’ I was like, what? Are we paying for our fare? And he goes ‘no, they’re paying for the fare and your talent. I was like, somebody wants to hire us?

“Back in the days, Front Street was vibrant, it was so full of life, and you could go from club to club, music everywhere. Just good memories. We did one of Willie K’s last blues festivals, and we played at Mick Fleetwood’s place. Willie got up with us, and we did

some Santana songs. Oh man, so many good memories.”

Kapena’s connection to Maui includes playing the first show at the MACC’s Castle Theater, when they were hired to perform for the construction workers and companies that built the facility, before it opened.

“We wanted to come to Maui,” he says about the reunion show. “Every time we do a Maui song, I always tell the visitors they still need our help, they still need our prayers and our well wishes. Maui is totally always on our mind, big time. We went to Leiali’i this past Christmas and distributed presents to some of the people and the kids. I set up a microphone in the neighborhood and we were singing. It was just a good feeling.”

In the early 2000s, De Lima debuted the next generation of Kapena, with his three children, son Kapena, and daughters Kalena and Lilo. The Tatofi brothers had returned to Tonga to take on family responsibilities.

“They’re taking care of the family and they’re heavily into church,” he explains. “Their dad was one of the big ministers in Tonga.” Tiva’s son, Josh Tatofi, based on Maui, has been a major presence in island music.

“Everybody always asks, did you guys break up,” he notes. “After 20 years, it’s like a marriage. It’s so much commitment, and not everybody can really commit to this machine, this machine called Kapena. Things happen, life happens, different directions happen, and it did for the two brothers.”

Reconfiguring Kapena as a family band “was a necessity,” he says. “If it was anybody else, other than my own blood, it wouldn’t work. I mean, 20 years after that, we wouldn’t be here today. These kids literally was born and raised into the music. I tell them you guys was born on the Waikiki Shell stage. Basically, they just stepped in. First it was my son Kapena, then it was my daughter Kalena, then it was Lilo, and now Kalena performs with her husband, and they’re doing unreal doing island country music.”

When COVID hit, De Lima decided to keep performing – online. “In our household, we’re all musicians, so the entire household was affected. Nobody had jobs. We made that choice, one week into it to have live concerts twice a week. Not only did the world need that, but we needed that healing, too. We would set up every Sunday and Wednesday. I called it command central in my living room. We would set up and the kids would laugh at me because I’ll put on my Aloha shirt, I’ll put on my cologne, I put on my ring. And it was, ‘dad, this is not smell-o-vision.’ I’ve been doing this for so many years and I go to work every night in Waikiki and to just stop, it was getting to me. And then the responsibility of sending those healing vibes out there and calming people. I got thousands and thousands of emails and people saying ‘thank you for your concerts,’ for 19 months. That’s when it really kind of hit me, like wow, it is a responsibility.”

In 2017, Kapena released their first album as a family band, the marvelous “Palena Ole” which won them Hoku awards for Group of the Year, Contemporary Album, Music Video and Producer.

Their latest recording, “Destinations” was released in 2023. It included the Samoan song “Faafaite,” a Maori song, “E Ipo,” a lively reggae cover of Men at Work’s “Down Under,” and the beautiful Hawaiian song “Koa Wiwo’ole.”

Surprisingly, it didn’t show up in the list of 2024 nominations. “We missed the deadline to submit it,” he says. “We were on tour. I was so bummed about that.”

The latest family member to step into the band is De Lima’s grandson, 12-year-old Kapena Jr. He’s the drummer. “He stepped up to the drum, and he is just blowing everybody away. You are not going to believe this kid. He plays like he’s been doing it

for 30 years.”

The musicians are currently compiling music for an exciting new project, teaming with a bunch of guest artists to record new versions of Kapena’s classics. They just released “Tropical Lady” with Three Plus.

“We have Jake Shimabukuro doing ‘Kalena Koo’,” he says. “Iam Tongi recorded ‘Don’t Say Goodbye,’ and we have Ekolu, Maui’s own, they’re doing ‘Tumbleland’.” Other guests include Kalaʻe Parish with Kalena, BET, and Molokai’s High Watah. “We’re incorporating some of the old school guys, and some of the young ones coming up, and putting a little twist on the old Kapena catalog. We’re releasing singles right now, about four of them, and then 10 songs on an album. It’s pretty cool.”

Looking forward to the 40th tour, he concludes, “I’m enjoying this season of my life. It’s like I get another chance at it, what’s evolving. We’re doing what we love to do and now I’m doing it with my kids and with my grandson, watching them grow up. I just feel so complete.”

Kapena performs at the MACC’s Alexander & Baldwin Amphitheater on Aug. 10 at 6 p.m. Gates open at 5. Tickets are $35 for general admission with no reserved seats, and $75 for VIP, all plus applicable fees. VIP ticket holders receive access to designated restrooms and front of stage area. Prices increase day of show. Tickets from mauiarts.org.