ABOUT BENNY UYETAKE & JAY MOLINA
Benny Uyetake has played with some of the world’s finest musicians on Maui and while touring. Over the years, Benny has shared the stage with some of Hawaiʻi’s greatest trailblazers like Uncle Willie K and Barry Flanagan of HAPA, as well as the world’s most talented jazz players Les McCann, Russel Malone, and Donald Harrison. His versatility comes from his years of musical study in different genres with mentors in classical, jazz, Hawaiian, Blues, and rock.
Jay Molina, a veteran of the Maui music scene, is a bass guitarist/vocalist who has performed with local bands such as Asian Blend, the jazz-fusion group Music Magic, and The Ali’i’s. Jay is best known for playing bass for his son, Andrew, a ukulele virtuoso, traveling the world as a father-son duo. Loving performing with his son, Jay says, “it’s very special. I never toured when I was younger, and I’m able to travel around the world with Andrew and have that special bond. We have so much fun on the road. I have fathers come up and tell me, ‘It must be so cool to play with your son.’ We just try to be ourselves and share the aloha spirit.”
