Kimié Miner’s free songwriting workshop on Big Island; young artists can apply

Native Hawaiian, Grammy-nominated Kimié Miner is bringing her “MeleCraft Bootcamp” to the Big Island.

The free weekend workshop on April 21 and 22 is dedicated to empowering young artists with a breakthrough music and mental health mentorship series called Nā Leo (The Voices) by Haku Collective. 

The statewide mentorship program for youth ages 14 to 22 honors Hawaiian culture, language, business and essential life skills that support rising music makers to create a new sound grounded in sustainable artistic health.  

Attendees will be mentored in songwriting and performing exercises to hone their art while being empowered with skill sets that enhance their confidence as healthy and economically independent contributors to their community as artists. Skill training will include: music creation, artistic collaborations and an introduction to business brand development. 

Kainani Kahaunaele and Kaʻikena Scanlon also will be featured mentors.

Audition applications are available at 2023 Nā Leo Registration Form. The location of the workshop will be provided to participants.

Miner is a producer, singer-songwriter and multi award-winning recording artist — and a mother of three. She also is the founder and CEO of Haku Collective.

Nā Leo offers youth weekend workshops on Oʻahu, Hawaiʻi Island, Maui and Kauaʻi, that teach aspiring artists how to create quality music through both an artistic and holistic health approach, while remaining authentic and learning critical industry skills that empower self-awareness, healthy expression, executive thinking and resilience.

“The need for Nā Leo is in direct response to the isolating struggles Hawaiʻi’s artists have experienced as a marginalized demographic. We have all experienced it,” Miner said in a press release. “I truly believe Nā Leo can create a healthier shared-community for artist-mentees and mentors alike.

“And I know firsthand what it felt like to not have my voice heard and the impact that had on my identity … but music gave me a voice. As a transcendent universal language, music is a highly effective therapeutic medium for our youth, creating an imperative outlet for self-expression, creativity and freedom from the oppression of marginalization.”

Miner and the leadership of Haku Collective recognize the disparity of access to quality multimedia education for youth in underserved communities.

“Our community, and the demographic that Nā Leo is reaching out to, both its mentors and mentees, have often been negatively impacted by social determinants of health, intergenerational trauma and other life circumstances,” Miner said. “Nā Leo proposes to creatively approach underlying issues through workshops that destigmatize the need for behavioral health support, and directly add skills into a metaphoric toolbox that both mentors and mentees can draw from to cope with everyday challenges.” 

The program is made possible in partnership with the State of Hawaiʻi’s Creative Industries Division; the state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism; and Creative LAB Hawaiʻi Partners.

“As a founding fellow of the inaugural Creative Lab Music Immersive, which provided the skills and access Miner needed to build her own music business, Haku Collective, we are thrilled to support the launch of NāLeo and its commitment to statewide mentorship through mele [song],” said Georja Skinner, Chief Office of Creative Industries Hawaiʻi.

She said Creative Lab Music Immersive provides unprecedented access to music supervisors and placement companies for national and international licensing in film, television and advertising globally.

To watch a video of the first Nā Leo workshop, click here.