Anuhea was in town on Saturday to do a concert at the Independent. She was also selling a very limited number of tickets to a pre-show pa’ina, where she would meet with everyone, take pictures with them and sing a few songs. I bought a ticket for the pre-show pa’ina rather than the concert; wasn’t feeling like being trampled by a crowd when I’m vertically challenged, anyway. Her concert DID sell out, so she offered a few more pre-show pa’ina tickets, which several people were extremely glad to get, since they couldn’t buy ones for the concert!
The meeting location was a secret until the day before. They sent me a text instructing me to be at Pa’ina Lounge (what a coincidence!) by 6:00 p.m. on Saturday. It’s walking distance from my apartment, so was quite convenient for me. She was scheduled to be there from 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. The group of us were seated at various tables; mine happened to be the furthest one in the back. Lucky for those at my table, though, she came to us first. She signed “posters” and our passes, as well as taking photos with us. She’s SO very nice and also very tall. She did a song or two before finishing going around the room to meet everyone. Food was provided, too – spam musubi, potstickers, spicy mango chicken wings and watermelon. Once she made it around the room, did a few more songs. When she asked if anyone wanted to hula, one serious hula dancer got onstage, but the other was a young girl that was basically going through the motions; don’t think she had a clue as to what she was doing. She was enjoying it, though! For another song, Anuhea asked if anyone wanted to be her back-up singers. A group of little girls in the front, around 6-10 years of age, jumped on the stage and sang “Simple Love Song” with her. The youngest girl was so small that she couldn’t get anywhere near the microphone; one of the other girls had to pick her up and hold her up to the microphone! Next were some give-aways. Anuhea asked some trivia questions; obviously, the first person with the right answer won the merchandise. For a T-shirt, she asked that someone get on stage and do 25 push-ups. Believe it or not, those little girls jumped up there again! She only had one T-shirt, though, so she threw it up in the air and one of the girls nabbed it. We also took a group picture. So it was a nice and cozy experience. If only other musicians would do something similar more often.
(BTW, excuse the quality of the photo. It never ceases to amaze me how so many people can’t seem to operate a basic point-and-shoot camera!)
Tina Bellina's Guide to the World 