[UPDATE 11/18/24]: As this week’s Mahalo Dead event in Hawaii approaches (11/22–11/24), Grateful Dead drummer Bill Kreutzmann has added dynamic vocalist Kanika Moore (Doom Flamingo) to the run’s artist roster. Moore joins a lineup that also features Kreutzmann alongside guitarist Daniel Donato (Cosmic Country), bassist Reed Mathis (Billy & The Kids), keyboardist Adam MacDougall (Circles Around The Sun), percussionist Jason Hann (The String Cheese Incident), and guitarist Jake Brownstein (Eggy).
Much like the initial artist lineup, Moore’s involvement was announced via a fortune cookie-focused video posted to social media. In the clip, Doom Flamingo drummer Sean Bing drops off a “special delivery” box to Moore’s dressing room. As she receives the box (addressed from Hawaii) and takes a few pulls from Bing’s joint, the sounds of the Dead’s “Box of Rain” begin to play in the background. She eventually opens the box, finds the first of two fortune cookie inside, and reads its message: “To be hopeful with the dead is to believe in a brighter tomorrow.”
“I guess it’s not a box of rain after all,” she deadpans. “Whack.”
But soon she finds a second fortune cookie in the box and opens it to reveal another message: “Mahalo Dead?!” she exclaims as she reads it. “Hawaii?! … Billy, I’m coming.”
Related: Watch Doom Flamingo Turn Grateful Dead’s “Touch Of Grey” Into An 80s Slow Jam [Video]
In the post’s caption, Kreutzmann noted, “Surprise!! I sent Kanika Moore a special invitation to join us for Mahalo Dead this weekend in Hawaii. This one took a little longer to arrive because the first few deliveries went up in smoke. Or maybe my dog just kept eating the fortune cookies.”
The post added, “The shows sold out faster than we ever imagined, however this week we released a very small handful of VIP tickets. So if you can hop to it, then hop to it!” Find ticketing details for this weekend’s Mahalo Dead run in Hawaii here. Watch the Kanika announcement video below. Scroll down for more information on the event.
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[UPDATE 10/18/24]: Following a slow rollout of details about his Mahalo Dead run, Bill Kreutzmann has revealed all the specifics for the upcoming engagement in Hawaii on November 22nd–24th, 2024 at Kauai’s hybrid indoor-outdoor Porter Pavilion featuring the Grateful Dead drummer alongside guitarist Daniel Donato (Cosmic Country), bassist Reed Mathis (Billy & The Kids), keyboardist Adam MacDougall (Circles Around The Sun), percussionist Jason Hann (The String Cheese Incident), and guitarist Jake Brownstein (Eggy).
“Aloha!” the former Grateful Dead drummer wrote in a message posted to his website. “In all my life, I’ve found no greater joy than getting to play music that I love, in places that I love, for audiences that I not only love but that make me feel so alive, I never want to stop drumming. So I hope to see some of you out here, on Kauai, for a weekend where we’ll gather in a garden on the north shore to dance, celebrate, and go rising up to paradise. We’re not JUST going to play Grateful Dead songs… we’re also going to jam them! And as you know with me, there’s always other songs too that I’ll want to take for a spin. … so I’m flying in some talented friends – new and old – to come join me in making some sounds of joy.”
As Kreutzmann added, “One of the reasons I wanted to do these shows around Thanksgiving is because I’m very grateful to all of you for that gift. Here on island, that’s called mahalo. … These three shows take place at the intimate and idyllic Porter Pavilion [~450 capacity] and a portion of the proceeds are going to help support the venue — it’s my local spot and it’s a nonprofit that brings so much to the community and I need them to keep bringing world-class musicians to my neighborhood; I need them to keep bringing live music to Kauai. That way, I’ll always have a place to play that’s close to home.”
According to an FAQ about Mahalo Dead on Kreutzmann’s website, the Friday, 11/22 and Saturday, 11/23 shows will start at 6:30 p.m. local time while the Sunday show will be a 3:00 p.m. matinee. The FAQ also provides information about lodging options in the area, event-curated hotel packages, and more.
Tickets for Bill Kreutzmann’s Mahalo Dead shows go on sale today, Friday, October 18th, at 10:00 a.m. local venue time (1:00 p.m. PT / 4:00 p.m ET) here.
View the official event poster below and scroll down for background information about the announcement rollout an more.
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[10/16/24]: After sharing a series of teaser videos on social media earlier this week, Bill Kreutzmann has confirmed his return to the stage for a three-night run on the Hawaiian island of Kauai dubbed Mahalo Dead on November 22nd–24th, 2024.
The clues started with a video posted by Kreutzmann showing the Grateful Dead drummer practicing in his garage with the caption, “Last week, a fortune cookie told me I was going to start doing what I love again. How’d it know?”
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Next, he shared a series of fortune cookie-themed videos posted by a lineup of younger musicians including guitarist Jake Brownstein (Eggy), bassist Reed Mathis, keyboardist Adam MacDougall (Circles Around The Sun), guitarist Daniel Donato, and percussionist Jason Hann (The String Cheese Incident). In the clips, each musician cracked open a fortune cookie to reveal their fate, but they only hinted at the announcement. Donato, for example said, “Wow. I’m going to see my favorite state fish, the humuhumunukunukuāpuaʻa… Very soon. That’s exciting,” while MacDougal, dressed in a floral Hawaiian shirt, joked, “Well, well, well, well, well, well… At least I got the right shirt,” and Hann quipped, “You can’t spell Hanalei without Hann in it.”
On Thursday morning, Bill K himself finally dropped some details on the upcoming run in a post captioned, “Mahalo Dead! 11 22 23 24 2024 Kauai, HI.” The Rhythm Devil posted again to announce that tickets for the three shows—presumably featuring a lineup of Brownstein, Mathis, MacDougall, Donato, and Hann alongside Kreutzmann himself—will go on sale this Friday, October 18th. Stay tuned to his social media and his website for more information.
The upcoming run in Hawaii will mark Kreutzmann’s return to performing following his August 2023 Dead on the Water series with Tom Hamilton, Daniel Donato, Aron Magner, Kanika Moore, and Jeff Franca. He previously performed in Hawaii—where he has resided since the end of the Grateful Dead’s touring career—in 2021 during his Grateful Mahalo run of livestream-only shows with Billy & The Kids and some very special guests including Billy Strings, Carlos Santana, and the late James Casey.
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