The Don Ho
Statue

Donald Tai Loy Ho was born on August 13, 1930, in the Kaka'ako neighborhood of Honolulu. The son of a Chinese-Hawaiian father and a Portuguese-Hawaiian mother, he grew up in a musical family in Kāne'ohe, where his mother ran a bar called Honey's. After serving as a U.S. Air Force pilot, Ho returned to Honolulu and began performing at Honey's, quickly building a reputation for his warm, intimate performance style and his ability to connect with audiences of every background.

By the mid-1960s he had become the most famous entertainer in Hawaii, performing nightly at Duke's in the Outrigger Canoe Club. His 1966 hit "Tiny Bubbles" became a signature song that defined the sound of Waikiki and placed Hawaiian music firmly in the American pop consciousness. He appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show, The Tonight Show, and dozens of television programs, introducing millions of Americans to aloha culture. He continued performing until shortly before his death in April 2007 at the age of 76.

The statue was commissioned by the Taubman Company, which developed the revamped International Market Place. Unveiled on August 13, 2017 — what would have been Ho's 87th birthday — the bronze captures him in his prime, microphone in hand, with his characteristic open-armed welcome. It stands beneath the property's historic 150-year-old banyan tree, the same tree that has shaded this corner of Waikiki since long before Don Ho first took the stage nearby.