From the Desert to NAMM: A Weekend I Will Always Remember ✨
I’m still smiling from the most wonderful weekend at The NAMM Show.
The NAMM Show (National Association of Music Merchants) is a giant gathering of artists, instrument makers, educators, and music industry professionals from all over the world. It takes place at the Anaheim Convention Center, and yes, it’s very loud 😂 Imagine thousands of musicians playing, testing instruments, and performing, all at once.
It’s inspiring. It’s chaotic. It’s energizing. Every time I go, I come back home feeling a huge wave of inspiration.
I took a picture with this giant capo to send to my worship team leader because we have a running joke about needing a capo in order to play on Sunday mornings 🤣
The music community is smaller than I thought! ❤️
Years ago, when I was living in Okinawa, I used to watch Cynthia Lin’s YouTube videos for fun. I didn’t have a channel of my own yet, and I didn’t know that I would have one someday. At the time, I was an elementary music teacher using YouTube to learn ukulele for my students.
Eventually, I started posting videos on YouTube and Instagram, and one day Cynthia reached out and asked if I was available for coffee. I remember it was Thanksgiving Day, and it is such a sweet memory for me.
I originally discovered Yoshi through the ukulele hashtag on Instagram. As soon as I saw her videos and heard her voice, I was in awe. Even though I couldn’t speak Japanese, I messaged her, and we eventually became great friends.
I’m not exactly sure how Yoshi and Cynthia connected, but I think it was during one of Cynthia’s trips to Japan 😃 The two became friends, and this was the first time the three of us got to hang out in person!
Our first selfie together at a cute boba shop 🧋❤️
Performing with Ohana Ukuleles 🎶
A huge thank you to Ohana Ukuleles for having me perform at their booth. It was loud. It was chaotic. And it was so fun 🥹
The Ohana team organized a really nice performance schedule. They featured a musician at the top of every hour, every hour. Each artist had room to enjoy their performance and time to appreciate the performances of others.
All of the artists in the photo below performed at Ohana (except for the photo-bomber in the back).
And I have to say: the Ohana staff was absolutely wonderful. Kind, organized, welcoming, and supportive from start to finish. There’s something special about being around a brand that genuinely cares about the artists they work with. I felt that all weekend.
One of my favorite parts of the Ohana booth was that their products looked different, fresh, and unique compared to other ukulele booths! Many of their instruments sold at the show, but if you're interested in seeing what is available, you can find them at OhanaCustomShop.com
A Friday night we won’t forget 🎶
Friday night was one of those unexpected, unforgettable evenings.
After arriving at the show and spending the day soaking it all in, the girls and I headed out to dinner with friends (pictured below). We were relaxed, happy, and excited for the weekend ahead.
One of the friends at dinner was Conrad (the one making the funny face at his food), a talented musician who has been part of the past two Strum in the Desert events. Conrad plays ukulele, teaches, sings, plays bass… truly one of those multi-talented, generous musicians who brings so much to the community.
While we were at dinner, Conrad received some unexpected news: his bandmates weren’t going to make it to their scheduled performance at the show.
If you know anything about The NAMM Show, you know that performance slots are a big deal. They’re scheduled, anticipated, and not easily replaced. Conrad suddenly found himself needing to pull a band together, and even if he did, it did not guarantee that he could keep their performance slot.
Thankfully, a band was formed.
Their performance ended up being one of my favorite moments of the night. There was something so special about watching musicians come together on short notice, supporting one another, stepping up, and making it happen.
In the photo below, you’ll see the guys on stage and the friends who showed up to cheer them on and enjoy the show.
Their performance was lovely and their music filled the space with people who were eager to listen and enjoy their talent. It was tough just to find a place to sit!
Yoshi, Cynthia and I left the event feeling giddy but also ready for some much-needed sleep. I added an extra photo below of us waiting for our Lyft.
Wandering the show floor 🎶
One of my favorite parts of The NAMM Show is simply walking the floor because all of the effort that these brands put into making their booths beautiful.
It is always fun to go to the Orange Amps booth because they create a floor-to-ceiling display of amps on top of each other and they give everyone an Orange Amps tote bag.
Now that I am getting back into playing saxophone, I decided to spend some time looking at the horn section as well. Saxophones are very expensive, but it is fun to explore and take pictures of these sweet horns.
Nolan, one of my uke friends, joined Yoshi and I as we explored the floor. The three of us went to visit the Enya booth. I was surprised to see how much they have evolved as a brand and how many new instruments they have added to their inventory.
We bumped into musicians we know and mostly see online when they post videos. It is fun to see the people that I follow online and whose work I admire.
We bumped into the cute Ary and snapped a quick photo with her
We also bumped into Anthony Kauka Stanley and chatted about family, life changes, and agreed to meet up later at the Ohana booth :)
U3 Concert
On Saturday night, U3 had a private concert at the Season's Kitchen restaurant. The event sold out in less than a day, so it was truly a privilege to be there!
Cynthia, Lenny, and Abe gave some wonderful performances and even invited other artists to share the stage with them.
Cynthia, Yoshi and I played I Want to Hold Your Hand by The Beatles at the U3 Concert
I'm adding this extra photo here because I love this photo of Yoshi and Lenny playing with Otamatones.
You can see the attendees of the U3 Concert in the picture below. We were packed in there like sardines, but we were happy to be there! Yoshi and I hung out behind the counter.
Heading Home 🌵
Cynthia, Yoshi and I had the best time. We recorded a play along and shared it [here!] This is the last photo we took together:
After a few packed days at the The NAMM Show, Yoshi and I loaded up the car and headed south to attend the Romero Creations Open House in Oceanside.
The Romero Creations Open House was such a beautiful event. You can read the blog post about that lovely event [by clicking here]. I walked away from it feeling a full heart ❤️
And then, just like that, it was time to head home to Imperial Valley to prepare for Strum in the Desert. Here is Yoshi cleaning my windows before our little road trip:
I'll write a blog post about Strum in the Desert soon. For now, I am practicing my saxophone to prepare for a concert with Daniel Ho. You can read about that [by clicking here].
NAMM Show: thank you for a lovely weekend! 💫🌵