Native Hawaiian Comedian Heston Kaʻaihue started his career in comedy after going to a show and dinner with his wife, Pomai, for Valentine’s Day. After the show, Kaʻaihue chatted with entertainer Little Carriaga about taking a class to learn stand-up comedy.
After a month later, Carriaga put Kaʻaihue's name on a flyer for an event and said, “this is how you learn,” he recalled. The rules of the event? Perform for three minutes. If it goes well, continue for five minutes. It went so well, Kaʻaihue found himself on stage for 45 minutes.
That was in 2019, just before the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.
“That was it,” Kaʻaihue said. “That was the moment I thought, ʻI could do this.’ ”
Kaʻaihue will take the stage at Blue Note Hawaiʻi on Sunday, April 27. Doors open at 5 p.m. and the show starts at 6:30 p.m. He will also be joined by special guest comedians James Mane and Kinohi Betts.
Born and raised in Kailua, Kaʻaihue currently resides in Hilo on Hawaiʻi Island, where he owns Hawaiian Island Glass Tinting, a company he bought when he was just 18 years old.
He is also a founder of Good Times Hawaiʻi Comedy, a comedy club that opened in 2023. The venue offers a monthly comedy show. It started with $10 shows, seating for about 50 people, and from there, it grew.
“Because I’m 30 years in [to my business], I've always done projects to thank the community for supporting my family business,” he said. “The comedy was almost a give back to the community, because I feel laughter heals — not only spiritually, but emotionally and mentally,” he said. “You can laugh through a lot of your pains in life.”
Growing up, Kaʻaihue liked stand-up comedy. He looked up to Eddie Murphy and Andy Bumatai. When he was in elementary school, he would watch Bumatai’s “High School Daze,” among other shows, and act out parts with his family.
“It was always fun to create this laughter in our house,” he said. “I was the youngest of four, so I had to try and stand out.”
“We didn't have much,” he said. “We had to move to the Big Island because we couldn't afford to live here, but we were always real close, and through those struggles, we laughed through it. The happier you are in your home, the happier we can be with our neighbors around us.”
As an adult, he said he was inspired by watching Augie T. perform live shows in Hilo. Comedy is something he considers a calling. In fact, he was 45 years old when he started doing stand-up shows regularly.
Kaʻaihue draws inspiration for his shows from his relationship with his wife, as well as his observations on the differences between men and women.
He also loves to travel and sometimes finds inspiration for sets while on a plane for multiple hours. Since it takes about five hours to get to the Mainland, that window of time allows him to explore ideas he hasn’t had a chance to develop yet, he said. Other times, the inspiration strikes when he is dreaming.
“I will wake myself out of a dream and start laughing,” he said.
Buy tickets starting at $20 here, and follow Kaʻaihue on Instagram @GoodTimesHawaii.
Katie Helland can be reached at katie@alohastatedaily.com.
