Jake Shimabukuro, one of the most exceptional and innovative uke players in the history of the instrument, joins host Janeane on Outside the Box.


On November 12th, 2021, the acclaimed Hawai’i-born ‘ukulele player Jake Shimabukuro will release ‘Jake & Friends,’ his most creatively ambitious project to-date, featuring collaborations with a who’s who of music royalty, from Willie Nelson and Bette Midler to Jimmy Buffett and Kenny Loggins. In terms of size and scope and considering the sheer number of legendary stars who graciously loaned their inimitable talents to the project, ‘Jake & Friends’ can only be compared to other benchmark duets albums by the likes of Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett, a shining testament to just how far the singularly gifted Jake has come. Listen to the album’s first two singles, “Two High,” featuring Moon Taxi, and “Stardust,” featuring Willie Nelson.

Jake’s own head spins when looking over his high-wattage guest list featured on the album - Willie Nelson, Bette Midler, Jimmy Buffett, Moon Taxi, Kenny Loggins, Michael McDonald, Vince Gill and Amy Grant, Jon Anderson, Ziggy Marley, Warren Haynes, Jack Johnson, Jesse Colin Young, Ray Benson & Asleep at the Wheel, Sonny Landreth, Lukas Nelson, Billy Strings. “I have to pinch myself when I see those names on my own album,” he says. “It’s like, ‘Did that really happen?’ Making the album was a real challenge, but I’m deeply honored that all of the artists agreed to record with me.”

Over the past two decades, Jake has proved that there isn’t a style of music that he can’t play. While versatility for any musician is impressive, what’s remarkable about Jake’s transcendent skills is how he explores his seemingly limitless vocabulary – whether it’s jazz, rock, blues, bluegrass, folk or even classical – on perhaps the unlikeliest of instruments: the ‘ukulele. Responding to the urgent calls of his fervent imagination, Jake has taken the ‘ukulele to points previously thought impossible, and in the process he’s reinvented the applications for this tiny, heretofore underappreciated four-string instrument, causing many to call him “the Jimi Hendrix of the ‘ukulele.”