Carole Kai (born October 28, 1944) is an entertainer (singer and pianist), recording artist, and philanthropist

Philanthropist

A philanthropist is someone who engages in philanthropy; that is, someone who donates his or her time, money, and/or reputation to charitable causes...

 from Hawaii

Hawaii

Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...

.

Personal life

Born as Carole Shimizu in Honolulu, she graduated from McKinley High School

President William McKinley High School

President William McKinley High School, more commonly referred to as McKinley High School, is a public, co-educational college preparatory high school of the Hawaii State Department of Education and serves grades nine through twelve...

 in Honolulu. Kai began performing shortly after she graduated; she also recorded for several local record labels.

Career

In the late 1970s, when she was already well known as a Hawaii showroom headliner, her manager, Yemun Chung, paired her with a young island showband he was also managing, The Fabulous Krush (The group later dropped "Fabulous" and performed as "The Krush"). Kai was never a member of the group; they performed as her backing band as well as doing their own shows.

In the late 1990s, following the national success of shows featuring two or more "divas," she joined three other local singers with showroom experience -- Loyal Garner

Loyal Garner

Loyal Garner was an Hawaiian musician and de facto leader of the Hawaiian singing group Local Divas. Her hits included "Shave Ice" from the album Island Feelings and "Blind Man in the Bleachers" from her eponymous debut.-Death:Nicknamed the "Lady of Love", Loyal E...

, Melveen Leed

Melveen Leed

Melveen Leed is an American singer. After winning the title of "Miss Molokai" she begin singing in the mid-1960s and has released a number of records in the genres of Hawaiian, Country, and Jazz music....

, and Nohelani "Baby Diva" Cypriano -- to form a new show group named The Local Divas. The group broke up after Garner's death several years later.

Kai was also co-host, with Kimo Kahoano, of a televised karaoke

Karaoke

is a form of interactive entertainment or video game in which amateur singers sing along with recorded music using a microphone and public address system. The music is typically a well-known pop song minus the lead vocal. Lyrics are usually displayed on a video screen, along with a moving symbol,...

 contest, Hawaii Stars, that was the most popular locally produced show of its kind in Hawaii.

Philanthropy

Kai is also known for her charitable work. She was the organizer and namesake of the first bed race in Hawaii, the Carole Kai Bed Race (later the Honolulu International Bed Race). It was an annual event benefiting the Variety Schools, a local school for children with special needs. Later, in 1985, she and local cardiologist Jack Scaff organized a road race between Aloha Tower

Aloha Tower

The Aloha Tower is a lighthouse that is considered one of the landmarks of the state of Hawaii in the United States. Opened on September 11, 1926, the Aloha Tower is located at Pier 9 of Honolulu Harbor. It has and continues to be a guiding beacon welcoming vessels to the City and County of Honolulu...

 in downtown Honolulu

Downtown Honolulu

Downtown Honolulu is the current historic, economic, governmental, and central part of Honolulu—bounded by Nuuanu Stream to the west, Ward Avenue to the east, Vineyard Boulevard to the north, and Honolulu Harbor to the south—situated within the larger Honolulu District...

 and Aloha Stadium

Aloha Stadium

Aloha Stadium is a stadium located in the Halawa CDP, City and County of Honolulu, Hawaii, United States. Currently Aloha Stadium is home to the University of Hawaii Warriors football team...

. This race became the Great Aloha Run

Great Aloha Run

The Kaiser Permanente Great Aloha Run is a road race that takes place annually in Honolulu, Hawaii on the third Monday in February . It is a charity event that benefits Carole Kai Charities, a philanthropic fund run by Hawaii entertainer Carole Kai. Kai and Honolulu Marathon founder Jack Scaff, M.D...

, and it is now one of the largest road races in Hawaii, attracting about 20,000 runners annually.