Common Kings are more than a band of musicians, they are a family, a lifestyle, a community, a brother and sisterhood, having grown up together in California’s Orange County, four college mates who first met at a backyard barbecue 20-some years ago. Music was the common bond for these Pacific Islanders (all but one first-generation Americans) who have together transcended their Polynesian reggae roots to achieve pop crossover success since releasing their first music in 2011 – Samoan-born Hawaiian lead singer Sasualei “Jr. King” Maliga and Hawaii-raised Samoan guitarist Taumata “Mata” Grey; Fiji-born bassist Ivan “Uncle Lui” Kirimaua, and L.A.-born Tongan drummer Jerome “Big Rome” Taito. The band has toured with Justin Timberlake, Bruno Mars, Meghan Trainor, Fifth Harmony and CeeLo as well as headlining their own shows and music festivals around the world. Common Kings have been releasing music on their own Island Empire/Mensch House Records label for more than a decade, with their first full-length debut, 2017’s 'Lost In Paradise', nominated for Best Reggae Album at the GRAMMYs. The long-awaited follow-up, aptly named CELEBRATION, follows a series of five songwriting camps around the country (Miami, Hawaii, Orange County, Nashville, L.A.), winnowing down 120 songs to 12 over the course of almost two years during and after the pandemic. Common Kings’ island rhythms are as seductive as a lazy ocean breeze, with a narrative that is an All-American story with a tropical twist.

Sammy Johnson

Common Kings

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