The 4th Annual Japan-Hawaiian Steel Guitar Festival will be held on Friday, at the Royal Grove Stage in Waikiki's Royal Hawaiian Center.

The 2025 festival will feature seven steel guitarists and steel guitar groups from Japan. Performers include Shinichi Kakiuchi, Yukio Katagiri, Kiyoshi "Lion" Kobayashi, Masami "Matt" Kobayashi, Paul Okubo, Masami Sato and Makana, and Moto Suzuki.

The Japan-Hawaiian Steel Guitar Festival is a collaborative project between HIMELE and Japanese steel guitar planners to bring Japanese steel guitar players to Honolulu to showcase their talents. The Royal Hawaiian Center will provide the Royal Grove Stage and other support for this project.

The festival is a culmination of years of planning with Hawai‘i and Japanese planners, including Japanese steel guitarist Tadashi Arakawa who passed away in early 2022. The 1st annual festival was dedicated to him in his honor.

Royal Grove Stage
- Michiyo Fujita
- Shinichi Kakiuchi
- Yukio Katagiri
- Lion Kobayashi
- Matt Kobayashi
- Paul Okubo
- Masami Sato and Makana
- Moto Suzuki