Bradda Francis has been presented with two Hawaii Music Awards in the Paniolo category in 2003 with Second Thoughts, a collection of original songs about life in Hawaii, love and joy in English and Hawaiian. It also includes an homage to his favorite performer Elvis Presley with a medley that includes “Cotton Fields” and “Glory, Glory Hallelujah”.
His second CD release Paniolo Ghostriders is “half Hawaiian and half mainland USA” with original songs that include a duet with his Mama who is a major influence in his life (famous in her own right) and great classics “Sweet Caroline”, “Solitary Man” and “Last Farewell” (originally sung by Roger Whitaker) and the lost classic “Deck of Cards”. The crowning glory of this CD is truly “Ghostriders in the Sky”, a classic to beat all classic songs with the quintessential rendition that only Bradda Francis can deliver. Not only the powerful voice but also the grace. Not only the strength but also the aural palette that he draws from. His Mama is the eerie sounds of the desert range (with no special effects) and his voice includes the steer, dogs, the cowboys and the sheer scope of a man caught in something bigger than life itself.
In 2006 his new release “Voice of Hawaii” personifies this Hawaiian Renaissance man born of the contrast of his family heritage and the modern Hawaii he grew up in. This, his first National release, is a true balance between traditional Hawaiian music and the 21st Century. Predominantly sung in Hawaiian it includes some original songs in English and Hawaiian and some in English but they are all about life in Hawaii, ALOHA style. The beautiful NA IPU LEI MANU is the spoken history (in English) of a Hawaiian King and the love song his Queen wrote for him (in Hawaiian) that he never heard. This CD begins traditionally with UA MAU an homage to God. There is the traditional MAMA E as a duet with his mother, even a visit to MOLOKAI and a traditional HAPA-HAOLE yodel. Put it all together along with six original songs and you get a full serving of the rainbow of talent that is the man, the voice, the power of Bradda Francis.
Find out for yourself.