Okinawa Association of America, Inc. (OAA), the largest organization in the continental U.S. promoting Okinawan culture, is announces the date and venue for the much-antici-pated Begin band concert.
The exclusive event featuring the renowned pop/folk group is slated for March 28 at 7:30 p.m., at Marsee Auditorium on the campus of El Camino Community College in Torrance.
Begin’s concert was originally scheduled for Sept. 1, 2019, to head-line the OAA 110th Anniversary Cel-ebration Weekend. Due to unexpected visa issues, Begin was not able travel to the U.S. for the performance. The venue was moved to Marsee Audi-torium to accommodate the band’s present tour, its large U.S. fan base and OAA’s events schedule. General admission tickets go on sale on Jan. 18 at 10 a.m. and can be purchased at http://bit.ly/OAABEGIN.
“The OAA is grateful to all the ticketholders who have been so patient and understanding through-out this situation,” stated Edward Kamiya, OAA president. “We are excited to finally welcome Begin to the South Bay.”
Begin started 30 years ago in Okinawa when Eisho Higa, Masaru Shimabukuro and Hitoshi Uechi, childhood friends from Ishigaki Island, combined their musical tal-ents. Their first single, “I Miss You,” debuted in 1990 and since then, they have released over 35 singles, over 30 albums and eight DVDs.
They released their latest album, “Gajumaru,” in 2019. They attribute blues music and Okinawan culture as inspiration for their music.
OAA is a 501c(3) nonprofit cor-poration. Its purpose is to preserve and perpetuate as well as promote the appreciation of Okinawan cul-ture through education and local and international exchanges. It also promotes mutual friendship and aid to its members.
Sponsors for the concert include community partners who support OAA’s mission of preserving and perpetuating the culture: Katsuya, Oki Dog, Sanyo Foods, Taragawa- Ryukyu Ocho, Kamiya Insurance, Orion Beer, Olympic Gift Shoppe, IACE Travel, Haruko & Ronald Hamlin, Ryujin International, Shin Sen Gumi, King’s Hawaiian, The Law Office of Steven I. Awakuni, Simpex Repipe, Kumon Math & Reading Center of Torrance-West, Futaba Landscape, MAPFRE Insur-ance, Takaokaya, True World Foods, Raymond & Yoshio Kinjo, Red Shell Foods, David Shinjo Dance Studio, The Rafu Shimpo and Lighthouse.
For sponsorship opportunities, contact Lesley Chinen at [email protected].