| Mike Love | |
| Birth Place: | Oahu, Hawaii |
| Genre: | Reggae |
| Occupation: | Musician |
Mike Love is an American reggae musician and singer from Hawai'i. His 2014 record, Jah Will Never Leave I Alone, reached #3 on Billboards Reggae chart.[1] He self-describes his style as "revolutionary consciousness music".[2]
Born on O'ahu, he grew up in Kalama Valley and attended Henry J. Kaiser High School.[3]
He released his debut album The Change I'm Seeking in 2012, followed by Jah Will Never Leave I Alone in 2014, Love Will Find A Way in 2015, and the Love Overflowing EP a year later.[4]
Mike Love opened for Xavier Rudd's Boulder, Colorado concert in 2015, singing together during the end of the show.[5] Love attributes some of his success to his YouTube rendition of "Permanent Holiday", which has more than 20 million views as of 2019.[6] The song's lyrics turn what seem to be a "random assortment of syllables...into a song over a period of three minutes", according to Colossal.[7]
Love has toured in the Philippines (headlining the Malasimbo music festival),[8] New Zealand,[9] and Costa Rica, among other locations internationally. In the US he has played at the Rise Up Music Festival in 2019,[10] the Rhode Island Reggae Festival in 2019,[11] Bhakti Fest in 2019,[12] Think Bank Down By the Riverside in 2019,[13] and was slated to perform at the California Roots Music and Arts Festival until its cancellation due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[14]
Love has collaborated with Clinton Fearon on his album History Say.[15] He participates in Playing for Change.[16]
He currently plays with his band, Mike Love and the Full Circle, consisting of John Hawes, Keith Tsukamaki, Reggie Padilla, and Arthur Davis. In addition to touring, the band does a weekly gig at Hawaiian Brian's on O'ahu. All of Love's albums are released independently on his own label, Love Not War Records.[17]