Famous Ukulele Players: From Roy Smeck to Jake Shimabukuro
By Daniel Reed · July 2026 · 10 min read
From Hawaiian royalty to Beatles legends and YouTube stars, the ukulele has been championed by remarkable players across 140 years of history. The most influential include King Kalākaua (1880s), Roy Smeck (1920s), Tiny Tim (1960s), Israel Kamakawiwoʻole (1990s), and Jake Shimabukuro (2000s–today).
For the complete timeline, visit our ukulele history homepage or our ukulele makers history.
King Kalākaua (1880s)
Hawaii's last king and the ukulele's most important early champion. Kalākaua learned to play the instrument and incorporated it into royal performances and gatherings. His royal endorsement transformed the ukulele from an immigrant novelty into a Hawaiian national symbol.
Roy Smeck (1920s)
Known as "The Wizard of the Strings," Smeck was a vaudeville virtuoso whose ukulele performances astounded Jazz Age America. He appeared in two of the earliest sound films ever made and could play the ukulele behind his back, upside down, and with his teeth.
Arthur Godfrey (1940s–60s)
TV host Arthur Godfrey championed the baritone ukulele on his popular national television show, selling millions of instruments. His endorsement single-handedly created the baritone ukulele market in America.
Tiny Tim (1960s)
Tiny Tim's falsetto ukulele performance of "Tiptoe Through the Tulips" became a surprise hit in 1968, reaching #17 on the Billboard Hot 100. Though often viewed as a novelty act, Tiny Tim was a serious ukulele historian and collector who preserved many early playing techniques.
Marilyn Monroe (1959)
While not a professional ukulele player, Monroe's ukulele scene in "Some Like It Hot" (1959) became one of Hollywood's most iconic musical moments, cementing the instrument in American pop culture forever.
Israel Kamakawiwoʻole (1990s)
All-time best-selling Hawaiian musician. IZ's gentle ukulele medley of "Over the Rainbow" and "What a Wonderful World" became one of the most recognized recordings ever made — reaching #12 on Billboard's Hot Digital Tracks chart in 2004. He played a tenor ukulele.
Jake Shimabukuro (2000s–Today)
Widely regarded as the world's greatest living ukulele player. His viral YouTube performance of "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" surpassed 17 million views (view count is reported by the original YouTube upload and continues to rise), proving the ukulele could be a serious virtuoso instrument and sparking the modern revival. He plays a tenor Kamaka ukulele.
FAQ
Who is the best ukulele player in the world?
Jake Shimabukuro is widely considered the world's greatest living ukulele player. His virtuoso technique, viral YouTube performances, and genre-crossing repertoire have redefined what the instrument can do.
Herb Ohta (Ohta-San) (1960s–2000s)
Herb Ohta, known professionally as Ohta-San, is a Hawaiian ukulele virtuoso whose fingerstyle technique and jazz-influenced arrangements expanded the instrument's musical range decades before the YouTube era. He has recorded over 60 albums and influenced an entire generation of players, including Jake Shimabukuro.
Roy Sakuma (1970s–Today)
Roy Sakuma is a Hawaiian ukulele performer and teacher who founded the Ukulele Festival Hawaii in 1971 — the world's largest and longest-running ukulele festival. His dedication to teaching and community building has introduced the instrument to tens of thousands of students across the Hawaiian islands. Sakuma's event is the template most other ukulele festivals still follow, and the mass ensembles it popularised are where several ukulele world records were set.
Aldrine Guerrero (2000s–Today)
Aldrine Guerrero is the co-founder of Ukulele Underground, one of the largest online ukulele communities and lesson platforms. His YouTube tutorials and the Ukulele Underground podcast have taught millions of players worldwide, making him one of the most influential ukulele educators of the digital era.
What ukulele did Israel Kamakawiwoʻole play?
IZ played a tenor ukulele, likely a Kamaka. The tenor size gave him the deeper, warmer tone that complemented his gentle vocal style on "Over the Rainbow."
Did Marilyn Monroe really play the ukulele?
Monroe learned basic ukulele for her role in "Some Like It Hot" (1959). While she wasn't a professional player, her performance was real enough to become one of Hollywood's most iconic musical scenes.
What You Can Actually Learn From Each Player
Listening to great players is pleasant; borrowing from them is useful. Each of these figures contributed one identifiable technique that an intermediate player can practise deliberately.
| Player | Their signature contribution | How to practise it yourself |
|---|---|---|
| Roy Smeck | Rhythmic showmanship — treating the strumming hand as a percussion instrument | Add muted chunks and taps on the off-beats of a pattern you already know, keeping the arm continuous |
| Arthur Godfrey | Broadcast-era accessibility — simple accompaniment behind a speaking or singing voice | Practise strumming softly enough that a spoken voice sits clearly on top |
| Herb Ohta (Ohta-San) | Melodic fingerstyle with jazz-influenced harmony | Take a simple melody and reharmonise it using seventh chords instead of plain triads |
| Israel Kamakawiwoʻole | Restraint — leaving space so the voice carries the song | Strip an arrangement back until only the pulse and the chord change remain, then stop adding |
| Jake Shimabukuro | Virtuoso single-line playing and dynamic contrast across a whole piece | Practise one phrase at four volume levels; dynamics, not speed, are the transferable skill |
| Roy Sakuma | Community and ensemble playing as the engine of progress | Join or start a group. Playing with others fixes timing faster than any solo drill |
Four Eras of Ukulele Fame
The players above are not a random list of talented people. They cluster into four waves, and each wave was created by a change in media rather than a change in the instrument — which is the most interesting pattern in ukulele history.
- Stage (1910s–1930s). Vaudeville and the touring circuit rewarded visual spectacle, so the era’s stars were rhythmic showmen. The 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition supplied the audience.
- Broadcast (1940s–1960s). Radio and television could reach millions but showed no close-up detail, so the winning style was simple, warm accompaniment behind a personality — and it sold instruments by the million.
- Recording (1960s–1990s). Albums rewarded tone and arrangement over spectacle, which is the environment that produced serious fingerstyle and jazz-influenced ukulele playing.
- Video (2000s–today). Online video shows the hands. For the first time, technical virtuosity was directly visible to a global audience, and the modern revival followed almost immediately.
The pattern worth noticing: in every era, the dominant playing style matched what the medium could transmit — movement on stage, warmth on radio, tone on record, technique on video. If you are learning today, you are learning inside the most technically demanding era the instrument has ever had, which is why modern tutorials can feel intimidating compared with the repertoire of a century ago.
For the instrument’s full documented story, see our ukulele history, and for the makers behind these players’ instruments, our history of ukulele makers.