(upbeat music) - Welcome back!
Our next guest has been called The Real Life Maui
from Moana.
Not only does he run one
of the leading fire knife schools in Hawaii,
he's also teaching his 1.6 million TikTok followers
about the beauty of Samoan culture.
He covers everything from language
to traditional dress, food, to intense fire knife moves.
Let's welcome five time, (horns)
Five time World Fire Knife Dance Champion,
Mikaele Oloa! (all clapping)
- Hey cha hoo, talofa, talofa. (audience cheering)
- First of all, what a cool name,
- Thank you. - Mikaele Oloa,
- Yes, yes. - That is so cool.
So tell us about your school
and why you started it. - Yeah, so Mauga Mu started
back in 2006, so actually the first year
that I ever won the world competition was
I was 15 years old. - Wow!
- It was back in 2005 and then 2006,
that's when we decided to make our own group.
So I can continue my journey on learning this culture.
- Yeah. - Still learning 'till today.
- Yeah. - And so this group
is just our way of continuing our journey, pass on
to the younger kids, now- - Keep the history alive.
- That's it, you know. - Yeah.
- I was blessed to have built my accolades dancing,
and so a lot of people just come and started to learn,
and so this is my way of, not only just teaching the kids
how to spin a Samoan knife that's on fire,
- Yeah. - But also
to teach them life lessons, you know,
- Yeah. - Like, teach them
to be humble. - Like, don't die
while doing it? (audience laughing)
- (laughs) Yeah. (Kelly laughing)
Don't hit your face, all that saved my, yes-
- So you're going to teach me the basics right?
Of fire knife dancing. - Yeah, of course, come on.
- Okay, do you wanna do it? (audience clapping)
- Let's go - Okay, let's do it.
Let's do it. (audience cheering)
I don't look as cool. - Whoo, no, no, no.
Let me show you what I got. - I don't look as cool as you.
Okay, Marcel, okay. - Yeah, so.
- So what, okay - Marcel.
- Here we go. - Yeah, I asked
for like no blades, yeah, yeah. (laughs)
- That, you know, safety first.
We always gotta start off. - Yeah.
- This is what I start off with the kids.
- Okay. - Start learning
with the stick - With the kids,
- Now, yeah, that's it, - Thank you for that!
- That's it. - 40 year old grown woman,
man, come on. (laughs) (audience laughing)
- So this first motion I'm gonna teach you
is a very basic motion, we call this the "vili."
- V? - Vili.
- Vili? - Vili, very good.
- Vili, okay. - Vili just means spin,
all right? - Okay, vili.
- So it's very easy, first thing you gotta know
is hold it right on the top, like this.
So open your hand. - Okay.
- Just like that, perfect. - Okay.
- Now from right here, what we're gonna do is go around.
- Okay. - And hit the bottom
of your hand. - How did you,
how does your wrist do that? (audience giggling)
I don't understand what you... - Yeah.
- Oh, you bringing it around like that.
How did, oh, shoot my sleeve!
Okay, okay. - That's it.
- Can I just like do that? (laughs)
- That's it. - I'm already trying
to cheat, man. - Yeah.
- Okay, okay, hold on, wait, so.
- Round, perfect. - Boo boop boo, boo boop.
- Keep your hand right there in the same spot.
- Oh, boo boo boo. - Just like that,
- Who knew this choreography - Hit the bottom.
would be so challenging (audience laughing)
for me, wow, okay. - That's easy, right?
- Okay, yep, yep. - So that is the first part,
now you wanna leave your hand right here,
- Yep. - You just wanna
imagine the stick rolling up on this side of the hand.
- Oh, sure. - Perfect,
(spectator cheering) and grab it on top.
- Sure, uh huh. - Now repeat it.
- Okay. - Hit the bottom,
Yeah, right there! (Kelly laughs)
Just like that! (audience cheering)
(audience clapping) - Wait, wait, wait, wait,
- Yeah. - Wait, okay so.
- Nice. - Whoo wow! (yells)
(laughs) okay, okay! - Yeah, now keep going faster
(audience clapping) and faster.
- Totally! - Yeah, that's it.
(audience cheering) Yeah, that's it.
- Okay, I don't know what I'm doing.
I'm gonna get the hang of this, but will you show us
what it's really like?
- Yeah - Like will you do it?
Oh, with both! - I got you.
- Oh, okay, all right. - I'll show you guys.
We're doing fine. - I'm gonna be over here,
man, cause I'm thinking- (hands clapping)
- Let's go, let's go! (audience cheer)
- [Kelly] Let's get some music! (claps)
- Oh, so! (drums beating)
(audience cheering) (Mikaele yelling)
(drum beating continues)
(Mikaele yelling continues)
(audience yelling) - Oh, my god!
(audience applauding)
(yells) What was that? (laughs)
That was incredible! - Thank you, thank you.
- Oh my god,
that was incredible!! - Thank you so much,
thank you, thank you. - You were all rock and roll,
(Mikaele exclaims) Like, all over, that was like,
what's happening? (Mikaele laughs)
That was the greatest rock
and roll show I've ever seen (audience giggles)
in my opinion. - Thank you, thank you.
- Okay, we have a staff member here who's a big fan
of yours. - Oh yes.
- A big fan, so-
other than all of us now, (audience exclaims)
and really respects your culture and would love
to come say hi, would you like to meet him?
- Of course. - Okay, okay, cool.
So, say hi to Dwayne Johnson! - What's up?
(audience cheering) (Mikaele laughing)
- Oh, surely.
(audience applauding)
- Oh, my god! - Oh, dang
- Was that not crazy?
- [Kelly] Oh, god!
- [Dwayne] How you doing, man?
- Thank you so much, man.
Such an honor to meet you, man.
- Thank you, brother.
Thank you. - Oh, my gosh.
I'm like, what are you, that was insane!
- Oh, I mean this is part of our culture
that we're just so proud of, and the work that Mikaele,
not only that he can do, obviously, and take fire knifing
and our culture around the world,
- Yes. - And everything he's
been doing on social media, et cetera,
but probably, and you probably agree, but more important
than that is just these life lessons
that he's teaching our younger generation about our culture.
Yes, don't die, like you said,
that's important. - Don't die!
- Don't get cut, but probably more importantly is, you know,
being proud of who you are and being proud of your culture.
Like all of us, be proud of who you are
and that's what he does. (audience cheering)
- Yeah. (Mikaele clapping)
- I mean, so wait, you have a surprise, right?
- I do, yeah, so I have a surprise for you.
So for you and all your students, back home in Hawaii,
and your family too, I'm inviting you guys
to go see Black Adam, everybody gets tickets
- Oh, wow! - In Hawaii to Black Adam.
- Yeah, you're gonna love it.
It's so good! - Yeah.
- Oh my gosh. - And I wanna tell you,
And I wanna tell you while we're here,
I want to tell you just how proud I am of you, man,
and all the work that you're doing for our culture.
As he was saying earlier in such a humble way that,
you know, we always, we just continue to learn
about our culture as I continue to learn
- Yes. - About our culture too.
As, my wife and I, we try to teach, and grandma too,
as well, we try to teach our children about our culture.
So, I love the work you're doing, brother.
So keep it out here. - Keeping history alive, yeah.
- Yeah. (audience cheering)
- Aw man. - Thank you so much.
(audience clapping) - Well, you
and your students all get a pair of tickets to IMAX.
(horns) You're gonna love the movie.
(all horning)