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There can be no doubt that music is alive and well at KHS. After less than a year, we’ve held successful recitals and showcases for our piano, guitar, and ukulele classes, brought instruments to the elementary schools, and penned songs for Drama club’s end-of-year performance in May.

But perhaps all of that takes a second seat to this month’s Student Spotlight, Finfoko. They’re a Tafunsak duo comprised of Jun Mackwelung and Erine Palsis, both KHS students. Their debut single “Sane Yuc nuh ke Ao Yuc” has spread like wildfire through cell phones, iPods, and word of mouth on the island. It’s now ubiquitous at KHS, and out in the communities it flares up nightly on home stereos.

We sat down with Finfoko this month, to talk about their music, and we’ve included an mp3 of “Sane Yuc” for free download below.

What is Finfoko?

Jun: It’s a place, in Tafunsak.

Who is Finfoko?

Jun: It used to be a band, but then after I introduced Erine to our music, it just became the two of us. I play keyboards and handle the production, and Erine is the lyricist and vocalist.

Your production’s pretty tight, Jun. How long have you been at this?

J: Just about a year now, since I moved from Guam.

Impressive. Who are your influences? What do you listen to?

J: I listen to mostly reggae, and that’s where most of what I do comes from.

I see that. You can really hear the Sean Kingston vein of production in some of your work. Erine, I really enjoyed your vocal performance on this song. Have you been singing for long?

Erine: Not on record. But I’ve been singing at church for a long time. And whenever there are family parties or meetings I’ll sing at those, too. It’s kind of a custom in Kosrae.

So the chorus goes, “Sane yuc nuh ke ao yuc”. What does that mean?

E: It means, “Wait for me until 9 o’clock”.

“Yuc” is a pretty important word in Kosraean, it can mean ‘nine’, ‘tasty’, or ‘me’. Did you have the wordplay in mind when you wrote the song?

E: Yeah, if you look at the title of the song, we’ve written it like that. A lot of Kosraeans kids use ‘9’ on cell phones.

What were your influences? Is this about anyone in particular?

E: No, it’s just about feeling. I mostly listen to church music, that’s what I like best.

Last question: We’re looking to ramp up the music offerings next year. Erine, as a former piano student, how do you feel about that?

Jun, Erine: That’s great! We really need more music at Kosrae. You can’t have too much. We’re really excited for our senior year.

So here’s the cut off of Finfoko’s first album, “Sane yuc”, whose sugary synths and angelic vocals drip out of every musical crevice at KHS. We’re immensely proud of Jun and Erine, who are dedicated workers in the classroom, but also represent the extracurricular excellence that KHS has come to embody over the last few years. Right click (and save target as) here to download.