His introduction to ki ho’alu (slack key guitar) came as a child, when he was inspired by Gabby Pahinui while watching him perform at a lu’au in Kohala. Sonny’s biggest inspiration and influence came at age 12 from a well known slack key guitarist and family friend, Uncle Fred Punahoa. Punahoa took a keen interest in Sonny’s playing, and spent several weeks living with the Lim family in Kohala in order to teach him.

He was given a Steel Guitar as a youngster by Uncle Sonny Alapai of Pu’uanahulu and started to play it all the time. It led him to a professional career, playing the Steel Guitar with the Makaha Sons Of Ni’ihau from 1975 to 1978. Over the past two decades Sonny has performed with virtually every ‘name’ musician in Hawaii. He is a multiple Hoku award winner, performs regularly with his family in Hawaii and Japan, and performed on Hawaii’s first GRAMMY CD, “Slack Key Guitar Volume 2” (Palm Records). Sonny helped to accept the inaugural Hawaiian GRAMMY Award with GRAMMY Award winning producer Charles Michael Brotman in 2005. Sonny’s speech was in Hawaiian - the first time ever that the Hawaiian language was spoken on the GRAMMY stage.

His first solo recording effort: Slack Key Guitar -The Artistry of Sonny Lim features nahenahe (gentle voice) solo guitar tracks that is a nice mix of Sonny Lim originals with some classics thrown in like How D'ya Do (Andy Iona) and a couple of Fred Punahoa virtuosic tunes. This CD was a nomination finalist for the 48th GRAMMY Award for Best Hawaiian Music Album. Recorded at Lava Tracks Recording Studio in Sonny’s home town – Kamuela – the ranching region where ki ho’alu originated. The guitars used on this recording are a Santa Cruz Studio Model H guitar and a 1976 Ramirez classical guitar.

Sonny is featured on our newest compilation CD: The Spirit of Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar  (2008 Daniel Ho Records) nominated for the 51st Annual GRAMMY Awards for Best Hawaiian Music Album!

Sonny last performed in The Masters of Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar Concert Series at The Napili Kai Beach Resort, Maui on April 8, 2009.

(Sonny previously appeared in this series at the Napili Kai Beach Resort on October 8, July 9, March 26, 2008 and before that on December 26 and July 18, 2007 and before that at the Ritz-Carlton, Kapalua on February 28, 2007 and before that on October 4, July 19, and March 29, 2006.)