http://chiefsielu.com/biography/

Biography by Chief Sielu Avea

The Official Formal Title given to me, Chief Sielu, in 1986, by the Head of State of Samoa was:
MALIETOA TAUASA FOLO SIELU AVEA.

Becoming a Chief is an honor and you are chosen to receive this title because of your knowledge of the culture which includes education, working with the community and supporting the leaders. As part of the Chiefly ceremony, I went through the Tatua ritual (tattoo engraving as it has been translated) which is a great challenge and only the strong survive. The tatau is a religious and sacred aspect of the Samoan culture.

I was born on August 20th,1962 in the remote village of Lelepa, on the island of Savaii, Samoa. I am the youngest of 8 children. My family lived off the land by planting Taro bananas and corn and bathing in the waterfalls.

During my early childhood days, one of my chores would be to cop down trees to plant more coconut trees and I would often find myself playing and juggling with these real big sharp knives! Later in High School I began to add fire to my knife dance routine and it was at a high school graduation party that I performed my first fire knife dance!

I studied and passed the exams necessary to be able to leave my hometown in Samoa to attend BYU-Hawaii in 1981 and further my education.

I auditioned at the Polynesian Cultural Center in 1981 as a musician and quickly became known for my fire knife dance when I performed in front of 3,000 people when the "resident knife dancer" did not turn up one night! From then on I became known as the "Ambassador of Polynesia". I competed in the first World Knife Fire Dance Competition in 1993 in Hawaii. My exciting and breathtaking routine won me the title of: FIRST WORLD CHAMPION OF FIRE KNIFE DANCING!
I continued to work at the Polynesian Cultural Center for another 20 years.

I have performed and entertained in many TV shows and Video Performances including:

"Oprah Winfrey"
"Murder She Wrote"
"Magnum P.I."
"Eye on L.A."
"Good Morning Hawaii"
"Hawaiian Moving Company"
"B.B.C. Television"
"Discovery Channel"
"M.T.V."
"Spectrum Hawaii"
"Miss Universe Pageant"
"The Tonight Show"
"Portrait of Polynesia"
"Welcome to Polynesia"
"Mana! The Spirit of our People"
"Faa Samoa the Samoan Way"
and many others too numerous to mention !

I have authored a book: "The Art of the Samoan Tattoo"..The TATAU BOOK..
I have compiled a music CD with songs of the islands in my native tongue.

I now happily reside by the Kualoa Ranch Tropical Gardens by the Macadamia Nut Farm Outlet. My tribe and I perform daily with music and fire as we share the history and culture of the islands in our famous Ali'i Tour (The Royal Tour). My life continues in a beautiful natural setting that I share with my visitors.

My award winning show includes songs, drums, comedy and dancing performed in foreign countries such as Poland, Japan, Korea, China, Russia, France, Germany, mainland USA and here at beautiful Ko' Olina Beach Club at my FIA FIA night (The Happy People Show!) and my daughter Lala and son Samuta are now with me too and my wife Sharla watches over every show to make sure we have all the flowers we need.

Thank you for reading and allowing me to share a little bit about me. ALOHA NUI LOA ,Chief Sielu (2007)