This song re-ignited appreciation of the ukulele in American popular culture and also abroad. Recorded in one take at a midnight recording session, it was released on the 1993 album Facing Future and subsequently became a worldwide hit, in part through licensing in numerous movies, television shows, and commercials. Kamakawiwo'ole (KA-ma-KA-vi-VO-oh-leh), who passed away at the age of 38 in 1997, is a hero of both Hawaiian music and the Hawaiian independence movement.

This ubiquitous hit by Train was 2010's top-selling song on iTunes and reached #3 on the Billboard Hot 100. At 6x platinum, It remains the all-time highest-selling single to feature the ukulele as a lead instrument.

Only a middle school student at the time, Grace Vanderwaal charmed judges with a self-accompanied performance of an original song on the 11th season of America's Got Talent. Using the ukulele in each of her subsequent performances, she went on to become a finalist and winner. Since its debut the song has become a popular cover among ukulelists young and old.

Jason Mraz used a baritone ukulele on the original version, but this has become a popular song to learn on any kind of ukulele. This talented guy's performance was at one point the most-viewed ukulele performance on YouTube and remains among the most-viewed of all time.

One of the first viral videos on YouTube in 2006, Jake Shimabukuro's (shee-ma-BOO-koo-roh) instrumental arrangement of the Beatles' classic demonstrated a stylistic range and technical virtuosity many people had never associated with the ukulele. Shimabukuro went on to become one of the most successful ukulele performers in the world.

The perennially innovative James Hill--once a member of the Langley Ukulele Ensemble (see "Deep Cuts")--performs the vocals, harmony, percussion, and bassline of the classic Michael Jackson song AT THE SAME TIME.

Famous for his transcriptions of the works of J.S. Bach for ukulele using the Baroque campanella style, John King (1953-2009) helped raise the profile of the ukulele through his virtuosic performances of European classical and Hawaiian folk music, while also co-authoring the only scholarly history of the ukulele to date.

These folks have been doing their thing since the 1980s (read: way before ukulele became "cool" again) and have introduced more audiences to the sound of a ukulele ensemble than any other group.

This arrangement of the Rimsky-Korsakov classic is the signature piece from the Langley Ukulele Ensemble, a community group from Langley, BC (Canada) composed mostly of high school and college-age performers. The ensemble, which has existed for several decades, grew out of the school ukulele program in Langley School District.

A high school student at the time of this video, Nick Acosta performed the Surfaris' famout hit at the annual Ukulele Festival Hawaii in Honolulu. He went on to become a regular performer at the event as well as a ukulele teacher at the studio of his teacher and the event's founder, Roy Sakuma.

Three of the four Beatles played the ukulele in childhood (all except Ringo), and despite being best known as a guitarist, George Harrison remained a ukulele enthusiast through his adult life. Here is rare footage of him and Paul McCartney performing a tune from the ukulele's 1920s heyday which was also an early Beatles cover.

The 2008 film "Mighty Uke" contains many gems in uke performance, and this one featuring two well-known Hawaiian ukulele virtuosi casually duetting is no exception.

Before Moana, Disney/Pixar explored the Pacific Ocean setting with Lava, a short film that accompanied the release of Inside Out and told a heartwarming love story in song.

An employee of the Hawaii Music Supply store performs Koji Kondo's video game classic, with a little help from his friends.

In this famous encore, Shimabukuro invites the audience to yell "faster!" each time he concludes a jaunty little tune, until he delivers what may be the fastest playing you'll ever hear on the ukulele.