suk suk

The Song That Tricked the Radio

1. The Literal Meaning: While often used as general slang for "hooking up," the word Suk is the phonetic Pidgin spelling of the English word Suck.

2. The "Natty Vibes" Legend: The term became a local legend thanks to the hit song "One on One" by the popular reggae band Natural Vibrations (Natty Vibes).

• The Lyric: The chorus famously chants: "Dem hafi suk suk boto..."
• The Translation: Since Boto is the Pidgin term for male genitalia, the lyric is an explicit reference to oral sex.

3. Cultural Irony: Locals love this song because it played on Hawaii radio stations for years without censorship. The censors likely thought "Suk Suk" was a foreign phrase or a made-up sound, missing the fact that it was just English spoken with a heavy accent!

Rain hammered the tin roof of the garage in Keaukaha as Bronson dug through a cardboard box of his old high school CDs. He pulled out a scratched Natural Vibrations album, blowing the dust off the jewel case before sliding it into the boombox. The heavy bassline of "One on One" immediately rattled the workbench, transporting him straight back to 1998, cruising down the lava field roads of Puna in a beat-up Toyota pickup.

His cousin Ikaika walked in carrying two green bottles of Steinlager, shaking his head as the famous chorus blasted through the blown-out speakers. "Brah, I still cannot believe KAPA FM used to play this every single day right after school," Ikaika laughed, cracking the beers open on the edge of the table. "The DJs either had no idea what suk suk meant, or they just didn't care."

Bronson took a swig, grinning at the memory of their strict Japanese bachan tapping her foot to the rhythm in the kitchen, completely oblivious to the vulgar lyrics. "She thought it was just a catchy local song," he said, turning the volume up a few notches. "If she knew they were singing about oral sex, she would have snapped the CD in half and chased us out the yard with the broom."