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HERALD Bringing Alice to life on the stage Page 10 Vol. 29 No. 15
APRIl 9 - 15, 2026
$1.00
King Kaye goes to Hollywood Local band invited to California show tial success as an independent artist, Kaye was driven to share the art form with his closest Four Bellmore musicians friends. “I got all my best friends united to take their music to the next level, taking their tal- from childhood — I wouldn’t ent all the way to Hollywood. have wanted anybody else to be King Kaye, once the title of an my band,” he said. “For a while individual artist, is now a five- I was performing solo, doing man-band and one of Long my own thing and with elecIsland’s rising stars. tronic music. Something came T h e fo u r B e l l over me… even more members are though I work in a vocalist Ben Kaye, recording studio bassist Matthew and I have all these Kreuder, drummer incredible instruNick Tiongson with mentalists, I also Matthew Marzilliathink my best no on the keyboard. friends are too… We The fifth member, didn’t even have to Ray Bergin, plays like practice to tap the guitar. The band BEN KAyE into the energy. is composed of close Vocalist “ I f e e l l i ke a f r i e n d s, m o s t o f part of me was perwhich go all the way forming solo out of back to elementary school and a place of fear,” he continued. earlier. “Being able to trust my best The band travelled across friends, how well they received the country to perform at the it and adapted an art that’s so Viper Room in Hollywood on personal to me has really March 13. opened my eyes to the beauty Ben Kaye, 26, started spin- of collaboration… I hope this is ning records at 9 years old something that we continue when he was given a DJ set doing forever.” from a family friend. Since The band performed at the then, he has been fascinated by Berlin dive bar in New York music and pursued ambitious City on Feb. 11, where a fateful artistic projects that inspire encounter would send them and innovate. Following his iniContinued on page 2
By JoSEPH D’AlESSANDRo
jdalessandro@liherald.com
I
Tim Baker/Herald
Bellmore Chamber celebrates Easter The Chamber of Commerce of the Bellmores celebrated its annual Easter Parade on April 4. Story, additional photos, Page 3.
Calhoun H.S. senior mentors peers in blood cancer fundraising campaign By HERNESTo GAlDAMEZ hgaldamez@liherald.com
Jackson Amiruddin, a senior at Calhoun High School in Merrick, shifted his role this year in the Blood Cancer United Student Visionaries of the Year campaign from student fundraiser to mentor, guiding fellow participants through a seven-week effort that helped raise more than $1.48 million on Long Island while supporting teams as they worked toward a shared goal of helping patients and families affected by blood cancer. Amiruddin took part in the Student Visionaries of the Year grand finale at Pier Sixty at Chel-
sea Piers in New York City on March 6, which was the culmination of years of resilience, leadership and a commitment to helping others facing the disease he once battled himself. The 17-year-old, who was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia at just 13 months old, has transformed his experience into action through his work with Blood Cancer United. Last year, Amiruddin co-led a team called the Hope Chasers in the organization’s Student Visionaries of the Year campaign, finishing as a top competitor among Long Island teams in the fundraising effort. “I wanted to help a lot of the kids who were Continued on page 11
wouldn’t have wanted anybody else to be my band.