Jennifer Barber is one of the performers in Peter Moon's Blue Hawaiian Moonlight concert.

Barber came home to Hawaii five years ago. She still talks back when people judge her by her appearance or her accent.

"I can be dressed very casually and people will assume I'm 'local,' but then when they talk to me they're like, 'Whoa, where do you think you're from?,' " she said over lunch at the Hard Rock last week. Her smile illuminated the secluded booth.

"Being a local girl from L.A. is kinda hard sometimes."

Hard or not, Barber prefers Hawaii over the mainland ("There's racism here, but it's so much worse there.")

Barber will show how well she fits in when she appears in Peter Moon's 15th Annual Blue Hawaiian Moonlight Concert Saturday at the Waikiki Shell, and in the 8th Annual Bankoh Na Wahine O Hawai''i program at Ala Moana Park on Sunday.

"I've really come to appreciate my (Hawaiian) lineage, and I feel very flattered to be included. I know they're not (really) coming to see me - it's Peter and the others - but it's still my homecoming coming out for a real local, local audience."

She now cherishes the time spent with members of her extended Hawaiian family, and was thrilled to be in the audience when "Uncle Led" (Ka'apana) received the Bank of Hawai'i Slack Key Award at the 1996 Na Hoku Hanohano Awards in May. (On her mother's side she's a Ka'apana from Kalapana. Her father's roots go back to Oak Ridge, Tenn. Her parents met in the Navy.)

Barber and her two sisters grew up singing "Hawaiian and country," so it's probably no surprise that she's carved out a career as singer and recording artist. She currently sings weekends with Brian Robertshaw and John Valentine at the Hanohano Room, a schedule that allows her more time with her 8-year-old daughter. Her promising self-titled debut album was released in March.

Barber's steady immersion in Hawaiian music here is a far cry from her experiences growing up in Redondo Beach where she and her two sisters were the only Hawaiians in an almost-entirely white school. Cultural opportunities were limited ("Mom would play Hui Ohana and (grandmother) Tina Ka'apana records on weekends.")

An emotionally abusive kumu hula killed her interest in dance. She taught herself to play ukulele after school, a shy girl who thought herself unattractive.

"I would keep my head down, never wear make-up, and hold my books like this," she said, crossing her arms like armor across her chest. Her shyness faded when one of the school goddesses befriended her and shared fashion and make-up tips.

"It was just like 'Clueless.' She picked out clothes for me and loaned me some makeup. I probably looked like a hooker for sure but the boys went crazy."

There's no trace of that made-over wall-flower these days. Elegant when singing pop standards with Robertshaw and Valentine, she's goes trendy but casual by day or when with her daughter. The more seductive songs on her album reflect another side of her personality.

Barber got her album made the old-fashioned way. She made a two-song demo tape, then called every recording studio in the Yellow Pages asking if they were looking for singers. Several studios returned her calls. One call led to the record deal.

She's since learned that the island record business isn't all good. One radio station big shot let her know he'd program the album if she slept with him. He quickly learned that you don't mess with a local girl from L.A.!

What: 15h Annual Blue Hawaiian Moonlight Concert, featuring Jennifer Barber, Frank DeLima & Na Kolohe, Hawai'i Matsuri Taiko Drummers, Israel Kamakawiwo'ole, Kumu Hula Chinky Mahoe & Na Keiki 'O Kawaili'ula, Peter Moon and BB Shawn
When: 7:15 p.m. Saturday; gates open at 5:45 p.m.
Where: Waikiki Shell
Tickets: $12, plus service charges in advance. Available at Jelly's, University of Hawaii Campus Center, Tempo Music and the Waikiki Beachcomber MTI desk. Tickets $16 at the gate. No reserved seating
Call: Blaisdell box office at 591-2211