Known for his soul-pop savvy on massive hits like 2006’s “Crazy” and 2010’s “Forget You,” as the vocal half of Gnarls Barkley and for his stint as a coach on the Emmy Award-winning show “The Voice,” five-time Grammy winner CeeLo Green headlines the inaugural Ocean Aid Hawaii music festival Sunday at the Waikiki Shell.

“This is a very important cause to be associated with,” Green said in a phone call last week. “The preservation of our water is our being. If my namesake or notoriety can help bring awareness and encourages people to get involved, it’s the least I can do.”

He’s a star with both name recognition and notoriety, propelled by a power-packed falsetto, big presence and bold, quirky fashion sensibility. He’s also notable for his place in music history. Prior to his success in pop music circles, the Atlanta native was an instrumental figure in Southern hip-hop, earning respectability in the early ’90s as part of rap collectives Goodie Mob and the Dungeon Family.

Green released his last full-length album, “Heart Blanch,” in 2015. He has been busy with concert appearances and has recorded a couple of singles since then, using the alter ego Gnarls Davidson.

At this year’s Grammy Awards, appearing as Gnarls Davidson, he had social media in a frenzy when he appeared dressed in a bizarre, all-gold superhero-esque costume.

Despite his colorful appearance, though, Green says when it comes to writing a memorable song, both ambition and pure intentions are essential.

“Music is considered an art. The industry should be Ivy League. It shouldn’t be all-access,” remarked the 42-year-old maestro. “Some things that we consider to be just entertainment, they are good for now, but will they last a lifetime? I just don’t know.”

“What I believe is missing is elder statesmanship. The industry, for logical and practical reasons, they don’t have a lot of older artists that represent the wisdom,” Green said. “There isn’t an R&B song written by a youngster that could teach me how to love better than I already know as an adult. A lot of these kids think they are doing these things for the first time, and it’s not true.”

At the same time, he said, writing from the heart is also important. “When it’s unassuming or unintentional from a creative sense, there’s a very innocent and genuine feeling that goes into it,” he said.

Interest in hip-hop and R&B has been growing, if Hollywood is any indication. Miniseries like “The Get Down” on Netflix and “The New Edition Story” on BET, and the upcoming Tupac Shakur biopic “All Eyes on Me,” scheduled for release in June, show there is an interest in learning about the music’s roots and origins.

“It’s a working part of a large trajectory. I think it’s important that balance is maintained,” Green said.

In the three years since he left his trusty coach’s chair on “The Voice,” Green has been grooming R&B and soul talent through his label Mothership Entertainment, in partnership with Sony Music.

“It allows me to do the mentoring that I was essentially doing on ‘The Voice’ but in real life,” Green said. “What good is knowing if you cannot share the wealth of knowledge? Ultimately that would be selfishness. I don’t believe such a thing should be kept to yourself.”

While a second Gnarls Barkley album is rumored to be in the works, Green said fans should also expect more from Gnarls Davidson in the near future.

Green said he understands the expectations of die-hard Goodie Mob fans and CeeLo Green loyalists might lie on opposite ends of the spectrum, but it’s a challenge he welcomes.

“The fan base that I want the most is the one that wants to grow as I am willing to grow,” he said. “I have to welcome growth. I have to be obedient to my own evolution.”