Jaimy Valerio. 25. Born and raised in the islands of Hawaii. AKOSI draws from Jaimy's struggle with identity. He is of Filipino decent but grew up knowing nothing about his culture as his family tried hard to assimilate. He also felt conflicts living on stolen land with the illegal occupation of the Kingdom of Hawaii, being born and raised in Hawaii but not Hawaiian, and Hawaii being a part of the United States but being nothing like the continental United States. (Filpino but not, from Hawai'i but not Hawaiian, lives in the US but not really) This upbringing and the hardships of life experiences has shape his reality. AKOSI is used as a medium to share his story, to come into his creative power. This is in hopes to build a community of people who are proud to be themselves despite the adversities they face. Promoting self-love, self-exploration, and challenging oneself to being the best that they can be.