My father moved to Hawaii from Brooklyn and my mother came there as a child from the Philippines. They met at a show where my dad was playing percussion. My mom was a hula dancer.

My dad was into the 1950s doo-wop era. If you look at those groups, or at James Brown, Jackie Wilson and the Temptations in the 1960s, you'll see you had to be sharp onstage.

And when you smile, the whole world stops and stares for a while

I always say I wanna work with Alicia Keys. I'm in awe of her.

Writing for other artists helped me figure out that magic you have to capture to make everyone connect with a song.

Songwriters, you have to work - you have to wait for residuals. You have to pray that the song's going to be a hit. And then a year later, you might get a check.

As proud as I am of Doo-Wops I feel like, 'Oh, man. People haven't seen nothing. They don't even know what I'm about to do,' and that's what I can't wait to show the world.