In college, I faced an interesting problem. I wanted to play music all the time and yet I wasn't ready for anyone to hear it. To remedy this, I took to retreating to stairwells as a safe place to sing and write music. It was there that I wrote most of my songs in college and really grew into an artist.

Making a video is one of the most exciting things for artists and fans. It's like a payoff.

Not only am I putting music out there, I'm giving part of myself away.

I get to travel around the world and meet all of these amazing people, and they're singing my songs! And to me, that's crazy.

Being hapa, or more specifically, half-Japanese half-Euro mutt (English, Irish, Scottish, Dutch, French, Welsh, German. . .in case you were wondering), has definitely helped shape who I am. It's very cool to get to identify and learn about all these unique cultures and I think it's helped put the world in perspective.

I think a lot of singer-songwriters get compared to each other, but I'd like to think that what I'm doing is special and specific to me.

My two sisters and I sang all the time. Whenever we cleaned the kitchen, we sang in three-part harmony.