Up Close and Personal
MC, LGBTQ ACTIVIST, ACTOR and DJ... AIKO FINESSE Herbert, a South Carolinian has been captivating audiences since the tender age of twelve. Born August 1, 1987, Aiko did not feel as though he fit in with other kids. He was often teased and bullied on his appearance and the darkness of his skin. All the topsy-turvy emotions sent Aiko to an uncomfortable place as he began to suffer from headaches that soon led to anger issues. Worried about how the peer pressure was affecting Aiko, his family decided to place him in therapy sessions several times a week. During his 4th grade year, his school guidance counselor gave him a suggestion…, " When you begin to feel angry, upset, or sad, I want you to write your feelings on a piece of paper and once you have written down all of the things that anger you, throw the note paper away." Instead, Aiko kept every single one of those “anger notes” that he'd written and began to use them to make his way out of that dark place. Those thoughts were soon channeled into the lyrical phenomenon that he is today… A fortunate gift uprooted by unfortunate circumstances. Aiko’s lyrics tell the story of an unhappy child who grew to be a troubled teen that later became a well sought after disc jockey. Words of life is revealed through personal events, poetry, spoken words and music. This artist is well on the way to superstardom.
In 2008, Aiko attended the Art Institute of Atlanta too study music and video production. Additionally, this is where AIKO also grasped other aspects of the entertainment industry. However, due to financial hardship, Aiko would return home to South Carolina in the Spring of 2009, but that was just a temporary setback. Aiko continued to leave his impression in the industry and was invited to travel to New York and audition for the BET hit show “106 & Park”. Aiko poured divine passion into his audition that left the judges utterly impressed; dubbing his as the younger version of the iconic music mogul, Lil Wayne. Aiko has also won distinguished awards such as the "NEWBERRY GOT TALENT" (1st place for two consecutive years), followed by “BEST MC AND CROWD FAVORITE”. Aiko also entered the “Coast 2 Coast Mixtape Showcase” (ATL Edition) and won 2nd place. He also entered his video "Energy Cover" into their video showcase and won 1st place. Expanding his passion for music, in 2013 Aiko began to self-teach his self the art of deejaying and within one year, a new buzz started to swarm in his favor.
Aiko is booked all across South Carolina, Georgia, and North Carolina. He's held events in Tennessee, and Texas.
