Biography

East3, is best known for his designing and aerosol murals that he has painted and designed in numerous parts of the world. Behind the art you will find a seasoned entrepreneur, dedicated project manager and responsible accountant with great attention to detail. Ken has worked as a professional artist for nearly thirty years and has developed projects and work with clients worldwide.

East3’s, colorful career as a professional artist began by painting custom art on ready wear, hand drawn Hip Hop youth event fliers and painting community murals at several High Schools in the mid 1980’s on O’ahu, Hawai’i. East3 later immersed himself in Hip Hop culture and education during a period of ongoing visits to New York City and California from 1994 to 2008. Ken’s commitment, efforts and talents were recognized by New York City and California’s Hip Hop communities and industries through collaborations with such artist and groups like the Rock Steady Crew, Adidas Originals, Dj Qbert, Afrika Bambaataa, Rawkus Records, Mix Master Mike, Kid Robot and more. Ken was also a dedicated student to the late and legendary Hip Hop Pioneer named PHASE2 since 1986.  PHASE 2 mentored East3 for over 30 years teaching his philosophy and techniques towards Writing Culture.  PHASE 2 was a true artist and practitioner of the arts. He pioneered the artforms of Breaking, Writing, Emee and Dj’n in the early 70’s way before the culture was branded Hip Hop in 1981. 

Dividing his time between Honolulu and his travels, East3 was active in sharing his knowledge and experiences through his co-founded Hip Hop music radio show called “Mind Tactic”, on Clear Chanel’s I-94, organized youth and community events. East3 also gained a lot of expertise on street wear fashion which lead to designing his own brand of street wear as well as designing for other established brands. Throughout his career from late 90’s-2009, Ken has learned great lessons from working with excellent partners like: Recording artist Corant “Common” Lynn, Adidas Originals, Play Station UK, Fatlace, Illest Brand, Clear Channel Broadcasting, GQ magazine. Most recently East 3 collaborated with innovative companies like Bucketfeet, Modify Watches and VMWare. 

Since 2015, Ken has been focused on his company, Keep It Flowing LLC (KIF). KIF partners with non-profit and for-profit companies to provide creative designs solutions and youth empowerment programs through awareness murals and education. KIF has project managed and painted over 35 murals statewide within 5 years and has received numerous proclamations in all 4 counties within the State of Hawai’i. Ken’s goal is to continue inspiring & creating awareness through art to help strengthen communities in all 4 counties of Hawai’i.