When I was 13, I found a man bleeding out from a gunshot wound on the side of the street in Edgewood, Maryland—and it changed everything. I later learned the man died, and one of the suspects was the older brother of a girl I once loved, who’s now been missing for years. This is a story about violence, survival, and the unbearable truths we’re forced to carry far too young.

Designing my own merch wasn’t just a creative project—it was a milestone. I opened the packages and saw my vision in real life for the first time, and it hit me: I’m building something real. The Raw Reflections merch store is coming soon, and I’ve never been more proud.

When DJ Akademiks messaged me, I felt flattered. He was the first famous man I ever seriously considered hanging out with. But then I read the lawsuit. What started as harmless DMs turned into a chilling realization: I had been one “yes” away from ending up in a headline. This isn’t just about him—it’s about how fame disguises danger, and how gut instinct is sometimes the only thing that keeps us safe.

I didn’t grow up hearing about domestic violence—I grew up watching it. I saw it in black eyes and slammed doors. I felt it in the silence that followed every explosion. This isn’t just my story—it’s my origin. The reason I became an activist. The reason I write, speak, and refuse to stay quiet. Because I know what it’s like to be the kid in the room, and I’ll spend the rest of my life fighting so others don’t have to grow up in fear like I did.

He told me I was weak for crying. For feeling too much. For being sensitive. But what I’ve learned is this — my emotions weren’t the problem. His inability to face them was. My sensitivity didn’t make me fragile. It made me human.