Forty-eight-year-old Oki is a member of the Ainu, the indiginous people of Hokkaido Island in northern Japan, although he was raised in an environment that tried to "assimilate away" the cultural roots of its indigenous populace. As his interest in his roots grew, he was introduced to and almost single-handedly resuscitated the tonkori, an elongated five-stringed instrument he plays with an almost African twang and swing.OKI was born to a Japanese mother and an Ainu father.