The hyphy music culture was dead upon inception But that doesn’t stop Sebastian Valdes from getting “hella hyphy” to any upbeat song, regardless of the genre. Valdes, originally from the sloped streets of San Francisco, has seen much personal success since making his way to the islands via a tennis scholarship from Chaminade University. Upon graduating, he co-founded his own event promotions company named Upperclassmen. Loving the island life, Valdes has shifted his focus from serving aces to serving up aloha—daily—as the store manager of Hawai‘i’s premier custom cap retailer Fitted.


Ges: Could you state your name and aliases with explanations?
Sebastian Valdes: Sebastian J. Valdes aka Bobby Filipino aka Bobby McEnroe. One night I came into the shop for a meeting looking all grown man-ish with some sunglasses on and a fresh fade and they said I look like Bobby Valentino. From then on out, they started calling me Bobby Filipino. As for Bobby McEnroe, ask Jimmy Taco and Ola. [Laughs]

What made you decide to ditch your scraper, stunnas and hyphy juice and move to Hawai‘i?
Technically, I still have my stunnas and a scraper
(it doesn’t run though). But I came out to Hawai‘i to attend Chaminade University on a tennis scholarship. Yes, I said tennis!

Was there a serious cultural shock when you first really discovered Hawai‘i?
Yeah, most definitely. I thought that coming from SF, which is a cultural melting pot in itself, I wouldn’t be as shocked as I was. I’ve never experienced so many different cultures in such a short time whether it be the Samoan culture, Hawaiian culture or island culture as a whole. I am definitely blessed to have experienced all that I have while I’ve been here.

You’re also an event promoter with Upperclassmen. Please explain to us what this is and how it came about.
Upperclassmen is a promoting group that was started by myself, Ryan Aguon, Keneke the Great, and J. Ramos. We just felt that there was/is a void with young promoters. All the main promoters have been in the game for at least 10 years. I feel that we can reach out to the new generation of clubbers and be mentioned as one of the top promoters for years to come, along with companies like Vertical Junkies, Tantriq, etc…



Besides shaking your dreads...let me rephrase this. Besides shaking your trademark “two watches” in the air at Hush Nightclub, what are your other favorite activities that you indulge yourself in while living in Hawai‘i nei?
[Laughs] I’d say surfing, but I can’t even sit on a surfboard without tipping over. Then I’d say skateboarding, but I’d probably bust my ass, so I would have to say my favorite activity is going to the beach with my Vans on. [Giggles with a straight face]

Please keep telling on yourself. Now would you say there are any similarities that parallel San Francisco and Hawai‘i?
Well there are a lot of people that are out here that are from San Francisco, or rather the Bay Area as a whole, so in that sense there is a big SF feel here in the islands and vice versa. There are a lot of people from Hawai‘i who are in SF and therefore, there is a big Hawaiian or rather island feel in SF. Both places are very diverse when it comes to people, culture, food, etc. With that said I am able to call both places home.

Do you wear your sunglasses at night?
Yes sir. All the bright lights from all the cameras that go off when I’m out make my eyes very sensitive. [Laughs and tells me he’s kidding, but he really isn’t]

How did you end up working at Fitted and becoming the shop manager?
I lurked in the shop for three days bothering Rene and Ola. I was the first kid on the team, so I probably got the manager position by being with the company for so long and by the hard work I’ve put in over the years. So in other words, by default.

You’ve been with the company from the start and witnessed its growth. What can you honestly say you’ve learned from an experience like this?
To be humble. Funny coming from me, I know, but one thing I’ve learned is to be humble and always count your blessings.

Perfect. What would you say is a dying trend in Hawai‘i at this moment?
Aloha shirts! I think every company should require their employees to wear Aloha shirts every Friday.