The Aloha Spirit with Derick Sebastian

WEBVTT

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Kill them with kindness, man, just love, love people, period.

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Love your enemies, love your family, love your friends, love your loved ones.

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Because at the end of the day, at the end of the day, it doesn't matter.

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It doesn't matter what people think of you.

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It matters what you did for yourself and what you gave.

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Welcome to The Wayfinder Show with Luis Hernandez, where guests discuss the why and how of making changes that lead them down a more authentic path or allow them to level up in some area of their life.

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Our goal is to dig deep and provide not only knowledge, but actionable advice to help you get from where you are to where you want to be.

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Come join us and find the way to your dream life.

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Welcome back to the wayfinder show.

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I'm your host louis hernandez And today I'm here with Derek Sebastian.

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Derek is a Maui born ukulele virtuoso.

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He has enchanted global audiences, shared stages with artists like Jason Raz and Boyz II Men, and he's performed at venues such as Dodger Stadium and the Pixar Animation Studios.

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Expanding his creative horizons, Derek now composes and produces music for film and television.

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His upcoming book, Daydreaming with Purpose, an inspirational memoir of the Aloha spirit in action, chronicles his musical journey and offers self leadership strategies to turn passion into profession.

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Derek, welcome to The Wayfinder Show.

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Yes.

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Aloha, Louis.

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Thank you so much for having me, brother.

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I appreciate you, man.

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Yeah.

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Likewise.

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Yeah.

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Thank you.

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Aloha to you.

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So I'm curious, what is the Aloha spirit?

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Oh, man, you know, it's, it's, well, first of all, aloha in Hawaii means hello, goodbye, love, you know, that's pretty much the, the definition of the word itself, but here in Hawaii, man, aloha is more or less, it's a lifestyle, it's the way you live your life, uh, it's just being in gratitude, being an appreciation, uh, just be, you know, being, uh, in the moment per se, uh, it's just loving people, loving your circumstances regardless.

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Cheers.

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Regardless of what you're going through in life kind of deal.

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It's that, uh, helping each other walk home, uh, mentality.

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You know what I mean?

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Yeah, and so it's that, um, Unconditional love man.

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Aloha.

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I Love that.

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I love I knew it meant hello, but I didn't realize you know what the spirit was behind it.

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That's beautiful.

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Yeah Yeah, yeah, they call it the aloha spirit man, you know, just just embracing one another, you know of Everyone and anyone and everyone of any walk of life, you know, you know, I'm just accepting it You know just say just basically acceptance man.

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It's all good I love that.

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Yeah, we could all use that right now.

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We could all use some Aloha Spirit.

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So that's great.

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Sure thing, sure thing.

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Yeah, so it seems like it's just part of the culture and the mindset there.

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So maybe that's why Hawaiian people are just known to be such beautiful, gracious people to be around, right?

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I thought it was the weather.

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So it's just a spirit actually, huh?

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Yeah, I guess it's part of the weather too, man.

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It keeps you smiling Hawaiian time, you know, help you slow down a little bit, you know.

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Yeah, yeah, how can you not?

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So tell us a little bit about your journey.

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How'd you uh, you have a pretty inspiring story I'll let you share it As you see best Yeah, no, uh, again, mahalo.

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Um, you know, I'm, I'm born and raised here on the island of Maui.

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Um, I've been playing the ukulele for 30, 31 years now.

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It's been a long journey.

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I grew up, you know, and I never, uh, started off on the ukulele to be quite honest.

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You know, the journey was technically, um, um, well, I'm going to back it up a little bit.

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I lost my dad.

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Had my dad passed away when I was three years old.

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And what happened was when that, um, when that occurred, I didn't really understand life.

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I was three years old.

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I was young.

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My dad passed away from, uh, just a horrible industrial accident as he was a mechanic here at the sugar cane plant.

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But when he passed away, um, I didn't really understand the whole process and why people were around and so emotional and all that.

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Crazy stuff until I got a little older where um, you know, I just started to question life that we're not having a dad There there was a void and I was just trying to fill that void.

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I had bad asthma So mom didn't let me play too much sports and let me be active to that matter So it was pretty difficult until um, you know when when I guess I could kind of realize that hey I'm going to open houses And all these school functions and, you know, fundraisers and all that stuff by myself or with my sister and My mom's not around because she's busy working and dad's not here and you know, that, that, that void started to kind of take a little hold on me.

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Um, but I was blessed enough to, you know, mom let me play baseball, I think age of nine or 10 or something like that.

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Uh, that was, uh, that was like a breath of fresh air, man.

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It was like, wow, this is so cool.

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I was enjoying it.

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And, you know, unfortunately, my asthma got bad again when I turned 11 years old, about sixth grade.

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And, um, it was back to that void feeling kind of deal.

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And, uh, I was just, one day, man, I was just cruising around in school.

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It became, um, just going through the motion kind of deal.

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Boring, you know, cause I was not, no, no baseball.

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Just going, you know, just going through the motions and just going through school.

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Uh, and then one day I, I stumbled upon our, our good family friend.

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Uh, but he was working.

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Working at a school security at that time, uh, Mr.

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Sam Ellis, and he was during recess, he was sitting on the bench playing his ukulele.

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And I kind of was like, Hey, what is that?

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And you know, everybody was kind of gathered around him having fun, laughing and just joking.

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And Mr.

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Ellis was improvising, playing the lo, you know, the local songs, the local jams here in Hawaii.

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And I just gravitated to that man.

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I, I just experienced like pure joy of what he was doing.

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And that kind of, you know, uh, just drew me to that space.

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Uh, end up sitting with him that day.

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He told me, Hey, you try.

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And I was like, Oh my gosh.

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I, I, I, you know, I strummed a couple of times, sounded horrible, but it was fun.

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Um, but that, that was a start, man.

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That was, that was a fast forward journey of how I got introduced to the ukulele.

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Wow.

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What was it?

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Was it the sound or the people gathered around and, and, and just seeing the joy that he brought to people or what, what do you think it was about that?

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I, I just, I just felt that carefree.

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You know, no, no worries.

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Just have fun, let loose, um, enjoy each other's company.

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And that ukulele was that bridge of that communication, that, that emotion, that feeling.

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And I was like, man, I want, I want to be part of it, man.

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I wanted to, you know, I wanted to have that carefree and just emote.

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Cause you know, growing up without a dad and just going through these ups and downs and feeling loneliness and lost and, you know, baseball got taken away and I was doing nothing but going.

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cartoons after school.

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Um, when the ukulele, I was like, wow.

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You know, when the ukulele came into play, I was, I was just blown away.

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And, uh, Mr.

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Ellis was that, that angel in the skies who, um, you know, opened up a whole new world for me.

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So, yeah.

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Amazing.

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And so that was the spark.

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What, what, what happened next?

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What'd you do with that?

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You know, Louie, um, I think about two years, you know, sixth grade to eighth grade.

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I was obsessed with that instrument, man.

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I played easy five hours a day.

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I would, I would get up early in the morning, play, go to school, um, recess, play with Mr.

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Jean, Mr.

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Ellis, play some ukulele there after school, same thing.

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Um, you know, I think I eventually went back to baseball, but you know, I would, I would play before baseball practice after baseball before bed or whatever.

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I mean, I was just obsessed with it where I wanted to master that instrument.

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And I was inspired by all these different genres of music.

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You know, obviously Hawaiian, contemporary Hawaiian, uh, reggae.

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I did enjoy the jazz classical.

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I mean, all these pop rock and, you know, and I wanted to see if I could play those genres on the ukulele and, you know, That really sparked like some kind of dedication.

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I experienced consistency and you know, I think about eighth grade, it allowed me to start dreaming and having a bigger, um, you know, just expanding that mindset, man.

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So I started to have all these goals.

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I wanted to inspire.

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You know, others and to travel the world and tour around the world, um, inspire others through the ukulele and, you know, I think that's where it started.

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It really had that foundation where, um, the ukulele just allowed me to dream really.

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So.

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That's amazing.

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So, uh, you know, I just recently watched a movie, uh, it was a biography, uh, of, uh, Carlos Santana.

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I can't remember.

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I think it was Santana is the name of it, right?

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Uh, great film and amazing artist, I'm sure you recognize.

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And as you're describing your story, it's reminding me of that, man.

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Like, he just, you know, developed such a passion for it and, um And he just wanted to cross all genres and he did and you've done the same, you know, how, how neat was that?

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Like you've, you've performed with Jason Ross and Boyz II Men and there's a slew of others, right?

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Um, how, how, what was, what's that been like?

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Just to, to cross genres and perform with the people at the top of, of those genres.

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Yeah, um, you know, it's a dream come true man, you know, I I manifested that to be quite honest.

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A lot of the things is you know, it's just everything leads to another you know Uh speaking of carlos santana.

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I was playing locally here years back at this local restaurant hula grill and uh Long story short man.

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Uh, we're playing this Uh, cover, uh, original, a cover song of his, uh, Oye Como Va, and we were jamming him.

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We were jamming him.

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I was playing the ukulele.

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I was with my trio band, and, um, man, all of a sudden, man, a manager, um, well, back it up a little bit.

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My bandmates were kind of like, not freaking out, but their eyes got kind of big, and I was.

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Uh, in the, you know, in the zone playing and I didn't know what's really, you know, what's really going on until after the, the song was done, the man, the, the restaurant manager came up and said, hey, I'm not sure if you Um saw who was watching you folks play But Carlos Santana sat right in front there and he was watching you play and perform the song.

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I didn't even know, but my bandmates knew and I was telling them, why didn't you, you know, tell me or, you know, kind of like do this or whatever.

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And dude, I was freaking out.

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And, you know, long story short, um, You know, Carlos invited us to his table.

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We shared a few moments.

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Um, very, very humble man.

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Beautiful soul.

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Very inviting.

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I thought he was going to just chop me up about how I, you know, just butchered the song, but he enjoyed it, man.

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Um, you know, we, it was, it was such a blur.

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We didn't even get a picture together.

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Uh, but it was such a great experience.

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And, you know, on top of that, you know, I, I got a, you know, My fir, I got three boys.

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My first son is named Santana, so amazing.

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Wow.

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But, uh, what a dream come true moment, Yeah, I mean, um, but you know, just to answer your question, Louis, um, you know, it's been a blessing to, to, um, not just manifest, um, who I would love to have met and to, to jam with and to cross paths with.

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Um, but it's just a beautiful thing to.

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To have music or ukulele in my world, you know, the ukulele to bridge that gap to establish amazing, beautiful relationships with all these other artists, you know, so, yeah, I'm curious, uh, in performing with such artists and, and becoming a peer with them, right?

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What, what, um, What have you learned from them?

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You know, I, I've, I've crossed paths with many artists and, uh, celebrities, if you will, or established, um, professionals, uh, if you will.

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But, you know, at the end of the day, Louis, you know, I've, I've learned, I, I don't get starstruck to be quite honest.

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Um, I've, I've never.

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Got to that phase or that that space.

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Um, but what I've learned is, um, these, these guys are all human beings like me.

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And it's not what, you know, we don't talk about talent.

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We don't talk about money or fame or fortune.

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We talk about life.

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Um, we, we appreciate.

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our calling.

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We, we, we discuss our purpose in life.

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Uh, we, we speak about what means, what, what our journey means to ourselves and what, what our intentions are to others and inspiring others to our gifts.

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And it's a beautiful thing, man.

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Um, It's kind of hard to explain in words, but that the connection of knowing that we have a gift from God, where we were able to use that to not just be on a platform, but to give back and then to receive too.

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So, um, it's a beautiful thing, you know, Louie to, um, yeah, I've learned that it's not really.

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Not, you know, at the end of the day, I've learned, um, that is not, people don't really remember like the accolades or the accomplishments that I've done or they've done.

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You know, people remember how you make them feel and, you know, by just having that as one of my foundations and mantras in life, you know, I think that's part of the big success right there.

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So, yeah.

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That's beautiful.

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You talk a lot about, um, having, you know, your, your passion, turning your passion into, you know, what you do, your purpose, as you say, right?

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I think, well, your book is Daydreaming with Purpose.

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Um, and you've been very, and I think a lot of us start out as kids that way.

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And somewhere along the way, we kind of get lost and that starts to wither away.

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How have you been able to maintain focus on keeping your passion, um, alive?

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Going in strong and growing probably.

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Right.

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And, and making, uh, a life out of it.

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Yeah.

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Um, you know, I was, I think the, the big part of it all is having, uh, Mr.

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Ellis, uh, which, which, um, Mr.

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Sam Ellis, who became my father figure, or Hanai dad.

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We call that in Hawaii, like adopted dad.

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Uh, you know, he, he really took me under his wing, uh, especially after he introduced me to the ukulele.

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I mean, with all due respect, I do surround myself with amazing people, especially a close group of mentors and father figures as well.

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But Mr.

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Ellis was one of the key people that really laid out that foundation of Yeah, dream big, you know, um, you know, dream big and, and if, if, if that dream doesn't scare you, it's not big enough.

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And you know, as a 13, 14 year old kid trying to dream big, it's scary.

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It's really scary.

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It's almost impossible because.

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It's like, how can I travel the world?

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You know, how can I connect my childhood dream of, you know, becoming a professional athlete?

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That was my dream back then.

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And, you know, how, how can I get to that, that level while playing the ukulele?

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I mean, it was almost impossible.

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Um, but Mr.

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Ellis always, you know, showed number one love.

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and encouragement.

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And from there, you know, he, he made me feel that anything was possible and I believe it.

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I believed it.

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And he always told me that, you know, you know, if you believe it, you, you, and you can see it, then you can easily achieve it.

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Um, it's just, it's just going to take consistency and not giving up, uh, along the way people give up and they get discouraged.

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But if you keep going and you keep trying, you know, um, you'll find a way you keep knocking and one door will open.

00:17:39.199 --> 00:17:49.138
And hopefully, you know, you go through that door, if you're courageous and, you know, you're brave enough to go through that door and embrace it, then, you know, success lies on the other side.

00:17:49.148 --> 00:17:50.769
So, yeah.

00:17:51.118 --> 00:17:51.449
Yeah.

00:17:52.219 --> 00:18:04.588
Well, is there like a, a breakthrough performance or moment or something that you kind of think of that really just sparked all of your, your success and how you got discovered and such?

00:18:06.249 --> 00:18:11.219
Or did it just keep happening, you just kept performing and then it just one led to the other?

00:18:11.229 --> 00:18:11.249
Yeah.

00:18:11.249 --> 00:18:11.271
Yeah.

00:18:11.271 --> 00:18:11.294
Yeah.

00:18:13.034 --> 00:18:49.138
Yeah, yeah, Louie, you know, it was all in steps, you know, um, I mean, I was a kid who dreamt of going on stages here locally on Maui, uh, entering ukulele contests and all that stuff, you know, I did it, I achieved it, I won contests and I lost some of them, uh, but I wanted to start traveling and playing, uh, ukulele festivals and concerts around the US that Um, that led to other things, you know, in the sports world, you know, performing halftime shows from NCAA, men's basketball, women's basketball, PGA.

00:18:51.558 --> 00:19:00.489
MLB where, um, I kind of stumbled upon meeting the CEO and president of the Arizona Diamondbacks here on Maui while performing at the Hula Grill.

00:19:00.489 --> 00:19:01.278
Same thing, man.

00:19:01.278 --> 00:19:17.253
And, um, you know, he invited me over to, to attend a baseball game and, It kind of asked like, hey, you know, it kind of like segway and he's asking, hey, why are we, you know, you're on this tour and this and that and how about you come to Arizona?

00:19:17.253 --> 00:19:18.034
I was like, sure.

00:19:18.034 --> 00:19:20.114
And he said, he asked me if I had my ukulele.

00:19:20.114 --> 00:19:20.773
I said, yeah.

00:19:20.773 --> 00:19:23.243
And he asked me if I could do the national anthem.

00:19:23.243 --> 00:19:24.574
And I said, yes.

00:19:24.594 --> 00:19:26.354
But at that time I didn't know the song.

00:19:26.354 --> 00:19:27.114
I just said, yes.

00:19:27.144 --> 00:19:28.114
I was just so excited.

00:19:28.114 --> 00:19:29.213
I said, yeah, let's do it.

00:19:29.213 --> 00:19:34.804
And I remember hanging up the phone and thinking to myself, Oh my gosh, what did I get myself into?

00:19:34.804 --> 00:19:39.884
And, um, that led to many more bigger opportunities.

00:19:39.884 --> 00:19:48.223
And, um, I don't think there's like one particular moment that really defines, um, the success or that milestone per se.

00:19:48.594 --> 00:20:00.443
Um, I'm just grateful that I keep evolving, I keep being creative, you know, all this whole entire journey as a creative or ukulele artist.

00:20:01.084 --> 00:20:17.243
Um, has been amazing, man, has been so blessed, uh, sometimes, you know, I forget, you know, I overlook the, the things that I've accomplished, uh, I have to remind myself to, to stay humble and be grateful, and, you know, that's just part of the journey, man, so.

00:20:17.693 --> 00:20:18.074
Yeah.

00:20:18.663 --> 00:20:32.153
You know, let's talk about that, uh, that evolution there, now, you're, you're, you're kind of going through one now, where you're going more from being a live performer to getting on, you know, to, to, to, uh, to doing.

00:20:32.848 --> 00:20:39.148
TV, uh, shows and, and film and, and other forms of media, what, what's that like?

00:20:39.148 --> 00:20:41.469
Do you, is it just as enjoyable?

00:20:41.479 --> 00:20:45.719
Do you, do you miss the live performances or what's that whole transition like?

00:20:48.138 --> 00:20:53.278
Oh man, you know, I, I've been, uh, performing artist for 20 plus years.

00:20:53.358 --> 00:21:22.068
Um, and it, I mean, to be honest, um, I was, when I started, I mean, When I started committing to becoming a real full time artist and performing around, not just Hawaii, but throughout the U S and it became internationally, you know, it was like easy about five years straight being gone a hundred plus days out of the year away from my wife and three boys.

00:21:22.509 --> 00:21:23.588
So it was tough.

00:21:23.628 --> 00:21:24.229
It was tough.

00:21:24.979 --> 00:21:49.828
But at the same time, it was, it was worth it because I got to experience and live out this dream, but I didn't, I wasn't really clear on where it was going to lead me to, but I knew it was just that calling that I need to respond to, you know, but with faith, um, and the love and support from my wife, especially, and, and even though it was difficult, um, you know, I had the support.

00:21:50.054 --> 00:21:54.344
I had the support from my wife and my needed families and all that good stuff.

00:21:54.794 --> 00:22:05.483
And, you know, I can recall one time coming home from, you know, uh, uh, European ukulele tour in the winter.

00:22:05.493 --> 00:22:09.423
And, and I was, I was really burnt out from there, you know, from, from that tour.

00:22:09.953 --> 00:22:10.923
And I remember coming home.

00:22:12.519 --> 00:22:18.219
To my wife one, you know, one after immediately after that, I said, Hey, I don't want to, I don't want to travel no more.

00:22:18.759 --> 00:22:21.128
And she thought something bad happened to be quite honest.

00:22:21.199 --> 00:22:23.088
Uh, it wasn't, I was just burnt out.

00:22:23.088 --> 00:22:28.909
And, um, I just, I felt that I needed to kind of evolve a little bit.

00:22:28.939 --> 00:22:34.909
So I, you know, long story short, I, I started to tap into more emoting.

00:22:34.929 --> 00:22:36.398
More writing.

00:22:36.398 --> 00:22:44.288
I wanted to see how song the real, like real songwriting or music composition was, was, you know, the process.

00:22:44.288 --> 00:22:46.868
How, how was it or how is it actually?

00:22:46.989 --> 00:22:54.739
So, you know, I, I started tapping into songwriting and going songwriting conferences and then that led into music licensing.

00:22:54.739 --> 00:23:04.128
So Prof, um, you know, composing music or songwriting for, um, television music, uh, television, um, TV commercials, advertisements.

00:23:04.429 --> 00:23:04.909
So.

00:23:05.403 --> 00:23:11.773
That's kind of like behind the scenes and that, that, that still is an amazing journey right now.

00:23:11.773 --> 00:23:18.364
I'm currently in it, not as much, um, just because I'm, you know, kind of transition into an authorship journey now.

00:23:18.794 --> 00:23:21.473
So, yeah, but you know, I just keep evolving.

00:23:21.963 --> 00:23:26.384
It keeps evolving and, you know, I'm very fortunate to experience this journey.

00:23:27.203 --> 00:23:48.314
Yeah, so it sounds like your transition just came more out of you being at a stage in life Where you just didn't want to travel you wanted to be around more Probably with your family and such and so the songwriting and in working for films and TV and such Allowed for that more just a evolution of life kind of yeah.

00:23:49.044 --> 00:23:50.598
Yeah That makes sense.

00:23:50.999 --> 00:23:51.229
Yeah.

00:23:51.229 --> 00:23:52.929
Where, where do you see that going next?

00:23:52.939 --> 00:23:53.229
Yeah.

00:23:53.259 --> 00:23:53.479
Yeah.

00:23:56.808 --> 00:24:12.219
You know, I mean, I, I, I think music will always be in me and, and I still perform for private events today, uh, weddings, corporate, I don't really perform on a regular basis, quote unquote at restaurants, lobby lounge.

00:24:12.263 --> 00:24:14.463
and all that stuff.

00:24:14.753 --> 00:24:15.993
Uh, local parties.

00:24:16.034 --> 00:24:21.134
Um, you know, my time is kind of spread thin a little bit and my focus is creative.

00:24:21.163 --> 00:24:24.663
Um, so, you know, I, I still do the music licensing.

00:24:24.693 --> 00:24:26.534
I still take in briefs.

00:24:26.564 --> 00:24:33.163
Um, all those, you know, working with music supervisors, directors, uh, music libraries as well.

00:24:34.104 --> 00:24:39.394
Uh, and all these songwriters and composers, um, that I work throughout, you know, throughout the U.

00:24:39.394 --> 00:24:40.594
S., Nashville, L.

00:24:40.594 --> 00:24:43.493
A., um, even internationally as well.

00:24:43.493 --> 00:24:58.253
So, it's, it's a beautiful thing, um, but this, this next big project is, um, the book, you know, Daydreaming With Purpose, and this is where I'm at right now, just, just exploring this authorship journey now, so.

00:24:58.523 --> 00:25:00.094
Yeah, and what inspired that?

00:25:04.538 --> 00:25:15.308
You know, Louis, it was a seed that was planted some years back, and I had that vision of writing a book, um, but I always killed that idea.

00:25:15.499 --> 00:25:25.489
I always thought, oh, it would be so cool to be an author one day and write a book, but the thought immediately of that, you know, imposter syndrome, or I'm not good enough, or who am I to write a book?

00:25:25.499 --> 00:25:30.669
You know, what stories are so special that everybody needs to read about it?

00:25:30.989 --> 00:25:57.733
So I always kind of like, you know, kind of, kick that out or kind of like downplay it and suppress but long story short i mean i you know i became a really really good friend of and he he's here on maui uh he's a publishing coach he's an author i mean he's a speaker and you know i just you know friend of a friend i met him patrick patrick snow and He was, he would be like always encouraging me, Hey Derek, you got to write your book.

00:25:57.733 --> 00:25:59.354
I said, yeah, no, that's okay.

00:25:59.963 --> 00:26:01.653
You know, he did it for like two, three years.

00:26:01.663 --> 00:26:09.834
Like, and then 20, 2024 this year, you know, we sat down at the coffee shop, we're having some coffee and he said.

00:26:10.409 --> 00:26:12.229
I think it's time for you to write this book.

00:26:12.239 --> 00:26:15.138
I said, nah, maybe not.

00:26:15.269 --> 00:26:16.618
And he said, no, no, no.

00:26:16.618 --> 00:26:19.739
I think, I think you need to document your stories.

00:26:19.739 --> 00:26:25.528
And I said, you know, my stories are my stories and, you know, maybe one day.

00:26:26.128 --> 00:26:31.028
And I think he got a little bit frustrated because I always just kept putting it off and stuff like that.

00:26:31.058 --> 00:26:34.949
Um, but he, he said, okay, think of it this way.

00:26:34.949 --> 00:26:36.719
You need to start stamping your legacy.

00:26:36.719 --> 00:26:47.348
You need to start telling your stories, not just the success, but the struggles, you know, your family, your aloha, uh, your, your, the ups and downs and everything in between.

00:26:47.358 --> 00:26:50.999
Everybody sees you on this, you know, your next success, your next success.

00:26:51.459 --> 00:26:58.929
Everybody wants to know what's, what's Derek Sebastian is all about, what's his foundation, what's his purpose, what's his calling.

00:26:59.318 --> 00:27:07.778
And he said, if you're If you, I mean, when you write this book, at least write it for your three kids, your, your wife and your three boys.

00:27:08.159 --> 00:27:22.909
And so one day, when you're long gone, at least your boys can tell their children or their great, the great grandchildren or your great, great grandchildren, you know, they can show them that book and say, Hey, listen, this is where we came from.

00:27:23.338 --> 00:27:25.338
And this is our foundation.

00:27:25.338 --> 00:27:28.689
And this is, you know, Papa's legacy or, you know, my dad's legacy.

00:27:28.989 --> 00:27:35.818
And when he said that, that struck a complete different chord in my heart.

00:27:36.028 --> 00:27:39.409
And that is when I said to myself, you know what?

00:27:40.429 --> 00:27:41.989
I'm going to write this darn book.

00:27:42.019 --> 00:27:43.368
And I started writing.

00:27:43.388 --> 00:27:45.828
I, I went to work, man.

00:27:45.868 --> 00:27:52.058
Um, just easy waking up three, four in the morning and writing and, you know, emoting.

00:27:52.068 --> 00:27:56.128
And, uh, I think I got my rough draft done in 30 days.

00:27:56.138 --> 00:27:58.148
It wasn't close to being done, but.

00:27:58.509 --> 00:28:17.239
You know the rough draft was done in 30 days, but obviously we had to you know revise and add and take out And that's a whole nother process, but at least that rough draft of that that book Was done in 30 days so Wow Wow you really hit it hard.

00:28:17.929 --> 00:28:19.769
How um how old are you boys now?

00:28:23.378 --> 00:28:32.288
You know, Louis, I got three boys, uh, Santana, he's 19, uh, Marley is 16, and Jackson is 14.

00:28:33.699 --> 00:28:34.759
They're all old already.

00:28:35.669 --> 00:28:37.348
I love, I love the names.

00:28:37.348 --> 00:28:37.818
Oh, man.

00:28:37.848 --> 00:28:41.038
That is amazing, that tells me a lot about your influences right there.

00:28:41.638 --> 00:28:42.229
Amazing.

00:28:42.648 --> 00:28:52.068
So, um, I'm curious as to if any of them took, you know, inspiration from you, and are now performing, or, or, uh, you know, what?

00:28:53.608 --> 00:28:56.009
Where they're at with it, like what's their reaction to this?

00:28:58.719 --> 00:29:10.898
Ah, you know, Louis, I love my boys and I vowed from the get go when they were born that I would never force them or to live my dreams through them.

00:29:11.939 --> 00:29:24.729
I, I do what I do, but I just, my goal in life as being the best father I could be is just to encourage them and love them and bring out the best in them in what they want to do and what they.

00:29:25.898 --> 00:29:27.338
should shine their light in this world.

00:29:27.578 --> 00:29:30.259
So, you know, obviously they do play ukulele.

00:29:30.449 --> 00:29:32.818
I do not, um, force them to play.

00:29:32.868 --> 00:29:35.328
I don't tell them to pick it up and practice with me.

00:29:35.628 --> 00:29:44.709
In fact, I almost play hard to get because when they want to play, I just, I try, I mean, we play together, but when they want to learn something, I said, Hey, you got to figure it out, man.

00:29:44.719 --> 00:29:48.588
Here's a few scales or patterns, but you got to continue to.

00:29:49.009 --> 00:29:49.939
Listen to this.

00:29:49.949 --> 00:29:52.028
You can just, I kind of teach you note for note.

00:29:52.048 --> 00:30:04.179
And I, I do that for a reason because if they really, really want to learn the song, they will, you know, there's so much resources and I don't read, you know, I don't, I don't, I don't read sharps, flats, time signatures and all that.

00:30:04.179 --> 00:30:08.038
So, uh, music to me is more emotions.

00:30:08.594 --> 00:30:14.503
And I want them to explore those emotions to the songs that they listen to, or at least what they connect to.

00:30:14.923 --> 00:30:18.483
Um, the boys, my boys, they're all into sports.

00:30:18.503 --> 00:30:24.094
Um, uh, especially my two younger ones now, uh, Marley and Jackson, you know, they're, they're baseball.

00:30:24.324 --> 00:30:25.683
Uh, I love sports as well.

00:30:25.683 --> 00:30:28.134
So, you know, we can, we share a passion through that.

00:30:28.144 --> 00:30:30.374
But, um, as, as far as my oldest.

00:30:31.354 --> 00:30:40.534
You know, he, he, he played baseball a lot growing up, but now he's exploring his creative endeavors as a film and editor and in, in, you know, in production.

00:30:40.534 --> 00:30:53.384
So he resides in Portland, Oregon, and he worked for, um, you know, a production company as you know, he, he does a lot of editing work and he travels a lot, um, exploring his passion through film, film and, um, production.

00:30:53.384 --> 00:30:54.503
So yeah.

00:30:54.544 --> 00:30:54.733
Wow.

00:30:54.733 --> 00:30:55.044
Neat.

00:30:55.203 --> 00:30:55.483
Neat.

00:30:55.513 --> 00:30:55.983
Very neat.

00:30:56.693 --> 00:31:00.173
Well, I'm wondering who, who should pick up this book?

00:31:00.838 --> 00:31:03.538
And what, um, well, let's start there.

00:31:03.548 --> 00:31:05.068
Who, who should be reading your book?

00:31:09.358 --> 00:31:20.048
You know, anyone who has a calling or they feel that calling, or they, they sense that they, their life should be bigger than what it is right now.

00:31:20.489 --> 00:31:23.088
Um, and, but they're scared, they're hesitant.

00:31:23.259 --> 00:31:27.439
Maybe they're listening to too much media or others telling them what they.

00:31:28.034 --> 00:31:31.473
It should be and what they should be doing or who should they become.

00:31:32.023 --> 00:31:39.423
Um, I've been there, you know, I've second guessed even myself, my, you know, and I've heard a lot of criticism.

00:31:39.423 --> 00:31:41.334
I've, I've been rejected.

00:31:41.624 --> 00:31:43.804
I said no a million.

00:31:43.844 --> 00:31:48.423
I mean, I've heard no, you know, and rejected thousands or maybe millions of times.

00:31:48.423 --> 00:31:49.423
I don't know.

00:31:49.554 --> 00:31:50.824
It just, you know, but.

00:31:51.338 --> 00:31:57.058
It's all about, you know, just being consistent and being on that mission to find your purpose in life.

00:31:57.058 --> 00:32:00.148
Um, it doesn't mean music.

00:32:00.249 --> 00:32:03.239
It doesn't have to be anything that I think it is.

00:32:03.239 --> 00:32:14.209
It's just something that, hey, you want to be a, you know, a doctor, a fireman, or you want to sew, or you want to paint, or you want to draw, or anything that you feel that You gotta try.

00:32:14.219 --> 00:32:16.419
You should try it because everything leads to something.

00:32:16.419 --> 00:32:36.519
And the most beautiful thing is if you go out of your comfort zone, which most people's scared to step out of that comfort zone, that comfort circle, you know, once you do step out of that comfort zone or your comfort zone, you start to grow, you know, you start to, you start to, um, be courageous in a sense where to me, success is that little step.

00:32:36.519 --> 00:32:40.739
It's not because you just climbed that mountain or you achieve a trophy or you want an award.

00:32:41.138 --> 00:32:42.398
It's all about the next step.

00:32:42.398 --> 00:32:50.409
Like, Hey, today, I'm I'm going to make two, three, four, five phone calls and I'm going to try to book myself and you made those phone calls to me.

00:32:50.409 --> 00:32:59.068
That's success because you grew a little bit, you know, you read an article, you researched, uh, an artist or, you know, anything.

00:32:59.189 --> 00:33:05.949
Um, you know, it's all about being consistent and I think the reader here, um, daydreaming with purpose, it's all about that.

00:33:05.959 --> 00:33:09.088
It's all about, you know, determining, uh, you know.

00:33:10.584 --> 00:33:12.713
Your life and going after it.

00:33:12.733 --> 00:33:14.584
I mean, you got, we all got one life, man.

00:33:14.584 --> 00:33:15.653
We got to give it all, right?

00:33:15.653 --> 00:33:17.794
We got to give, uh, see where it all takes us.

00:33:17.794 --> 00:33:24.223
And we got to, we got to try our hardest to live and fulfill life full of purpose and calling.

00:33:24.223 --> 00:33:25.493
So, yeah.

00:33:26.134 --> 00:33:27.114
So is it too late?

00:33:27.153 --> 00:33:31.493
I'm 48 now, you know, almost 49 in a couple of weeks.

00:33:31.564 --> 00:33:35.263
Is it too late for me to pick up this book and get inspired by it?

00:33:38.003 --> 00:33:39.273
Never too late, Louie.

00:33:39.324 --> 00:33:40.134
Come on, man.

00:33:40.144 --> 00:33:41.094
You're still smiling.

00:33:41.094 --> 00:33:42.324
We're all alive, you know.

00:33:43.134 --> 00:34:08.829
My goal is to help you walk home and help others as well and be appreciative of where we are in life and you know, not being, um, I shouldn't say not being content, but content to know the fact that you have everything what you need and if you feel that calling that you need to do something bigger, and more impactful, I should say, in your life, then this book is for you.

00:34:09.028 --> 00:34:23.449
You know, if you have the desire to, to go out and grow and to, to, just to see what's out there of what you can possibly be, then this book is for you.

00:34:23.449 --> 00:34:26.028
Because daydreaming with purpose, anybody can daydream, man.

00:34:26.289 --> 00:34:27.889
And a lot of people stop daydreaming.

00:34:27.978 --> 00:34:29.148
When they're daydreaming, it's so sad.

00:34:29.233 --> 00:34:31.543
Scared they stop and say, oh, you know, that's not for me.

00:34:31.693 --> 00:34:32.773
I used to be like that.

00:34:32.773 --> 00:34:39.164
But if you, if you start to daydream with purpose and you start to think like, okay, wow, that was a cool dream.

00:34:40.373 --> 00:34:51.563
But if you start to change your mind, your thinking, and you start to manifest that, you know, you start changing how you speak about yourself and how, how you speak about accomplishing that calling or that goal or that purpose.

00:34:51.653 --> 00:34:59.003
And once you start changing the way you speak, I think that's where the magic happens, man, because your actions just magically.

00:34:59.099 --> 00:35:11.648
Um, you know, you start doing actions, you start doing calls or emails, or you start being courageous and start going out there and shaking hands and, you know, um, just going after it, you know, so daydream with purpose.

00:35:11.648 --> 00:35:21.268
I think, I think there's, there's a lot to it, you know, there's, there's a, there's a lot of courageous, um, you know, being courageous is pretty much it right there.

00:35:21.778 --> 00:35:22.099
Yeah.

00:35:22.099 --> 00:35:22.338
Yeah.

00:35:22.338 --> 00:35:22.668
Yeah.

00:35:23.048 --> 00:35:29.278
What is, give us a, that, give us like a, a really, uh, practical.

00:35:31.273 --> 00:35:37.414
And how to speak, you know, how, how should we be speaking either to others or ourselves right now?

00:35:37.414 --> 00:35:40.744
Like it was like exactly what to say.

00:35:44.324 --> 00:35:45.304
Two words, man.

00:35:45.534 --> 00:35:46.864
Just ask yourself, what if?

00:35:46.864 --> 00:35:47.923
What if?

00:35:48.704 --> 00:35:51.114
You know, I always ask myself, what if?

00:35:51.153 --> 00:35:52.393
Like, what if I can do that?

00:35:52.844 --> 00:35:54.224
Or what if I can be this?

00:35:54.693 --> 00:35:57.123
Or what if I could change or inspire that life?

00:35:57.514 --> 00:35:59.014
You know, what, what if?

00:35:59.043 --> 00:36:05.514
I mean, it's a real, real simple perspective, but it can go very, very deep.

00:36:06.664 --> 00:36:31.903
You don't want to go too wide on that because you can just, yeah, what if, what if, what if, but what if you really, really, really put your time and energy and say, what if I can inspire someone's life by doing or, or, and, you know, responding to my calling and fulfilling that purpose, you know, you know, back then when I started playing ukulele, Louie, It was not a popular instrument.

00:36:31.974 --> 00:36:37.034
I used to get teased playing ukulele, you know, I used to get put down.

00:36:37.833 --> 00:36:44.833
And when I started getting into it, uh, even family members started doubting me, like, Hey, what are you playing this ukulele for?

00:36:44.833 --> 00:36:46.063
Is it for attention?

00:36:46.063 --> 00:36:50.653
Or, I mean, it wasn't anything that they wanted to shut me down.

00:36:52.434 --> 00:36:56.414
It was just, it was hard to process that I'm playing the ukulele.

00:36:56.463 --> 00:37:00.114
I'm being successful to a point where I'm enjoying it.

00:37:00.244 --> 00:37:00.793
They see this.

00:37:02.498 --> 00:37:06.789
But they don't know how to process it because they've never seen it before.

00:37:07.139 --> 00:37:10.128
And it was out of love and maybe protection per se.

00:37:10.998 --> 00:37:14.108
But I always ask myself, what if?

00:37:14.139 --> 00:37:17.659
You know, what if I could travel the world and play ukulele?

00:37:18.088 --> 00:37:19.028
And I've done it.

00:37:19.068 --> 00:37:23.768
What if I could, you know, meet Jason Mraz and play with him, jam with him and collaborate?

00:37:23.818 --> 00:37:24.498
You know, I did it.

00:37:24.509 --> 00:37:27.239
What if I could, you know, be a TED Talk speaker?

00:37:27.248 --> 00:37:28.969
I did that.

00:37:29.228 --> 00:37:31.719
You know, what if I could travel the U.

00:37:31.719 --> 00:37:31.949
S.

00:37:31.958 --> 00:37:59.353
and international and play all these stages, uh, ukulele festivals, house concerts, workshops, um, you know, I've done that, you know, I, what if, um, what if I could play for the Los Angeles Lakers at their Staples Center and be the first ukulele player to do it, um, On their home court in Los Angeles, I, you know, I did it and it came to an historic evening where it was Kobe Bryant's retirement year back in 2016.

00:37:59.364 --> 00:38:09.333
And it was a, it was a crazy evening where it was Kobe's last time, uh, versing, uh, LeBron James when he came in from Cavalier, uh, Cleveland Cavaliers.

00:38:09.748 --> 00:38:11.648
Um, you know, that happened.

00:38:12.278 --> 00:38:20.289
You know what, I mean, there's so much, um, yeah, what if, I, I think what if is, is simple but yet it can go very deep.

00:38:20.898 --> 00:38:23.139
Man, I absolutely love that.

00:38:23.188 --> 00:38:27.539
And I think if you were to rewrite this book or another book, that would be a great title for it.

00:38:28.099 --> 00:38:28.369
All right.

00:38:28.789 --> 00:38:30.248
That's Louis, it's yours, brother.

00:38:30.278 --> 00:38:30.869
Go for it.

00:38:31.119 --> 00:38:31.498
Yeah.

00:38:31.668 --> 00:38:33.809
What if I write the book called What If?

00:38:35.224 --> 00:38:35.563
That's it.

00:38:35.614 --> 00:38:37.213
What if you write the book, man?

00:38:37.224 --> 00:38:38.074
Let's go.

00:38:38.173 --> 00:38:38.653
Yeah.

00:38:38.884 --> 00:38:40.724
I gotta give you credit for that one if I do.

00:38:40.903 --> 00:38:41.824
Go for it, brother.

00:38:41.824 --> 00:38:42.693
It's all on you.

00:38:42.923 --> 00:38:43.204
Yeah.

00:38:45.034 --> 00:38:49.744
Well, Derek, on that note, let's uh, switch over to our Wayfinder 4.

00:38:50.324 --> 00:38:50.713
Alright?

00:38:51.244 --> 00:38:59.679
So give us A hack that you use, just kind of something you use to cheat life with, and you can't say asking what if.

00:39:04.978 --> 00:39:05.838
Life hack?

00:39:06.268 --> 00:39:06.599
Yeah.

00:39:06.679 --> 00:39:12.208
Oh, for me, kill them with kindness, man.

00:39:12.358 --> 00:39:15.568
Just love, love people, period.

00:39:15.619 --> 00:39:21.159
Love your enemies, love your family, love your friends, love your loved ones.

00:39:22.048 --> 00:39:26.329
Because at the end of the day, at the end of the day, it doesn't matter.

00:39:26.688 --> 00:39:32.809
It doesn't matter what people think of you, it matters what you did for yourself, and what you gave.

00:39:32.829 --> 00:39:48.318
And if you gave it your all, and you gave it your love, you gave it your aloha, despite if they think differently of you, it doesn't matter because you're fulfilling your side of life, you're giving, you're giving, you're giving love, and I believe it all comes back.

00:39:48.389 --> 00:39:56.298
So, I think love is a life hack for me, I try not to judge, I'm a human being, I do judge, I get scared.

00:39:56.534 --> 00:40:08.304
Uh, but I think, I think my love where I'm at in life right now, I think love is pretty much the foundation of my life and appreciate everything from love.

00:40:08.344 --> 00:40:09.903
You know, it just builds from there.

00:40:09.923 --> 00:40:17.313
The respect, the appreciation, um, the going after your dreams in life is because you love yourself, you know, and you appreciate it and you respect it.

00:40:17.313 --> 00:40:18.153
So, yeah.

00:40:19.373 --> 00:40:19.594
Yeah.

00:40:19.594 --> 00:40:20.074
I love that.

00:40:20.083 --> 00:40:22.903
It sounds like the Aloha spirit all over again, right there.

00:40:24.114 --> 00:40:27.233
So what about a favorite?

00:40:27.673 --> 00:40:35.384
This could be a book, a show, activity outside of the ukulele, which I learned how to pronounce with you today.

00:40:36.744 --> 00:40:37.264
Yeah.

00:40:37.264 --> 00:40:37.804
You're doing it.

00:40:37.804 --> 00:40:38.934
You're doing great, Louis.

00:40:39.153 --> 00:40:39.793
Ukulele.

00:40:39.793 --> 00:40:41.393
Ukulele.

00:40:41.393 --> 00:40:41.804
Ukulele.

00:40:43.539 --> 00:40:44.528
Shocks, what was your question?

00:40:44.728 --> 00:40:46.579
I saw a favorite.

00:40:47.159 --> 00:40:47.588
It's okay.

00:40:47.588 --> 00:40:48.199
A favorite.

00:40:49.329 --> 00:40:50.168
A favorite.

00:40:50.228 --> 00:40:52.048
Oh, could be anything.

00:40:52.239 --> 00:40:52.429
Yeah.

00:40:54.849 --> 00:40:55.628
Oh, man.

00:40:55.668 --> 00:40:57.509
I love apple pies, man.

00:40:57.518 --> 00:40:59.918
I just went from left field brother.

00:40:59.918 --> 00:41:01.248
I love apple pies.

00:41:01.278 --> 00:41:02.349
I love sweets.

00:41:02.568 --> 00:41:04.688
I'm a sweet tooth apple turnovers.

00:41:04.728 --> 00:41:07.889
Um, I go crazy over that stuff, man.

00:41:07.929 --> 00:41:09.248
It's so dangerous.

00:41:10.693 --> 00:41:15.664
Um, when there's apple pie or anything, apple pastries, man, I go straight for it.

00:41:15.664 --> 00:41:17.074
I skip the real meal.

00:41:17.204 --> 00:41:24.403
To me, it is the real meal, but, um, yeah, man, that's my favorite.

00:41:24.414 --> 00:41:27.943
Apple pie and good sports, whatever.

00:41:27.994 --> 00:41:28.704
I'm good.

00:41:28.704 --> 00:41:29.574
I'm simple, man.

00:41:29.943 --> 00:41:30.384
Okay.

00:41:30.554 --> 00:41:30.914
Cool.

00:41:31.753 --> 00:41:35.014
What about a piece of advice for your younger self?

00:41:36.603 --> 00:41:38.003
Kind of giving us a lot already.

00:41:40.594 --> 00:41:42.643
Oh, I love it.

00:41:42.884 --> 00:42:25.664
Um, I would say be kind and give yourself room to grow Don't just be patient and trust the process and everything happens for a reason and trust the best is yet to come That would be my advice to my younger self I I was out on a mission and I'm still I am still on a mission, but I think That would be my best advice for my younger self and just trust the process and keep smiling and you are where you are for a reason and there's always room to, you know, for growth and for appreciation.

00:42:25.673 --> 00:42:26.773
So, yeah.

00:42:27.134 --> 00:42:27.554
Excellent.

00:42:28.233 --> 00:42:31.664
What about a big opportunity that you're chasing right now?

00:42:31.733 --> 00:42:43.804
You know, Louis, um, it's just, it's just kind of scary, but I think I'm after it in a good way.

00:42:43.833 --> 00:42:54.364
You know, this book was more of a legacy project because my intention was to document my stories.

00:42:54.903 --> 00:42:57.824
But I've, I've realized that this book.

00:42:58.759 --> 00:43:00.748
It's bigger than me.

00:43:01.278 --> 00:43:02.429
It's a message.

00:43:02.588 --> 00:43:22.858
It's, it's self empowerment and it's, it's to inspire others, not through my music, but through my words, through my experiences, through life, through the relationships that I've, you know, experienced, my family, my wife, my kids, um, the, the doubts, the depression, the asthma, the, you know, being asthmatic and, you know, just going these ups and downs.

00:43:23.429 --> 00:43:25.699
It's pretty open and transparent in this book.

00:43:25.998 --> 00:43:43.994
Um, I think the stories needs to be heard and for From there, uh, the opportunities of becoming a coach, a life coach, maybe a speaker, a keynote speaker, um, and just branch from there, you know, um, just, just focusing more on impact, you know, inspiration.

00:43:44.594 --> 00:43:48.443
So I think that's the next stage for me in life and still using my music as well.

00:43:48.514 --> 00:43:49.224
I mean, I could.

00:43:49.804 --> 00:43:52.503
Yeah, you know, be a keynote speaker while playing the ukulele.

00:43:52.503 --> 00:43:53.594
I don't, I'm not sure.

00:43:53.603 --> 00:43:55.643
I mean, definitely could, could work.

00:43:55.813 --> 00:43:57.884
I've done it with the TED talks for sure.

00:43:58.244 --> 00:44:07.873
Um, but yeah, I think that's the, the bigger stage here is, is just sharing more of the words rather than going it through the ukulele, if that makes sense.

00:44:07.884 --> 00:44:08.483
So, yeah.

00:44:09.443 --> 00:44:09.844
That's great.

00:44:09.844 --> 00:44:13.184
So if people want to get your book and know more about you, where should they go?

00:44:14.034 --> 00:44:18.353
Yeah, um, it, it's based, I mean, we've got two websites, DerekSebastian.

00:44:18.353 --> 00:44:18.744
com.

00:44:18.764 --> 00:44:21.614
I think that's the best, um, place.

00:44:21.634 --> 00:44:23.574
D E R I C K Sebastian.

00:44:23.793 --> 00:44:24.213
com.

00:44:24.514 --> 00:44:33.903
Uh, you'll find all the information there about my book, um, Daydreaming With Purpose, and all my socials, all my services, all that good stuff, man.

00:44:33.954 --> 00:44:34.324
Yeah.

00:44:35.268 --> 00:44:35.648
Excellent.

00:44:36.108 --> 00:44:37.568
Well, thank you for being here, man.

00:44:37.568 --> 00:44:39.429
I think you've inspired a lot of our listeners.

00:44:39.429 --> 00:44:50.039
You've definitely inspired me Uh, so thank you for being here and sharing a little bit about yourself Derek and I wish you the best with your journey No, thank you.

00:44:50.429 --> 00:45:00.398
Um, no, I appreciate it brother and thank you for your energy your We hope you've enjoyed The Wayfinder Show.

00:45:00.548 --> 00:45:04.768
If you got value from this episode, please take a few seconds to leave us a 5 star rating and review.

00:45:05.059 --> 00:45:09.309
This will allow us to help more people find their way to live more authentic and exciting lives.

00:45:09.969 --> 00:45:11.268
We'll catch you on the next episode.

00:45:20.748 --> 00:45:24.329
vibe and your you know This opportunity to share life with you.

00:45:24.329 --> 00:45:31.128
Uh, your podcast is amazing your vibe your energy is there as well And uh, you know, I appreciate your time brother for real.

00:45:31.139 --> 00:45:31.929
So, thank you.

00:45:32.278 --> 00:45:32.699
Thank you