In Straat Smart, we talk to well-travelled individuals and see the world through their eyes. To kick off the series, ROAM of ROAM International, also OBEY’s International Brand Manager, tells us where in the world to go for a fun time.
By Kim Hana
Photos by Marc Tan
Born and raised in Southern California, ROAM (Romeo Trinidad Jr) is the founder of ROAM International, a hub for artists to create, produce and sell merchandise to fans around the world. He wears another hat as International Brand Manager at OBEY. He started OBEY Records and OBEY Radio, a weekly gathering of the minds in Santa Ana, CA. Upon its success, ROAM took OBEY Radio global across cities including Amsterdam, Moscow, Seoul, Manila, Paris, London, Tokyo and most recently, Singapore.
Which are some of your favorite places in the world?
I enjoy tropical weather but I have to say Amsterdam is by far my favorite place in the world. It’s the best place in the world to have a party and have a fun time. I have an apartment out there too and would love to live there sometime in the near future.
ROAM on the decks at the Obey Radio Singapore, 2 August 2013, at Suprette
What’s the purpose of doing Obey Radio in various cities?
To bring people together. To bring the tastemakers of different cities together.
Best hotels in the world?
The one I’m staying at in Singapore, Capella, is really nice. Hotels in Europe are more grimy for sure. For a better hotel, you’d probably spend as much as you would on Capella, but it won’t be as luxurious. It might be a nice building but the amenities won’t be as new.
Obey travels to different cities for wheatpasting. What’s the largest wall you’ve pasted on?
A wall in Amsterdam’s Central Station. Took us 3 days.
*SCAPE Singapore gets hit
What are some of your travel essentials?
Roaming, I definitely spend a lot of money on roaming. Right now I have a prototype bluetooth speaker that I fell in love with, a Mophie battery pack, rolling papers and duty-free cigarettes.
What has been your worst travel experience? Would it have been Copenhagen?
That shit was actually really fun. It was a really, really good trip. I love that trip. All throughout that whole time we rode bikes through the city, everyone was cool with us, really cool with the brand, Norse Projects which is based out of there had really cool parties going on, and they’re actually the ones that brought Shepard in at the time. It was a really nice time up until getting out of the after-party. Apart from that, another bad experience would be being stuck on a plane for 20 hours waiting for them to fix the plane up.
Spearmint Rhino: Ladies for the gentlemen Image from http://www.spearmintrhino.com/
Favorite places in South California?
Low End Theory is a must visit. My guys at The Crosby (a restaurant) of course, they’re at Santa Ana, a few blocks away from my house. And Spearmint Rhino’s strip club, downtown LA – the best strippers.