His DJ controller, her luxury watch: Meaningful gifts from Kobie Brown’s and Andi Abaya’s parents
Andi Abaya wears her Rolex, a gift from her parents
Pinoy Big Brother alum Kobie Brown has the mestizo good looks of a young matinee idol. Since placing third in the reality TV show that aired in 2020, he has since appeared in a number of movies and TV series including “The Entitled” with his love team partner, Andi Abaya.
Kobie carves out time to indulge in his hobby despite his schedule and said his favorite thing is his DJ controller, a device used by DJs to mix music with software using knobs, encoders, faders and backlit buttons.
“I got into DJing not too long ago. It’s a new hobby that I’m still learning so I’m really proud I have this DJ controller because I love music so much,” Kobie said.
He developed an interest in DJing from one of his friends who had a controller at home. “He taught me the basics, and we played from the afternoon until 5 a.m. the next day. Even though I wasn’t good at it at first, I knew it was something I wanted to be better at.”
The controller he now owns was a gift from his father who was happy his son had shown an interest in music. “He asked what I wanted for my birthday and the controller was the only thing I had my eye on.”
Kobie Brown DJs at an event.
Kobie’s first real gig
Kobie recalled how he had been wanting to do a live gig since getting the controller and would tell his friends about it. The mother of one of his friends owned a resto-bar and gave him his first real gig. “She let me DJ even if I had no experience performing live. That night I brought my controller, laptop and my confidence although I was still so nervous. I honestly thought people would hate it.”
He didn’t let his nerves get to him and saw to his surprise that people were dancing, singing. “Someone even threw money in the air while I was playing—sayang ‘yung pera (laughs). I hope I get to do more gigs in the future because it’s a totally different feeling. What makes me happy is seeing other people enjoy the music or even when I get to introduce new music to them.”
For Andi Abaya, her favorite thing is something that reminds her of her time on PBB. Her parents gave her a Rolex Oyster Perpetual watch as a welcoming gift. She had been inside the PBB house for three months and was unable to spend Christmas, New Year and my birthday with them.
“This watch is now very special to me because it made me appreciate the essence of time in my life … the time I am now making up for because of the special occasions and traditions that I missed out on celebrating with my family,” Andi said.
Abaya (left) and Brown
“I was able to pursue my dreams because of PBB … but I also want to still continue to spend time with my family. I realized that I should be smart in spending every single second in my life.”
The watch has a strap of silver and gold, and the face measures 34-mm. When she’s not wearing it, she keeps it in a jewelry box with her other accessories. “I love to keep all my things organized wherever I stay or go.”
Andi admitted that she didn’t really wear watches in the past, but now enjoys styling her Rolex as part of her outfits.
“It can be styled with whatever outfit I have on, and with whatever agenda or event I have to attend. Since the watch has both silver and gold colors and accents, I get to match it as well with my other accessories, like necklaces and earrings.
“I wear it for casual hang outs like strolls in the mall, but I also wear it to special events for work such as guestings, mall shows, awarding ceremonies, meetings and tapings.”
