Following this, he played with Detroit Shannon and then the Helen Dewey Show, but when this group disbanded abruptly, Hite relocated to Los Angeles.
He became leader of Howard's band in 1930, and played at the Cotton Club in Los Angeles for several years, accompanying Louis Armstrong and Fats Waller among others.
[1] Hite's big band, known as Sebastian's Cotton Club Orchestra, primarily played in Los Angeles, though they occasionally went on tour.
Musicians who played in the band include Lionel Hampton, Marshal Royal, George Orendorff, Lawrence Brown, Britt Woodman, Joe Wilder, T-Bone Walker, Marvin Johnson, and Dizzy Gillespie.
Hite died at St. John's Hospital in Santa Monica, California, a week before his 59th birthday, reportedly following a heart attack.