Today we’d like to introduce you to Kevin “Zips” Zulueta.
Hi Kevin, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
It’s challenging to briefly summarize my journey thus far due to the many highs and lows I’ve experienced. The three components that have assisted me thus far have been determination, passion, and hunger for more. These words describe what continues to keep me in full pursuit of obtaining everything I continue to dream of while awake. I always had a mindset that no matter how difficult life becomes, if you have the will you can always find a way.
I would like to share an excerpt from one of my many songs entitled “Since 1990” which gives a descriptive overview of how my mind operates.
“In the beginning, it was me and thought with a dream in my mind, everyday I was taught.”
That I could say whatever if I put the words together, that’s how I knew this music that I make will live forever.
There will never be a day when I just up and call it quits.
Working so my name will be something you don’t forget.
In order to improve, there’s always something to perfect.
Always show the power of the universe respect.
I’m just sharing my perspective & I hope the words I use will be effective.
To be the best & nothing less is my objective.
I encourage everyone who reads this to continue to put your best foot forward today for a better tomorrow.
& no matter what happens along your journey, keep going and don’t stop ever!
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
In the words of Will Smith following your dreams is a lonely, solitary, scary, & dangerous pursuit. You can’t wait for someone to think you can do it. You gotta be willing to risk everything to blossom from that seed you plant in your mind into who you believe you are destined to be.
Along my journey, I’ve encountered numerous challenges that prevented me from being the best version of myself. I would neglect to self-evaluate what was holding me back or preventing me from growing as a human being. I would allow other outlets to distract me from achieving my goals. I utilized these distractions as a scapegoat to allow me to bottle up my emotions and not have to worry about dealing with them on the surface in an attempt to ignore the truth of my reality.
Alcohol, marijuana, drugs, sacred energy exchanges, social media, streaming services and unhealthy relationships were all forms of escapes I leveraged to avoid dealing with the truth that I was unhappy in the world I created for myself.
Emotions that held me back that I still struggle with today are self-doubt, depression, overthinking, worrying, and fear just to name a few. Rather than facing everything and recovering, I would forget everything and run. When I became consumed by these emotions and neglected to refocus my thoughts to things that could make me feel better, this created my own mental prison that I was unable to break free from until recently.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
My passion and journey has always been as a music advocate. During 2009 – 2014 I worked alongside Miami native Grammy-nominated producers “Cool and Dre”. Started as an internship for the first year and developed into an audio engineer position where I was extremely fortunate to work with numerous artists, producers, songwriters and engineers.
That opportunity transitioned to working as an audio engineer for Memphis artist Don Trip, I continue to oversee all his projects; recording, mixing and mastering. Noted projects to date include: The “Step Brothers” Mix-tape; a Don Trip and Star Lito collaboration, which received #7, on the top 40 albums of 2011 in Spin Magazine.
As an audio engineer, I wasn’t content with the inconsistent amount of money I was earning. This led to transitioning into the role of an entry-level position for a telemarketing company in hopes of obtaining financial stability. This later blossomed into a career path over the course of 2015 to winter of 2021 where I recently resigned to dedicate all my efforts to pursuing my passion of music full time.
I would like to share my journey that transpired over the recent years because I never imagined I would have taken on such an unorthodox career path. It consisted of amazing experiences I believe will inspire others to embrace opportunities that they may not have expected.
Senior Operations for the Wireless Department
Joined the company “Qology” in Early July 2015 entry-level position as telesales agent working in the AT&T Residential Program earning hourly plus commission-based income. An opportunity later was brought to my attention to be a part of the development of a partnership with Sprint in 2016.
This evolved into assisting the launching of that program in Kansas City where Sprint’s headquarters was once located. As we grew the program, I took on the role of On The Job (OJT) Coordinator to assist in training/developing the agents who took Sprint calls in Florida and South Africa.
A few months later, Centerfield acquired Qology in 2017. Sprint was a major revenue driver for Centerfield and over the years, my roles transitioned and evolved from OJT Coordinator to Performance Manager to Senior Operations Manager.
During 2018, I assisted and focused on the success of our two Wireless partners ATT Wireless & Sprint and trained/developed additional agents in Mobay & Kingston, Jamaica.
This consisted of routine visits to South Africa & Jamaica to ensure operations were running smoothly and our clients were content with continuing their partnership with Centerfield.
During the pandemic, Sprint was acquired by T-Mobile and we needed to redevelop infrastructure. & we were able to successfully earn T-Mobile’s business in a fashion that led us to extending Centerfield’s relationship with them long term.
This part of my journey was exciting and amazing to be a part of and I am grateful I was able to travel around the world and learn so much about operating a business of that magnitude.
What was your favorite childhood memory?
I have numerous childhood memories that remain near and dear to my heart. For some reason, this one particular moment seems to stand out and is chosen/meant for me to share. I was thirteen years old sitting behind home plate in Pro Player Stadium in Miami watching the Florida Marlins play against the New York Yankees.
The reason this memory is significant is because I remember vividly the first pitch being thrown and witnessing a collective of flashes coming from cameras to capture this moment. I remember thinking to myself, this must be an important/significant night to everyone in attendance to stop what they are doing to make sure they were able to take a picture of the start of the game.
Little did I know that the Marlins would make such a significant impact as the underdogs and go on to make history winning the 2oo3 World Series.
Contact Info:
- Email: kevin@zipslatenights.
com - Website: ZipsLateNights.com
- Instagram: https://www.
instagram.com/zips1990/ - Facebook: https://www.
facebook.com/Zips1990/ - Twitter: https://twitter.com/
zips1990 - Youtube: https://www.youtube.
com/channel/UCgNWa64- KISHUJoAo8UzwAQ - SoundCloud: https://
soundcloud.com/zips1990
Image Credits
1k Moments Ernesto Funes Barry Sikora
