Today we’d like to introduce you to Julian Gonzalez.
Hi Julian, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers.
After graduating high school in Orlando, I wanted nothing more but the “American pie/blue mountain state” experience. These movies were about kids in college living the college party dream. So in the summer of 2017, I moved to Tallahassee, FL to start my college career at Florida State University. My sole reason for going there was to party and live that lifestyle. From the time, I moved to Tallahassee up until December, I was going through mental health issues and physical health issues such as depression since I was home sick along with vitamin D deficiency.
My deficiency was due to smoking weed (which I am medically licensed in the state of Florida) too much staying inside/partying too much and not getting enough sun. When I went home in December for the first time since I moved to Tallahassee I was stuck, feeling alone, feeling hopeless, and questioning life and what to do, due to this deficiency. Then everything changed on Christmas day of 2017. My father gifted me a Nikon D 7000 DSLR camera. He told me “Instead of smoking all day and staying inside, go do that while traveling and capture some moments with the camera.” Come 2018, I did just that.
2018, I traveled all across the country with my best friend Simeon to Boston, New York, Connecticut, Nevada, California, and more, doing all of this while in school and being successful doing it online. With no plan, only in search of good views, good food, and good vibes we went on many adventures and met many friends that we still keep in touch with to this day, along with meeting old ones. After traveling and dabbling into different types of photography such as astrophotography (photos of the stars and time lapsing the movement of the earth) I began my media career.
Fall of 2018, the start of my sophomore year, my good friend Jake Clarkson started to rush Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity at FSU. While rushing his frat, I had a desire to shoot parties as much as I could, and Jake knew my passion for this. Because he knew my passion, he got approval for me to come shoot one of his frat’s tailgate parties. His giving me this opportunity caused many to notice my gift that I had in photography, which was noticed by the president of the frat. The president, André Salas, a dear friend of mine, told the owner of Potbelly’s about my work.
After grinding from the fall of 2018 to the spring of 2019, I got a call from Albert Hanson, the director of operations of Potbelly’s. He asked me if I wanted to be the photographer for the bar. From that moment, my career as a professional photographer. From 2019 to the start of covid, I put in countless hours and my creative thinking into potbelly’s, creating websites for them along with the sister bars, creating content for them, and a personality of the brand which is a staple to this day. When I started to take over the media for the bar, the bar had 6,000 followers. Now to this day, we have 27,000 followers. Because of this hard work, I am now the director of media for the bar.
After 2019 covid came. During this time up until the start of 2021, I had no work since my work consisted of shooting for various clients in clubs and large social settings. I had a lot of downtime to myself, and with this downtime, I created my production company/media agency. One-stop media, my first. The business was created during the summer of 2020. Since I started that business, I have had clients such as Nike, numerous artists in many different genres, politicians, small and large businesses, numerous nightclubs, and much more. Creating this business during covid was one of the best things to happen to me in my life because it saved me from my boredom and depression. To this day my company still stands and is very successful, with an amazing team behind it.
Come 2023, the best year of my life, I am a college graduate with a bachelor’s from FSU. More hungry than ever, I was in search of something new. My ultimate goal in media was to work with an artist and go on tour. I manifested it in October of 2022, two months before I graduated. Come February 2nd, 2023, my life changed forever. I got a call from Jenn, the manager of Baja’s, a club like Potbelly’s, asking for my services as a photographer. She asked me if I wanted to cover media for an artist who was playing at her club that night.
The DJ/producer/artist Hugel needed a photographer for his show because at the time he didn’t have one. When we connected we hit it off and bonded as if we had known each other for quite some time. After I worked on the shoot with him, I delivered the content the next morning and he was very impressed. He told me he would be in touch and may bring me on in the future. A month goes by, it is spring break for FSU and my week off from work. Tuesday afternoon, march 14th, Hugel texted me “How would you like to go on tour to DC, Montreal, and New York this weekend”.
My answer was yes of course and I went. After the tour, he said he was very impressed and that he would bring me to Miami for Miami Music Week. I then went two weeks later to work with him for music week and after that weekend I became his official photographer and then later on his tour manager. I have not been traveling and working with him full-time while still managing one-stop media and managing media for Potbelly’s along with working with all my other clients.
Now, as I go into 2024, I have started my producing/DJ career and I aspire to make music that radiates who I am as a person but through sound. I hope one day I can play for thousands of people who truly enjoy the music I will be producing.
We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It’s been a very bumpy road for me. Growing up being bullied physically and mentally, but now I walk through life confident and with ease. But the irony is that the people who used to look down on me now look up to me, yet I have no resentment towards them, I act like nothing has happened, because I have better things to do with my time such as work on what I’m passionate about.
Another struggle was working every day multiple jobs to pay for my expenses and living. It took me since I was 14, working my first job as a soccer coach and camp counselor from working at Papa John’s as a delivery driver to now traveling the world and shooting/tour managing for the #9 DJ in the world. The road consisted of many obstacles but to me, obstacles are supposed to be overcome along with working harder because the outcome can be amazing if you truly do what you love and are passionate about what you do.
Another struggle is being alone. The journey has been lonely, up until this year, because many people have come into my life with an angle or to take and never give. At this point in my life, my circle is small and will stay that way forever. I have gone through many friend groups but I feel as if I have found a new family with whom I work along with who is in my life now. One of those people is my manager, Chloe Taylor, who has been there since we met in college. My father is also another person who has been there since I came into the world.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I do a lot so I will list everything I do along with the order it started.
- Commercial real estate associate (licensed real estate agent working for Garito CO.) I got my real estate license a week after I graduated high school and a week before I started college and have been working as an associate ever since. I recently just passed my real estate broker school exam and took the 72-hour course and will be taking the state exam for my broker’s license soon. Will then be a real estate broker and opening my office in Orlando starting sometime in 2024.
- Professional photographer. I go by “Shot by Zalez” since Gonzalez is my last name and it has stuck ever since I got my camera in 2017. My work can be seen on my personal Instagram @itskingjulian or my portfolio page @shotbyzalez
- Media director/producer: since I have worked in many short films and productions I am considered a media director along with my work produced through my production company, One Stop Media. The work can be seen on Instagram at @onestopxmedia.
- Tour manager for Hugel: managing everything on the road for my artist along with directing media during the shows.
- Producer/DJ: my artist name is “Peruano” since I am Peruvian. This project is starting fully in 2024 and can be watched by watched on Instagram at @peruano.Music!
Overall, I am a tour manager/media director/photographer/commercial real estate associate (soon-to-be broker).
I am a published photographer with two magazine publishing’s of Hugel and John Summit as the cover for two different DJ magazines (DJ mag and DJ Life mag). I have shot for some of the biggest events in the world such as EDC Vegas and Burning Man.
What do you like and dislike about the city?
My favorite thing in Miami is space. I practically live in that club since I work with many artists that go in and out of the club along with conducting business meetings there.
My least favorite thing about Miami is the highways. Probably the most complex highway system I have driven around.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/itskingjulian/
Image Credits
Kevin Farley
