Behind the Mic

Behind The Mic: Here We Go For The Last Time with Julie Cappiello

Alexis Camel

Thanksgiving break is a roughly one week period prior to finals week where students head home to enjoy some home-cooked meals and wind down before a dreadful couple of weeks of finals.

We rest, recover, and rejuvenate our bodies with food that is not sold on campus or the adjacent food places so that we can come back energized and ready to take our exams head-on.

Future KCR College Radio Hall of Famer and host of both her self-titled radio show and a satirical news web series “Here We Go Again,” Julie Cappiello started her final few weeks as an undergrad on a rough note. Monday evening on her flight back from her hometown of Lyndhurst, New Jersey trouble arose as they were rerouted to land in LAX as opposed to her initial destination of San Diego, California.

This reroute came after spending two-plus hours on the runway before takeoff, and also having to ride a shuttle from Los Angeles back down to San Diego. To top it off, Cappiello arrived back at four AM on Tuesday, just 13 hours before her final radio show and 15 hours before her final taping of “Here We Go Again.”

What a way to start the beginning of the end, right? Well, luckily for Cappiello this was all a mere speed bump on the road to success. She has 4 finals standing between her and the Harry Styles Fine Line Live: One Night Only concert on December 13. Cappiello is a self-proclaimed Styles Stan and this is her graduation gift to herself. She will be finished with her school career at SDSU by the time Harry hits the stage; she too will be hitting the stage soon, walking with her fellow December graduates along with the spring graduates in May 2020. 

Wait, we are at the end of the road already? *Cue Boyz II Men* Before we look too far into the future, let’s take a look at Julie’s journey from Jersey to sunny San Diego. 

She only applied to four colleges in high school, three of them being in her home state of New Jersey and the final being the home of the Aztecs. She found SDSU because The College Board told her it was a literal perfect fit. Now she had long joked with her parents about the thought of moving to this corner of the country, yet she never knew things would work out the way they did. 

On The College Board’s website, she input her requirements and let the search run nationwide. Away from home? Check. Solid Journalism program? Check. Can I have a car? Check. Everything else? CHECK!

She told her parents that she really felt like attending SDSU and though it seemed like a distant dream, she applied anyway. Her high school guidance counselor discouraged her a bit by alerting her that State rarely accepts out of state students, which is a bogus statement, but that did not stop her. She took time out of school just to make sure her application was as respectable and illuminating as her personality.

Then, one day in mid-late December 2015, everything changed. She received the acceptance letter she had long-since hoped for and, “I remember opening it and screaming!” An acceptance letter is not the end all be all in the college world, but her intuition showed her this was not just a dream, but reality. 

“I had this gut feeling when I applied and I had this gut feeling when I got the acceptance email, I’m going there.” She walked into her parents’ room where she and her mother looked at each other in the eyes in agreement, “I’m going there.”

When it came time to visit her future university, Cappiello recalls her flight touching the ground at midnight. With her parents accompanying her, she saw her first palm tree and knew she was home.

The transition from hometown Jersey girl to living 2,760 away from home in a completely new environment did not start off on the best foot. “I felt a bit foreign,” she says as she details the hostile living situation within University Tower. On top of being immaturely bullied by her roommates, she also felt physically ill. So much that her asthma condition that she had long since gotten over, came back to the forefront of her health problems. That’s a note to all of the incoming freshmen of the future, try to live in the new dorms. 

That one year was not all bad, just mostly. She and her mom both wondered upon the start of year two at SDSU, “I don’t know how I made it through.” Her parents kindly urged her to come back home but she refused. Both because of pride and because of that same gut feeling that got her here in the first place.

So when does this dynamic person finally feel like she belongs within the confines of the university? Just like her acceptance date and the times at UT when she felt at her worst, the turning point came in the Winter.

This time it was the Winter of 2017. As a writer for The Daily Aztec, the organization came up with an opportunity to collaborate with KCR College Radio in an effort to do a joint news show. “I thought about it, and I always wanted to do radio, but at my high school we only had a newspaper.” 

She called her mother, who she lovingly speaks to various times throughout each and every day, and told her that she had another gut feeling about this opportunity. Her mom replied, “Every time I think I’m getting you back, San Diego reels you back in.” This was both a truthful and loving statement as she knows Julie knows what is best for her. 

The collaboration between the two student organizations did not fare so well, but within the experience, she befriended former KCR News Director Natalie Bucher and the two hit it off. Bucher was soon to move up the management totem pole and told Cappiello that she should apply for the position of News Director, however, there was also an editor position opening up at The Daily Aztec. She had a tough decision to make and she chose to take a shot at the position for the school paper; unfortunately, she did not receive the job. 

Everything happens for a reason though, and despite choosing to go after the other position, she was still very much interested in becoming KCR’s next News Director. This was all in the Spring of 2017 where she went through some troubled times. Her Godfather passed away on her birthday and she did not get an internship on “The Tonight Show” that she greatly desired. Within the storm of her troubles at the time, she found comfort in Bucher and other members of KCR while also earning the position of News Director.

After heading home for the summer and having an out-of-body experience where she watched herself while getting her wisdom teeth removed, Cappiello came back to Southern California and got herself two new jobs. The self-reflective newly Interdisciplinary Studies major took a look in the mirror and saw that her life is exactly where it needed to be. 

“I just felt so in my power. Nothing can stop me. I’m very content. I’m very happy with my life.” 

She reflects on her hellish first year as an Aztec saying, “Two years ago, freshman year, I never thought that I would be here.” she continues, “I didn’t think that anything like this would happen. 

Cappiello currently works in the legal world at a company she ironically cannot legally disclose. In March of this year during the interview for said position, she and the interviewer were both wearing the same pair of shoes. Not just that, they were both from New Jersey. She ran away with the interview and an hour and a half later she received an official job offer.

“There was something weird about that day. I got up, and I looked on social media and one of my favorite shows had just announced that this season would be their final season.” That show is “Supernatural” on The CW, and she loves it like I love “Entourage,” with a passion. So much that she would leave high school functions just to go home and watch. She and her friends joked during high school that in order for her to survive the halls of hell she needed this show to get her through. Naturally, it has been a staple in her life throughout her tenure here in San Diego and it can’t be made up that as she’s finishing her final days here the program is also going on its victory tour before bidding fans adieu in Spring 2020.

Her favorite show coming to an end on top of finishing her final courses as an undergrad as well as accepting a wonderful job that will lead to a solid career means she is becoming a full-fledged adult. That did not hit until December 4 when her supervisor told her, “You have to get a California’s drivers license now.” Something so simple as an ID can speak volumes about one’s life-shifting into the next gear. What hits the hardest for Cappiello is not being able to keep in touch with her dogs the way she does with her family. She often speaks to both of her sisters and, “My mom and I speak seven times a day.” However not being able to call and connect with the pups, in the same way, makes things a bit difficult at times. With that being said, Ms. Julie Cappiello is definitely on the right path to the future. 

Now, before we here at KCR say our final goodbyes to our esteemed colleague, let’s recognize a couple of her projects that have cemented her legacy within the organization.

Her newest work that she began in the Spring of this year is right here on this website, Sexcapades.

Sexcapades is a sexually open and reflective series where she discusses everything in and around sex with no shame in an effort to allow others to feel that same comfort to have much-needed discussions. I especially like her newest piece titled, “TELL ME WHAT YOU WANT / WHAT YOU REALLY, REALLY WANT.” where she advocates for open communication about sex. 

This series was created because of the lack of education provided in her high school sex education class where abstinence was the curriculum and no talk of safe sex left the mouths of her instructor. Self-taught and informed by her mother, Cappiello has had conversations with her family and aims to make Sexcapades a more inclusive and informative series where members of the LGBTQ+ community can also come for guidance and advice. She even wrote a piece on her sister Justine who is a member of the LGBTQ+ community that is a must-read. 

Before Sexcapades, was her “baby,” her passion project, “Here We Go Again.” The satirical news program has been running 3 seasons strong and was almost not greenlit, but the trust management had in Cappiello paid off as we can see now. Taking a concept from one of her other favorite shows, “The Daily Show,” Cappiello aimed to translate the ethos to Aztecs and college students across the nation. She has had a lot of success within those three seasons along with those growing pains.

This past season Chantel Mesta and Emilio Tina joined as writers and lifted both the show and Julie to new heights. Busy with graduation, her final classes, work, and having a social life, Cappiello pushed through and created some of her best work with one of her best teams. The final taping was bittersweet for her as things are finally coming to a close, but she has a lot to be proud of.

 “I’m leaving it in good hands. I hope that they continue it, and if not it’ll just be like my little stamp. That is Julie Cappiello, I did that.” 

Julie once thought about transferring schools, but joining KCR led her to new opportunities and a new family. She remains friends with members who have since graduated, maintaining Snapchat streaks and bi-weekly convos. Natalie Bucher even gave her the greatest gift she could ever ask for. “She said f*ck on the air and we couldn’t find the dump button.” The two had always thought the other would be the first to drop a bomb on-air, so Natalie doing so first brought an immeasurable amount of joy to Julie, tying the bow on the gift that KCR has been in her life. 

“It feels weird, now it’s becoming a little bit more real. I’m not scared.” she finishes off by saying something her chiropractor told her, “You might enjoy your professional life more than you enjoyed your student life.” If that’s the case, she has a bright path in her sight. She is not worried about controlling the future, she is taking it day by day and enjoying the journey.

This won’t be the last time we hear of Julie Cappiello, that’s for sure.

Written by: Alexis Camel
Photos by: Alexis Camel

Behind The Mic: Hot Noise! With Jarrett Schmidt

Alexis Camel

If you’re an early bird looking for that extra pump of energy that 7 espresso shots just can’t fulfill, I have the perfect remedy for you. I recommend one heaping serving of “Hot Noise! With Jarrett Schmidt.”

Jarrett Schmidt’s solo radio show features him and special guests creating and deconstructing sounds some of us have yet to ever hear. Airing live on KCR College Radio Saturdays from 5 to 6 AM, “Hot Noise! With Jarrett Schmidt” is the most energetic and electrifying morning radio show you have never heard. 

The enigmatic host of this program is none other than the early-bird Jarrett Schmidt. The third-year Economics major transferred to SDSU from Southwestern College over the summer to start his fall of 2019 as an Aztec. Looking to exercise his creativity and give the world some piping hot noise, he joined KCR.

Most of the time new members are required to have their first semester of shows with a partner, so as to make the transition easy for those who lack experience. Schmidt figured he would be better off doing something on his own accord. 

With early morning time slots generally wide open, Schmidt managed to work his magic and get his own radio show at the peak of dawn. A radio show at 5 in the morning is perfect for Schmidt; he says he’s up before 5 almost every day and wakes up with no alarm,

What exactly is hot noise? It’s anything that he wants it to be. Having played trombone since middle school, Schmidt is obsessed with creating new sounds using household items, contact mics, and even pumpkins. If it can make an interesting sound, there’s a chance Schmidt has already toyed with it. 

“Hot Noise! With Jarrett Schmidt” is only one of a few creative outlets for the noise machine. 

His Bandcamp account features over twenty albums created by Schmidt in the last 2+ years. Within this plethora of music is a surplus of experimentation. Schmidt has a concept album titled Collaborations With the Radio, where he created compositions in conjunction with AM radio shows that were live on air at the time of the recording. Check it out for yourself and see how it affects your position on climate change. 

Being a musician of all sorts often means collaborations with others who can jam out with you. Schmidt is in a free jazz group named Ebaugh that will be performing at Upright Citizen in Chula Vista on December 14th. He has also played trombone with local band Blush on multiple occasions. Most notable though is his band Wholly Roullars, pronounced “Holy Rollers”, where they have yet to write down the name of the band using the same spelling. Every time you see their band name, it is spelled in a completely different way. This noise band features Schmidt and his friend Orion putting their all into their performances and sometimes even dressing up as the Joker to get the crowd to put a smiley face on. 

It’s clear talking with Schmidt that he does all of this for the joy that it brings him at the end of the day. Whether it be putting out concept albums created in his bedroom at the wee hours of the night, or sketching landscapes in his sketchbook as he awaits his next class to begin, Schmidt is living his life to the fullest. 

In a Latin Jazz band during his last semester at Southwestern, he exercised this same daringness during his solo parts where he intentionally played off-key in an effort to do something different. Though his professor wasn’t happy about it, he felt happy to let something out that was deep within him. 

His eagerness to experiment and create is contagious and inspiring to anyone who struggles with doing the same. Schmidt carries around a daring fearlessness that makes anyone want to pick up some art supplies and just see what happens. For him, being carefree and doing things for your own personal sake makes life easy and enjoyable. 

So, what is Success to Jarrett Wolfgang Schmidt?

“Just being able to pay my bills.” 

He is not obsessed with stardom or becoming a millionaire; Schmidt wants to cover necessities and then from their exercise his creativity to keep that smile on his face. 

His inspirations range from Frank Zappa and John Zorn to Gary Wilson and R. Stevie Moore

“They’re really just on another level with their instrumentation. They really understand music theory. I think it’s something to really strive for, but also I think it’s cool just doing stuff without knowing how to do it.” 

R. Stevie Moore is notorious for having released approximately 400 albums in his life so far, Jarrett Schmidt is 23 albums in so far and he wants to someday get into the same numbers as  Moore. 

“Hot Noise! With Jarrett Schmidt” is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Soundcloud right now. It is live every Saturday morning from 5 to 6 am. He has plenty of music live on his Bandcamp and you can see him performing at an open mic near you. 

He would like to let the world know, “A lot of what I do and what I see in people is doing their own thing. It’s all about individualism.”

“I think it’s good for people to do what you want to do; do something that’s true to you.”

Written by: Alexis Camel
Photos by: Alexis Camel

Behind The Mic: Marco Arreola and the Mental State of America

Alexis Camel
marco arreola

Impassioned by humanity, honesty, and patriotism, Marco Arreola explores the many facets of American society through open communication and positivity.

Senior Communications Major, and Sociology Minor, Marco Arreola was enticed by the sociological side of communication through the aide of his Sociology 101 professor Robert Fargo from Southwestern College. This class confirmed many of his preconceived notions on human society, but further expanded his curiosity. This baseline Sociology course drew his interest enough to enroll in a Sociology and Religion course with the same professor the following semester.

What truly drew Arreola to the subject was the humanistic perspective he provided the class. Empathizing with students and showing vulnerability made the class more inviting and an overall more fostering learning environment. Being a “free speech absolutist” he also fell in love with the open discussion forum the course provided students such as himself. The beauty of being able to see the human side of his professor is something that Arreola believes should stretch across every facet of humanity. 

Arreola is the host of The State of ‘Merica on KCR, live Tuesdays from 3 to 4 pm. On this show, the political junkie and mental health advocate decompresses by playing a parody of himself. In the ever stressful times we live in, Arreola finds this time on Tuesday afternoons to poke fun at the seriousness of the times we deal with on a day to day basis. On one special episode, he read the entire U.S. Constitution word for word live on-air. 

So, what is the state of America in his eyes? What are Americans all about? 

“If I could describe Americans with one word, it would just be simply, American.” The unique hypocrisy of our beliefs tied together with our actions is a special kind of oxymoron reserved for the American people. Arreola discusses how despite being a secular nation, many pride themselves on Christian beliefs. Or the fact that we celebrate and uphold our voting system despite the fact many of us said we had to vote for the lesser of two evils in the most recent Presidential election.  He goes on to say, “Only an American would think that way.” 

Patriotism can be seen as a flaw in society today as many view our nation to be a despicable one at that. Many are asking how someone can love this country, but Arreola has the perspective many need to take.

“Personally, I’m a Patriot. I’m proud to be an American,” he goes on to say, “but part of what comes with that is that you realize there are flaws in the country.” 

America is currently in one of its most publicly critiqued states of recent history, but Arreola looks at that as an opportunity to grow as a nation. 

“I’m thirsty for justice, for glory, for honor.”

He loves the fact that the problems of America are rising to the surface, seeing them as an opportunity to do better for the American people. The Bilingual Otay Ranch native is not like anchors we may see on FOX News at any given time of the week, he can recognize this nation’s flaws with the ability to see ways to make leaps towards the future. With the title of being an American holding so much weight, the pressure fuels his desire to make this country better than it has ever been. 

The Righteous Mind by Johnathan Hyde is one of his favorite books and it has helped him understand the phenomenon of American Patriotism. 

The dichotomy of modern politics has bred distaste for members of the “opposing” party for most. In turn, this has made it increasingly difficult for people on opposite ends of the political spectrum to foster progressive conversations. Arreola asserts having no political label as he feels that aides in the confirmation bias many come into these conversations with. He, like myself and many others, feel as though their beliefs are their own and should be forced to be put into the box of Democrat or Republican.

Arreola is doing this as his part to bring people together to have an open discussion. A recent Bernie Sanders appearance on FOX News drew a lot of interest from members all along the political spectrum. Arreola was enticed by this as Sanders told the audience to set aside the political party tag and merely listen to his ideas. He said, “It was such an enormous hit, I remember reading articles and seeing town halls about them agreeing on the substance of policies and not the titles of them.” 

Arreola wants people to hear ideas, not focus on whatever connotation is placed behind the name of the idea. Politicians fuel their campaigns behind the terms and terminology they use and this is something Arreola stresses we all should be mindful of. He is pushing media literacy across the board for all; do our research and understand the concepts of socialism instead of being alarmed by the term’s association with communism.

Now politics aside, Marco Arreola has another project coming soon via KCR that he is very passionate about.

With two episodes already recorded, Arreola is bringing the audience a podcast focusing on discussions of mental health with people from all walks of life. Arreola was diagnosed with Schizophrenia during his freshman year of high school and it changed his life. Leaving traditional high school he was enrolled at Alta Vista Academy in Chula Vista where he finished out high school with other students who went through mental health struggles and discovery.

In this school, most kids are not expected to graduate let alone make their way to college. Arreola was a special case as not only did he graduate on time, he had aspirations of attending SDSU. He left the program and enrolled at Southwestern College where he made his transition here to SDSU. Now, being at State, he finds it important to be open about his mental health in efforts to make the discussion easier for everyone.

He “came out” as having schizophrenia at the beginning of this semester to his peers as well as members here at KCR and was received with nothing but understanding. The podcast has yet to come out as Arreola has struggled with being able to maintain the initial values he set forth for his show. He wants it to be genuine, and an open environment for discussion. However, mental health is tied to all the controversy we face in our everyday life. Tangents happen and what starts as a conversation about happiness can lead to discussions on race relations through American history. The conversations are happening and they will be heard, when they are ready to be heard. 

The actions and discussions surrounding mental health are, “American” according to Arreola. Going back to his original description of the contradiction of Americans, this stands true as talks are happening but walks are not following the conversations. 

“An Asylum patient from the 1940s has the same levels of anxiety of today’s college students,” mentioned Arreola, giving an indication of the times we are surviving mentally.

With anxiety levels high, Arreola keeps his focus higher and does his job to help himself and others around him. He is open to having a conversation with anyone; he wants everyone to be happy and he partially owes this mindset to his grandfather. When he was a child his grandfather told him, “Marco, be loyal to the things that matter. And never forget this, love humanity. Respect it, and serve it at all times and with all your soul.” 

Arreola loves humanity in every which way; he actively seeks to make it better for those living within it. 

Arreola does not believe he could be achieving the day to day success he is right now without his past failures. He viewed having to change schools and not being able to go straight from high school into SDSU as a failure along with the repercussions of his mental health struggles. Those experiences make him that much more grateful for the small successes of each coming day. If he eats something delicious, that is a success. If he goes to class, participates and compliments a classmate, that’s a success. Being able to share this story of Marco Arreola? That’s a success.

Written by: Alexis Camel
Photos by: Alexis Camel

Behind The Mic: The Dreamer, The Messenger, The Antonio Marquez

Alexis Camel

Antonio Marquez overcame adversity to be a voice for the unheard and dreams of connecting the four corners of the earth to tell their stories.

Born in Guanajuato, Mexico Antonio Marquez and his family immigrated to San Diego in search of a better life when he was the age of 7. He did not discover that he was undocumented until he reached the age of 15, at the beginning of the college application experience. Marquez said, “It felt like a nightmare, you know. It’s real.” That would not be the first time his citizenship status would be a roadblock in his path. 

The Senior Journalism and Media Studies major, now age 33, has had one hell of a journey to get to SDSU.

He initially graduated from San Diego City College in 2008; he also interned at Univision during that final school year. With an Associate’s Degree in Communications and a foot in the door of the media industry, Antonio saw a bright future ahead of him. Suddenly, his undocumented status once again was blocking his path to success. “Once I did my internship at Univision and my last year of community college, they offered me a job,” and then reality struck, “They couldn’t help me and they let me go.” Not being a legal citizen, and this occurring years prior to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), Univision was unable to give him the job he had worked so hard for. 

Leaving the news station, he began working at McDonald’s to support himself and his family. After a few weeks on the job, he broke down while cleaning the restroom one night. It was rock bottom and the first time he had truly felt all the overwhelming feelings that had yet to confront. Speaking with his mother on the issue, he decided to make the most of what he had. He began to excel at his job and soon moved up the ranks to a Management position. Part of this was due to his ability to speak both English and Spanish, an industry advantage in Southern California. This showed him how much he brought to the table; how he can tell stories to and for everyone that needs their voice amplified. 

Aiming to start a new life, Marquez packed up with his partner and moved to Yakima, Washington. From working in the field to working in the fields, Marquez picked produce in his new hometown. One day of work the woman next to him passed out while they were working the refrigerator. Shocked, and empathizing with her, he would be even more surprised to see that she was replaced less than 30 minutes later. Marquez quickly realized this was not the life for him, so he made a connection to volunteer for the local radio station. 

Radio KDNA in Yakima was the first opportunity for Marquez to participate in the radio industry since he had only done video broadcast journalism. A largely Spanish-speaking population fills the town and with many being large families with low-income, Marquez earned a segment speaking on entertainment and films to watch for these families. Promoting what was new on RedBox, he would connect with listeners by giving them a place to escape for a moment and point them in the right direction for some more entertainment.

The radio station put him on the public scene, but the local newspaper El Sol de Yakima got him in front of the people.

In his position as a reporter for the paper, he covered the stories of undocumented immigrants and their journey to Yakima as well as many of the small businesses they had started. Unable to accept compensation from the people who the stories were about, they brought him into their homes to thank him off the clock the old fashion way, with some food and company.

In 2012 life in Yakima was going well, but there was a new revelation regarding his citizenship, DACA had been announced. Upon the announcement, his mother called him and offered him something he could not refuse, a second chance. She told him to focus on school and do everything he can to get into SDSU. He moved back and started attending his alma mater San Diego City College in 2013. His school would be covered by the Board of Governor’s waiver, but he wanted some extra income. Finding a new job at a Hillcrest club named Numbers, Marquez started to fall in love with the radio. The music he listened to on the job showed him the form of expression music can be.

His first application to SDSU was denied after the comeback, but he persisted. He received an acceptance letter on his second attempt, but the cake he bought to celebrate would soon go to waste. Having received a C- in a certain JMS course, he would not be accepted this year other. While at City College, Marquez ran Cross Country. He and his coach shared a connection and he did everything he could to help him get into SDSU. This connection would be just what he needed to get that acceptance letter. The third try would be the final try. He was finally accepted into SDSU for the Fall 2018 semester and only after earning four Associate Degrees. He would bring to campus his degrees in Communications, Journalism, Behavioral Sciences, and lastly Chicano Studies. 

Marquez participated in the transfer bridge program put on by the Educational Opportunity Program here at State. However, it was not until the first day of class where he truly felt like he was a student here. Since his arrival, he has been involved, to say the least. He is a writer for the Mundo Azteca, the Spanish portion of The Daily Aztec; a DJ and radio host for his show Dreamer Hour on KCR College Radio; a member of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ); and a member of Associated Students. Involvement has brought many opportunities for his second wind of college.

Marquez first joined KCR and what caught his eye was the wide diversity within the organization.

“Just walking in the room and seeing everybody. We’re all so different,” said Marquez. On his show, Dreamer Hour, he interviews people, including a heart to heart conversation with his mother, and expresses himself through music. It’s called that because of, “Sometimes you wake up and you had a really weird dream. You try to remember throughout the day,” he goes on, “It feels like some distant memory. I want my show to be like that. To leave an impact on you, but not worry about the songs that played. All that matters is that you were there in the moment. Within Mundo Azteca, he has built a journalism career reporting on undocumented students and issues. This has spilled over into his NAHJ membership where he was able to attend the Excellence in Journalism Conference in September in San Antonio, Texas. 

This conference was only a month after the El Paso Walmart shooting; he was shocked to find out that there was undercover security disguised in the crowd. It truly made him feel that, as an undocumented Latinx community member, “I feel like I have a target on my back.” This subtle sense of fear persists through many within this community, hence why Marquez finds his role to be so important. He is able to tell the stories of the unheard, translating to both Spanish and English to reach an ever wider audience. The Dreamer Hour is part of his therapy to both get away and confront said issues. He plays his favorite 80s songs and anything else that makes him feel good. 

“I still don’t know where I’m gonna end up, but I know I wanna be somewhere in the media,” said Marquez. He sees himself as a messenger. In ancient Mexican culture, a hummingbird symbolizes a messenger between the gods and the people. Antonio Marquez’s wings are fluttering and they will not stop until he has connected the world.

Written by: Alexis Camel
Photos by: Alexis Camel