The Prideful Ones

In this episode we sat down with Sergio "El Cheko" Melgar, a barber turned comedian but still doing  the fresh cuts. We learned about Sergio's humble beginnings growing up as a kid in Sinaloa Mexico, to becoming a you teen and later adult in Southern California.

After a few unsatisfactory jobs and working for a barber who essentially became his mentor, Sergio went and opened a barber shop in Pico Rivera and later on a second location. During that time he decided to get into comedy and now he's not just a funny guy, but he also hosts a few successful open mic nights in Bell, Downey and a few other cities.

Listen in on this fun episode to get to know Sergio a bit more.

Find him at:

@_sergiomelgar

@_aresbarbershop

@choppin_it_up_barbershop

@theprivatesweet

#barbershop #entreprenourship #smallbusinessowner #comedy #comedian

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In this episode we sat down with Christian Ramos, a musician turned TV personality on channel 62 Estrella TV.  We spoke about his life in Mexico, how his father taught him to play the guitar, being in a band and getting signed for a moment in his young life and his road to television as a reporter, and host.
 
We also talked about the difficulties it is to navigate the world of television and looking back with the knowledge he has gained to possibly have done a few things differently. Through his successful career on television Christian has still maintained a love for music and says that deep inside he considers himself a musician before anything else professionally. We also touched on his children and how one is, in her own right, becoming a well known influencer on TikTok.

Christian now focuses on building his show on YouTube called "El Hangar De Las Estrellas", and well if you want to know what the show is about you will have to click and listen.

And somewhere at some point Christian pulls out his guitar and sings one of his songs in our studio.


Find him at:
@christianramostv
El Hangar De Las Estrellas
@elhangardelasestrellas
Youtube
El Hangar De Las Estrellas

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In episode 27 of The Prideful Ones, Joe and I sat down with Tetris, director of the SELA Art Center in Bell, California. Tetris told us of his passion for art and his time as a tagger and graffiti artist. As time went on, he felt it was time to give back to his community and opened the SELA Art Center where he promotes art of all mediums to young ones and adults. His efforts have garnished him many accolades including recently from the Bell Chamber of Commerce.

Find him on:
@tetriswai
@selaartcenter

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In episode 26 of The Prideful Ones, we sat down with Nick Velez of Bastards Canteen in Downey and Temecula California. Nick shared with us the origin of Bastards Canteen named after the 2nd Battalion 4th Marines "The Magnificent Bastards" and how the city of Downey gave him some grief on the name. He also shared how having the bar birthed their annual Marine Corp Birthday block party and from that the need to create a non profit to help veterans with PTSD and TBI called Save The Brave.

In all this Nick also mentions creating an event called Vetwork to help veterans network and make connections with local business owners. 

We also touched on them partnering with one of our former guests, Veterans Stand Together. Listen in on this empowering episode on Nick's passion to help his fellow brothers and sisters from the military.

Find them on:
@bastardscanteen
www.bastardscanteen.com
@savethebraveorg
www.savethebrave.org

Thank you for listening! Follow us on Instagram @thepridefulones and find us on Facebook.

In this episode of The Prideful Ones, we sat down with serial entrepreneur, Alfredo from Los Barbones Cerveceria, a contract brewer out of Paramount California. He shares with us how it all started after reading an article in which the author compared the simplicity of brewing your own beer to boiling water.

Alfredo shares how although he quickly fell in love with brewing craft beers he was initially cautious of unintentionally turning his hobby into a business with all of it’s complexities and associated responsibilities. We also learn about the recent movement by Latino brewers across the state trying to get their foot in the door in the lucrative $100+ billion dollar beer industry. 

Lastly, we hear all about some of his previous startups he launched over the years and how he quickly learned to pivot when those businesses called for it.

Now sit back, relax and listen in on this episode of TPO.

Find them at:
www.losbarbones.com
@los_barbones_cerveceria

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On this episode of the Prideful Ones, we sat down with Sebastian from Ray's Texas BBQ out of Huntington Park California.  We learn about their back story and how through a stroke of luck his Dad, Rene "Ray" started their BBQ business shortly after finding a “thrown out” outdoor grill.

Now famous for their authentic Texas style BBQ and their out of this world brisket, they have become a true staple in the community. Sebastian shares about how over the years they have been able to grow their following and overall popularity so much so that they have been noticed and featured by various online media, TV and other news outlets.

Sebastian also speaks to us about the life altering decision to take the reigns together with the help from his brother and mother and continue with his fathers legacy after his passing in 2022.  One year later and the business continues to grow and together as a family, they continue to perfect their craft.

Find the at:
6038 Santa Fe Ave, Huntington Park Ca 90255
IG @raysbbq90255

Thank you for listening! Follow us on Instagram @thepridefulones and find us on Facebook.

In this episode of The Prideful Ones, we sat down with Karol and German, owners of Michi Tacos in Lake Elsinore and Menifee California. 

We learn about how they ultimately benefited from their years in the banking industry, during which time they developed invaluable skills and gained real world experience which they would later apply to their own small business. 

Together they have created an impressive brand which they operate with the upmost attention to detail. Listen in as we go over how it all started and how it almost didn’t happen at all.

With this couples work ethic, Joe and I have no doubt that they'll keep hitting home runs out of the park!

Find them at:
@michitacos
https://www.michitacos.com/

Thank you for listening! Follow us on Instagram @thepridefulones and find us on Facebook.

In this episode Jose and I sat down with Miguel, owner of Unguardable Kicks in Lakewood. Unguardable Kicks specializes in the buying, selling, and trading of sneakers. We spoke about his beginnings working for a big box store from the bottom moving up to where he learned some trade secrets where he later applied in his business of flipping sneakers and growing his brand. We also touched on the work ethic he learned from his father and how that impacted his way of thinking.

Thank you for listening! Follow us on Instagram @thepridefulones and find us on Facebook.

On this episode we sat down with entrepreneur Joe, owner of Classic  Concepts in Paramount, California. Joe tells us about growing up in the projects, hustling like you're broke, and being passionate of the work you do. During our conversation, Joe talks about the business' he was involved in including a cannabis church. Listen in on this interesting journey that Joe has lived as he shares the ups and downs with us.


If you're looking to get work done on your ride, find Joe at @classic_concepts_562

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In this episode we sat down with Eric, owner of Fraustos Mexican Food, a taco style catering business.  He shared with us how he dabbled in the culinary arts with his godfather and then jumping into the barber game for a number of years before deciding that his passion was actually making food. He then decided to launch Fraustos Mexican Food right before the shutdown due to the pandemic and quickly had to adapt and overcome. In this conversion he also talks about the fear of launching this business, being a competitive person and always striving to become better at which ever task comes at hand.

Find them on Instagram @fraustos_mexicanfood

Thank you for listening! Follow us on Instagram @thepridefulones and find us on Facebook.

In this episode we sat down with Luis Mata, owner and operator of MataBoyz Garage, a mechanic shop of sorts in Los Angeles. He told his story on his his dad was the first to immigrate to the United States followed by him and his brother. He mentions having to overcome obstacles and dealing with, at times, having to start over. He also discusses having to take risks to move to grow his company and staying relevant to the trends and looking ahead to the next ones. He also reflects on how the shop and business culture is a direct reflection of our own values.

Thank you for listening! Follow us on Instagram @thepridefulones and find us on Facebook.

In this episode we sat down with Krank and Christian, partners in their video production company Centro Productions. Krank starts the conversation with how he started in real estate right out of high school and the experience he gained through it. After a misfortunate event involving and old business partner and mentor, Krank found himself behind the lens of a video recorder and began the journey into video production along with his life long friend Christian. Listen in on this journey as this pair work their way to becoming well known videographers in the music industry.

Find them on instagram @krank_shotit
                                                      @centro_productions
                                                      @chrissberry_

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In this episode we sat down with Yadira Pineda, current owner and operator of Pineda’s Security Services. We learn how her dad started the business and threw her into the lions den by asking for her assistance right out of high school. She went ahead and learned the business and helped her father grow it by securing contracts with new clients. In doing so,Yadira grew up herself as she had to stop being a shy girl and become a strong business woman. Listen in as we hear how all this came to be.

Thank you for listening! Follow us on Instagram @thepridefulones and find us on Facebook.

In this episode we sat down with Alex Perez, a former aerosspace worker turned entrepreneur. We discuss the details of how he ended up owning Triple P Plumbing, a second generation plumbing business. We talked about overcoming addiction and his need to prove to his father that his ideas would benefit the business.  He shared his wanting to create a network of entrepreneurs and small business owners. We talk about being influenced by Nipsey Hustle's music and how he began to realize that the party life was affecting how his family viewed him, and the catalyst that made him drop all bad habits cold turkey and focus on his business dreams and his wife and young kids.
 
Find him on yelp: Triple P Plumbing
On the web: www.triplepplumbingla.com 

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In this episode we sat down with Tino De La Cruz, owner of Dents B Gone, a paint-less dent removal company. Tino shared his story of growing up since an early age knowing that he wanted to own his own business someday. He also opened up about growing up not knowing he was poor and how playing high school football had a huge impact on his life. We discussed how he started a multi-million dollar business after college and how the high paced life of his construction company was taking time away from his family and how after having an epiphany he realized it was time to let it go, slow down and spend more time with family and truly enjoy life. In his own words, he is now "The Mexican Fisherman".

Visit Dents B Gone online:
www.dentsbgone.com

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In this episode we sit down with Adrian Vazquez, owner of Adrian's Tree Service. Adrian is a 3rd generation landscaper who later decided to pursue a career tree trimming. We sat down and talked about how he almost became a law enforcement officer, his passion for landscaping and tree trimming, growing up working with his dad and becoming part of the crew, his total support from his future wife, where he sees his company in the future, and his huge support for law enforcement and military.

Find him on Yelp!: Adrian's Tree Service 

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In this episode, Jose and his wife Vero, sit down with Job Avelar Contreras, owner of JAAC Arnold, makers of fine leather goods and hats based out of Teocaltiche, Jalisco, Mexico. They discuss not wanting to follow the family business, trying his hand on his own in the US, the family business making hats for major US western wear companies, his families roots in hat making, growing his brand to international level and making Mexican made fashion compete with European made fashion.

Visit online: https://jaacarnold.com/en/
Follow: @jaacarnold

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In this episode we sat down with Hector Lozano, owner and operator of Let's Move Fitness in Cudahy Ca. We talk about going all in on a big undertaking, bad partnerships, faking it 'til you make it, the difficulties of opening a gym during a pandemic and “breaking the cycle”.



Visit in person: 7910 Atlantic Ave. Cudahy Ca 90201
Follow: @letsmovefitness_

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In this episode we sat down with Art Gallardo and James White, tattoo artist at Dreamland Tattoo in Whittier California. We discuss their influences on art, the love of music, what inspires us and how tattooing has been changing for the last few years. Listen in on this fun conversation as we get insight in the tattooing industry and laugh at topics in between.

Follow: @dreamlandtattooing
                 @iamjimmyjam
                 @artgallardotattoo

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In this episode we sat down with George Casillas, founder and executive director of Veterans Stand Together, a non-profit organization that assists veterans coming out of the service by providing guidance and support during the transition from military life to the civilian world. We discuss how they came to provide vocational training, housing and even mental health services for our veterans. Listen in on how this Marine Corp veteran was inspired and driven to help his military brothers and sisters.


Visit online: www.usavest.org
Follow: @wesupportvst

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