Grizel, Shania & Dayvion: Bright Lights, Big Breaks

Rachael: To help us wrap up our tenth season of Formative, we’re joined by Grizel Del Valle. Grizel is a singer, actress, and performer. In today's episode, she shares how to recognize the right opportunities and find the courage to go after them. We also talk about how social media has reshaped her career, the realities of being an independent artist, and the story behind her stage name La Chachi.

Rachael: Hello and welcome. I'm Rachael Gazdick, CEO of New York Edge, and today we have two co-hosts, Shania and Dayvion. Would you both introduce yourselves to our listeners? 

Dayvion: Hi, my name is Dayvion.  I come from MSAP. I'm 14 years old, and I like to write poems and draw. 

Shania: Hi, I am Shania Lewis. I come from MSAP. I am 13 years old. I'm in seventh grade. And I like acting and theater. 

Rachael: Fabulous. And who is today's guest? 

Dayvion: Today we will be interviewing Grizel Del Valle. She's a singer and actor, and a songwriter. 

Rachael: Grizel, we're so happy to have you on the show. 

Grizel: Thank you for having me, guys. 

Rachael: Okay, let's get started then. Shania, what's your first question?

Shania: Okay, so we know that you go by the name La Chachi. Is there any reason you came up with that name or what does it mean? 

Grizel: So my name is Grizel Del Valle, but La Chachi or Chachi was the name that my godmother gave me when I was a little girl. I've always loved music since I was a toddler. And so she would always sing to me or put music so that I can dance, and there was this song that had something towards the end that went chachiki chachi, chachiki chachi chiki chachi… And I would just dance and I would like, I didn't know what I was doing, but I was dancing. And so she named me Chachi, everybody knows me as Chachi. So even now as I'm coming out as an artist with my name and my art, like they still call me Chachi, La Chachi. So that's why I decided to name my album La Chachi 'cause I'm like, I have to marry these two personas so that people understand that I am the same person. And so that when they look up Chachi or La Chachi, Grizel Del Valle also comes up. 

Dayvion: I would like to know what really led you to know what you wanted to be when you grow up.

Grizel: So I went to Elementary School of the Arts. And I had the fortune of being able to play the trumpet, I was in the acting, um, group, I was in the choir. I danced, I sang, I did a little bit of everything. And so I felt more comfortable on stage than in the real world 'cause I was kind of bullied in elementary school. And so my escape was always the arts. 

I had some pretty incredible teachers that, till this day, um, we're in contact with one another, that left a mark in me. I remember my eighth grade teacher, Ms. [inaudible], seventh and eighth grade, but she was also part of the, of the acting group that we had in that school. And she was the first person to take me to a Broadway musical in New York City. And I remember we watched Les Miserables and I was, like, in shock. I pictured myself on stage with everyone that was already there. So I, I was taken in by the show, but at the same time I was imagining and manifesting, I wanna do this when I grow up.

Dayvion: Yes.

Grizel: And then you fast forward 15, 20 years later and it's what I'm doing as well. Aside from singing and dancing, acting has always played a pivotal role in my life. And those teachers are teachers that I'll never forget and who have just influenced me in a way where without them knowing they were planting the seeds that later bloomed into what it is that I do today.

Dayvion: Yes, that is amazing.

Shania: Was there any artists that inspired you while you were younger? 

Grizel: Definitely, my mother's favorite was Celia Cruz, and Celia Cruz, Stevie Wonder and Chaka Khan. Those were my mom's go-to music whenever she was cleaning. So I grew up with that music, which some of them are more on the R&B, soul side. And then you had Celia Cruz, which was on the Latin side. 

But my all time favorite was this woman whose name is Olga Tañón. And when I turned 17, one of my best friends took me to Apollo Theater to see her in concert. And she said, I spent a lot of money on these tickets, so you better make sure that you let her know that today's your birthday, you better do something. I'm, I'm not a shy person, but I do sometimes get shy when I get put on the spot. And so at a moment where everything went really quiet, I said, today's my birthday. And she was like, oh, today's your birthday, happy birthday, come up on stage. And I was like, oh my gosh. So I went up on stage with her. She starts singing happy birthday to me, and she didn't ask me my name, so right before she gets to the part in the song where you usually put the person's name in, she stopped and she said, hold on, no one ever sang happy birthday to me like that. And I said, well, I know my, your birthday's in April. My birthday's in July, but I'll share my birthday with you. I took her microphone and I sang happy birthday to this woman, and she was floored. She literally got on the floor. She was like, wow, you are incredible, please always continue to have that courage that you just had. Continue to be free, outspoken, and don't ever let anyone like dim your voice. And I was like, you know what? 

So I followed her throughout the years. And then guess what, guys? 15 years later, it happened again. I went to her concert and her, her publicist is one of my friends, and he was like, I got better tickets for you, so I'm gonna bring you closer to the front of the stage. I had taken her flowers 'cause of course I'm like obsessed with her. And so when she notices me, she was like, hey, you're here, you're late. I was like, no, I wasn't late. I got a flat tire on my way to that concert, but I still, where there's a will, there's a way, and we're gonna go, so…

Dayvion: Determination!

Grizel: Deter-, you have to be determined, you gotta want it.

And this time around, 15 years later, everybody has a cell phone, there's a camera on everybody's cell phone. And so many people captured it and it, it became a viral moment for me and I got like over 5,000 followers from that night alone. So that day she asked me to come up on stage and she was like, do you know this one? I know all her songs. And so I got up on stage and she left me on stage with her musicians. She just walked away, gave me the microphone, and came back and she was like, wow, you're still it. 

So, you know, I hope that that story encourages you guys too, that sometimes there's gonna be obstacles in life that are gonna test you to see if you really want what it is that you say you want. And so that perseverance and persistent attitude and character is what's gonna get you ahead in life. 

Shania: How is it like working with other people? 

Grizel: Um, sometimes I have my fan girl moments because I've had the privilege and honor of working, like, with some of the biggest Latin artists in the world. And I'm talking about like Mark Anthony, Aventura, Romeo Santos. And I love it because even though I'm way older than you guys, working with them makes me feel like a child. It makes me feel like a kid again. Yeah, it makes me feel like a kid again. 

In the studio, like when I'm recording music, I have different family than what I have in the acting world. And it's, it’s like when you have your cousins from your mom's side of the family, and then you have your cousins from your father's side of the family. That's how I feel like the arts are for me. I love it. I love that as an adult, I still get to play. As an actress, I get to play. I get to play so many characters that my imagination is endless and I can be whoever I want to be when I'm on stage. 

Um, learning from people because you learn from them. You learn from people's mistakes, but you also learn when you have a colleague on stage or in a studio or at a rehearsal that's doing an incredible job, sometimes it makes you wanna work harder. So I feel like I'm always a student and it doesn't matter how old I get in life, I'm always a student because you can always learn something. And so I always try to keep an open mind. I know I'm very talented and I know that because a lot of people, they vouch for me and they say that I am. But I also know that I'm flawed and I don't know it all. So there's always room for growth.

Shania: Was there ever a time in your career that you wanted to quit? 

Grizel: Yes. I'm an independent artist, so I don't come with a music label or sponsors or a financial backing. So everything that I do, when it comes to the arts and to my career with my singing, my acting, my dancing, it's a lot of pressure. And it's a little difficult, especially for girls, more than for guys, because you know how they say it's a guy's world, it's a man’s world. A girl has more pressure in the sense of sometimes people don't wanna work with us because let's say it's too expensive to work with a female. For a guy, you could just dress them, pants, shirt, shoes, make sure they're groomed. For a girl, it's different, right? You have to make sure the jewelry is there, the branding is there, the this is there. And so because I've been the financial backer of my whole career my whole life, there have been times where I've like, I felt like I hit a wall, or I'll take five steps forward, and then life makes me take six steps back. 

Again, it goes back to you really gotta want it. You really have to believe in yourselves. If writing is what you want to do and it's what you're good at and it's an outlet for you, don't ever stop doing that. If acting is what you like to do, even if you take a break, breaks are okay, but don't quit because you have to be in it to win it, right? If we quit and we let go of our dreams or get let go of our aspirations or what we want, then there's no tangible way of you getting it. But if you stay in it and every single day you do something small, a small action in order to try to get what it is that you want as the outcome, there's no way that formula method is not gonna work. 

So yeah, I was discouraged. There's times where I feel like things are too expensive for me when it comes to creating the music, getting my musicians, paying my musicians, the mixing and mastering the cover artwork, distribution, then marketing. It becomes a lot for one person. So there have been times where I've wanted to quit, but I'm so happy that I didn't, because for example, my album came out in October of last year. And I worked on that project for five years, through a pandemic, through a pregnancy, 'cause I, I, my husband and I, we had our baby three years ago. And I said, you know what? I have to stay true to myself and to who I am and what I want of life. And yes, I love being a wife and I love being a mother, but I don't wanna let go of my inner child and her dreams. I wanna make sure that I fulfill those for her. 

And I finished my project. I released it last year in October, and on my debut weekend, I went number one on iTunes Latin. I was like, wait, what? I thought it was…

Dayvion: Yes!! 

Grizel: I thought they were pranking me. When my friends called me to tell me that I had reached number one, I thought it was a joke, a bad joke, because I, that would've hurt for it to be a real joke. But no, it was real. It really happened. And so imagine that…

Shania: Congrats.

Dayvion: Congratulations. 

Grizel: Thank you so much. But imagine I would've quit. Imagine I would've quit every time that life got a little hard, right! I wouldn't have been able to have accomplished that. But it was my persistence and that character of, no, you have to stay in it to win it, and look what happened. 

And so now I'm working on the second part of my album, which hopefully comes out later this year. And I'm trying not to put so much pressure on myself. So I've included some of my friends into the project to help me with the load because it is a lot for one person, and I'm really, really excited. 

Dayvion: I heard that you like to use social media. I would like to know how social media impacts you to share your messages.

Grizel: Yes, social media has become a very huge outlet for me, and a platform. It's, the fact that we have the whole world on a phone, on a phone, the whole world, we have access to the whole world. So I started looking at it like, you know what, maybe I can't pay for a publicist to put me in magazines or to put me in an interview on tv, but I'm like, I have an outlet and those are my platforms. And my platforms are my YouTube channel, my Instagram account, my TikTok. And I try to be authentic on those platforms because I feel a lot of people try to be something that they're not. Or try to do something just because it's cool. That's all cool and dandy but I like being true to myself. And I've done a couple of videos singing where they've gone viral, like the one I mentioned with Olga Tañón. I did another one in Puerto Rico that went really viral and I got, I think I got over 20,000 followers off just that one post. 

And so I've, I use it as my marketing strategy really. It's a free marketing tool. 

Dayvion: Mm-hmm. 

Grizel: And you can learn so many different things. Like I feel like after I graduated high school and got to college, I honestly feel like I do more research and more homework now that I'm an adult then when I was actually in school. Because it's so informative and you can learn and grow in so many different fields, from cooking to acting, writing, playing instruments. We're so fortunate to have these platforms, so don't forget to use them, and use them wisely. Use them for things of substance, right? Use 'em for things that are gonna better you and are gonna teach you the good stuff. Because anybody could learn a little TikTok dance, right? Anybody could do that. There's a lot of information there that we could get for free, so why not use it? 

Dayvion: How would you imagine yourself or picture yourself in the future?

Grizel: Okay, so in the future I see myself as a Grammy award-winning singer and songwriter. It could be Grammys or Latin Grammys or Billboards or all the other awards, right? I see myself, like, finally getting the flowers that I deserve for investing so much time into this craft. I'm being acknowledged by the real people in the industry. I see myself as a restaurant owner with my husband because my husband is an award-winning chef, and I believe in him the same way he believes in me. Actually, we're planning on opening a restaurant at the end of the year, and I think that's gonna be the first of many. I would love to open up a nonprofit organization for city kids who don't have the financial backing in order to go into the arts. Because, for example, you mentioned that you like to act. And so if we don't encourage you guys to take lessons, to get professional headshots, to invest money, unfortunately, into what it is that you want, sometimes we don't have that money and or our families don't come from that money. I would love to open a nonprofit organization where I can help the city and help kids like fulfill their dreams and anything that has to do with entertainment. 

Dayvion: That is amazing! 

Grizel: And my son will be growing up with me, right. So, um, I see myself as a, as a soccer mom, as a, going to his stuff, making sure I support him and pour into him the same way my people poured into me. And it looks like a pretty bright future.

Dayvion: Yes. Is there like a quote or a quotation that you would like to make for people who are inspired by you and want to follow your footsteps? 

Grizel: Um, there's one that I always say it, and maybe it doesn't have to do with the arts, but it's…when you can't find the light, be the light. And what does that mean? There's a lot of times where we get discouraged in life where, you know, there's a lot of mental health issues and or stress and anxiety that comes from situations that require or give us a lot of pressure. And I like to advocate for mental health, and I feel like when you can't find the light, be the light. It's all about perspectives, right, and how you, what are you focusing on? If you focus on the problem, then you're not focusing on the solution. So it's more of a like, don't stress it. Find the solution or find an alternative way to see what's happening and how can you still make it work. Because where there is a will, there is a way. So if you can't find the light, be the light. 

And that also serves when, you know, maybe, you know, you're in a group of friends or a circle of people who, the peer pressure is serious and it feels like a little bit too, not like you. And sometimes you have to put that little grain of light and shift the narrative, right, shift the energy that's going on. So if it's like low vibrational, maybe speak life into people, speak positive stuff into people. If you see someone being bullied, maybe go check out and make sure that that person that's being bullied is okay at the end of the day, even if you don't let your friends see you, but we have to take care of one another.

And that's where you find the light be the light comes from. 

Rachael: And lastly, along those same lines, if you could speak to 13, 14-year-old Grizel, what would you tell her? 

Grizel: I would tell her that, mm, that life is gonna…there's gonna be a lot of pressure, but to just never forget who she is. Because sometimes we try to be other people in order to fit in, and that's not where it's at. Like my magic is who I am and is who she is and was. And I would tell her that I love her, that I'm gonna be so very proud of her because she has no idea the beautiful things that we're gonna accomplish. And to not be so hard on herself. 

Rachael: Thank you so much for this wonderful conversation. 

Grizel: Thank you guys. Have a great evening! 

Shania: Thank you. 

Dayvion: You too. Bye!

CREDITS

Thanks for listening to Formative, a production of New York Edge. I’m your host, Rachael Gazdick. Our production partner for this series is CitizenRacecar. This episode was produced by Hajar Eldaas, post-production by Alex Brouwer, original music by Garrett Tiedemann. Thanks to the whole team at New York Edge for making this series possible. Never miss an episode by subscribing to the series at newyorkedge.org/formative or wherever you get your podcasts.