Meet Sammy Ramirez

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Sammy Ramirez. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Sammy below.

Sammy, thank you so much for joining us today. Let’s jump right into something we’re really interested in hearing about from you – being the only one in the room. So many of us find ourselves as the only woman in the room, the only immigrant or the only artist in the room, etc. Can you talk to us about how you have learned to be effective and successful in situations where you are the only one in the room like you?

I’ve always been very proud of being a first generation Mexican-American. My parents came from Mexico with nothing and instilled values in my family that I live by wholeheartedly. After high school graduation, I left the North Side of Fort Worth, Texas to San Marcos, Texas to attend Texas State University and became a the first in my family to attend a four year university. It was a cultural shock. I left an area where everyone looked like me and had a similar story to mine to a place where I felt like I wasn’t supposed to be there. A higher education in a Hispanic household isn’t necessarily always an expectation. It feels out of reach for many people like me. Blessed with the opportunity to grow as a person, I truly embraced my culture and heritage even more-so in this new environment. I found it humbling being around people that didn’t have to worry about money. It felt like I couldn’t stop this path I was on, because realistically I had no alternative. I’ve always felt if my parents could build a life in the United States with less than a high school education, providing my siblings and I with anything we could’ve asked for, that I owed it to them to try to succeed in a place where people in the room did not look like me. If I was going to be a statistic, it would be a positive one.

Even today, it feels the same. I had the opportunity to become a music educator in 2020. I’m working in the school district I attended K-12, educating the next generation of mariachi music students. As I begin my fifth school year of my career, I look around and feel like the only one in the room that looks like me. In every faculty meeting I attend, the only people that look like me are usually mopping the floor or taking out trash. But I’m humbled in the fact that I can communicate with them in Spanish, my first language. They’re usually calling me “maestro” while I say “Don” or “Doña”, terms of respect for them. They sometimes smile at me because they tell me I’m as old as their son or daughter. I think in a way, they see me like someone who could be in their immediate family, like a cousin or uncle. I smile at them because they remind me of my parents, working hard their whole life just to give me a chance to succeed.

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?

I am a musician first, educator second. As a teacher, I think you’re always a student, striving to learn more and more about the new generations of students coming through your door every school year. Everyone learns differently, at their own pace. I don’t let my career be my whole life. I’ve always been interested in doing things outside of school, because teachers are people, too.
I’ve been playing mariachi music professionally since 2010. I’ve played in backyards, venues, cemeteries, and pretty much anywhere else you can’t think of. I’ve been playing music for people since before I had my driver’s license. A lot of learning along the way, but a local mariachi here in DFW, Mariachi Allende, has helped me learn theory, improvisation, and given me much better people skills. The extra cash is cool, but I do it for the love of playing music I’m passionate about.

Playing vihuela, strumming intricate rhythms gave me an understanding of music that I’m super proud of. It gave me a lot stories for a podcast I started with my guitarron player, Victor Estrada, named CharroBeans. It’s a mariachi podcast, except we discuss all the interesting experiences we go through as working musicians. Started in 2020, the first mariachi podcast in its kind, we mixed our humor with our own personal life experiences as two people that grew up with Mexican parents, growing up in Fort Worth. Our stories are relatable because mariachi musicians know how life really is as a real working mariachi. It takes musicality, a tolerance for crazy clients, and above all respect for the music native to Mexico.

In 2023, the Texas Rangers won their first World Series championship in franchise history. Baseball, specifically the Texas Rangers, has always been another passion of mine. I knew I was too short and lacked the actual skill to be a pro ball player, but luckily music presented me with an avenue. That avenue lead to becoming part of Mariachi De Los Texas Rangers, the first official mariachi for an MLB baseball team. Playing on “Mariachi Mondays” at the ballpark for the home crowd, we found ways to implement mariachi music at the ballpark for thousands of fans attending the game. I’m not saying the Rangers won their first World Series because they let us perform there, but it was something not being done at any other ballpark, which I am immensely proud of.

This year, we took it up a notch. I was made musical director of the group at the start of the 2024 season. At my direction, I tried to implement not only mariachi music, but also pop, rock, blues and other influences to our set lists to appeal to every fan that attends the ballgame. For me, the mashups have to make sense, musically and fundamentally. The Rangers used Creed’s “Higher” as their personal anthem during their 2023 postseason push. It became rooted in Rangers culture, fans and players alike. I directed the mariachi to adapt Clielito Lindo, a traditional Mexican song, and mashed it up with “Higher” and performed it during the game. The performance ended up going viral across all social media platforms in the next couple of days. It meant so much to me that mariachi music was being presented to a mass audience and it was still authentic in mariachi style.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

Determination has always been a quality of mine because again, I never felt like anything was handed to me. My parents provided us with the basic necessities like food, shelter, and support. I didn’t need more or did I ask for more. I felt like the rest is up to me. I never wanted to burden my parents or anyone with things I go through. My problems shouldn’t be someone else’s problem too. So I’ve always felt driven to provide for myself.

Open-mindedness helped me see the world differently, always trying a perspective that isn’t mine. That could be music, looking at different genres that I don’t necessarily understand or listen to. Being able to put yourself in positions you’re not comfortable in really does allow you to grow. As soon as you think your way of thinking is above everyone else’s, you’ve lost contact with the outside world.

Having people skills is what makes you valuable. It’s what makes people want to be around you. My parents always taught me to treat everyone with respect. They taught me responsibility and tenacity. Common sense and courtesy aren’t that common anymore. The closer you can be to always being yourself makes you authentic. Keeping people in your circle with the same values helps. The way I see it, you can’t be someone’s enemy unless you truly want to be. Be a good person, and you’ll attract others like you.

What is the number one obstacle or challenge you are currently facing and what are you doing to try to resolve or overcome this challenge?

Sometimes in life, it feels like you’re doing too little at the same time, it feels like you’re doing too much. Between my musical adventures, podcasting, and educating, i’m also a son and a husband. On top of that, I’m getting older. Taking care of yourself and making sure you’re here as long as possible can sometimes be a challenge as well. You’re tired, sometimes you don’t eat, and sometimes you eat too much. There’s a lot affecting your day-to-day life. Being a first generation Mexican American I’ve learned things aren’t always so simple. Again, it’s much less common to see someone that looks like me be in the position I’m currently in so I’m very grateful. However, everyone in this world can be replaceable to some extent. My job is to continue to be creative and innovative, in a world full of creators and innovators. It’s easy to compare yourself to someone doing much more than you are. So what I try to remember is nobody can be me, so I have to keep doing me.

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Samuel Ramirez

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