Today we’d like to introduce you to Zipporah (Juice-Z) Severan-Robertson.
Hi Zipporah (Juice-Z), thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Music has always been a part of my life due to my father’s background in the music industry. He used to play the drums and sing in his studio and I would be right outside the door at the age of two years old bouncing up and down while dancing. In that moment, I didn’t know that music would play such a huge role in my life until I started coming into myself.
Since my parents noticed that I had a love for arts, they got my sisters and I involved in dancing at a young age. I began to take tapping and modern dance classes from the age of six to eight years old. I still love dancing till this day. Along with dancing, I have always had a calling to be an all-around entertainer, so I started taking singing seriously at a young age.
Singing and performing has always been a passion of mine since I can remember. I have always loved to sing, rap, and dance since I was a baby. From singing “At Your Best” by Aaliyah with a lisp to rapping “Going Back to Cali” by Biggie. My first music performance was in the 3rd grade at Barfield Elementary Talent Show. I remember my dad and I worked on remaking “Bring It All To Me (instrumental), originally performed by Blaque so I was able to perform the song for my 3rd-grade talent show. I remember getting on stage and singing for the first time, I was so nervous. I froze up like Eminem on 8 Mile. I started singing really low and then I just stopped because everyone in the audience started recording and taking pictures and I was extremely shy during that time. It was too much stimulation at once. It took me a while to get back on stage. Although I shut down on stage, I knew I wanted to explore my other talents, so I turned to musical instruments.
At the age of 9 years old, my father signed my sisters and I up for private piano lessons taught by his friend Vance. Although my piano lessons were cut short due to Vance moving away, my passion for music still remained.
I stepped away from music for a while during my adolescence. During this time, I was going through self-exploration, love, loss, balancing several responsibilities, discovering my sexuality, etc. Music was always something that I used as a remedy to get through my struggles and trauma faced during my adolescence.
Music was always a hobby until I gave it a serious try. People in school always told me that my voice is beautiful and how come I don’t sing professionally, so I gave it a try. I returned to music in 2019 when I recorded my first single, “Marathon (Run It Up)”. I felt like I was missing something and that something was the music, which was my first love. I have been performing since I auditioned/performed for Coast2Coast Live in Los Angeles at Los Globos. Recently, I had an amazing opportunity where I was actually compensated to perform at San Diego She Fest and it changed my life forever. I was able to network and make essential connections. This was my first big paid show as an independent artist and I know this is the beginning of my journey; I am excited for what’s to come.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
There has been nothing smooth about my road. I have experienced twists, turns, bumps, collisions, etc. During my adolescence, I went through depression, anxiety, insecurities, rejection, physical and verbal abuse. At the age of six years old my grandma, that I was extremely close to passed away, which sent me into a depression. At the age of 16 years old, my family finally found out about my sexuality due to being caught kissing my partner in my bedroom. My sister told my oldest sister and my mom overheard. My dad found out about a week afterward when my mom told him since she couldn’t keep it a secret any further. When my father found out about my sexuality, my life took a tragic turn.
He said some hurtful things about me and to me directly. My father called me a waste of sperm that should have been shot on the wall since he had the misconception that people who identify with the LGBTQIA+ community do not reproduce. He has also called me a curse to the family and blamed my sexuality for all the financial hardships that my family was going through at the time. Although till this day he denies saying those things to me, I have forgiven him for his comments for my healing. Throughout my life my dad spoke extremely high of me until he found out about my sexuality. It seemed that I was no longer something that he was proud of yet rather an embarrassment. I had to realize that his embarrassment or insecurities had nothing to do with me but it had everything to do with him. His ego was bruised because he was concerned about how others would view him and mostly how he viewed himself.
I went into a deep depression and I spiraled a bit during that time because I felt rejected by my parent. The unconditional love that I received from my mother is truly what healed me and got me through that entire time. Although she was not supportive right away, she spent the most time asking me questions and giving me relationship advice. Eventually, I found my own way and finally started to accept myself and appreciate who I was becoming. I was spending so much time of my life seeking others’ approval due to being rejected by my father and I was trying to fill that void with needing others to accept me. The healing began when I realized that I needed to accept my truth and myself.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I graduated from Cal Poly Pomona with an Electronic Systems Engineering Technology B.S. Degree. Currently, I work full-time as a high/middle school engineering teacher at Coronado High School/Middle School, and I teach because this generation will be our future leaders, and I want to ensure that I provide the wisdom and guidance to prevent any ignorance and lack of mindfulness. I am a volunteer for the Prison Education Project and we teach various curriculums to incarcerated students to help students develop skills necessary for success post-release. In addition, I would also like to add that I am an all-around artist. I have honed my skills as a singer, rapper, entertainer, song-writer and producer. My true passion is performing and being an entertainer, although I get very consumed with teaching due to the multiple hats that teachers wear. After a long day at work, I am ready to come home and sleep, which leaves me with minimal energy to do much of anything. These days I am so focused on surviving, so if something that I am pursuing isn’t allowing me to sustain my current living arrangements, I cannot afford to make it my main priority.
I am known for being an advocate, volunteer, educator, entertainer and an all-around down-to-earth individual. I am most proud of my ability to keep moving forward and be such a resilient person regardless of the numerous setbacks that I face. My heart, my persistence and my intentions are what sets me apart from others. I genuinely want the best for everyone, no envy, no jealousy, no ill will or intentions, no preying, etc. I always spread the message that hate, jealously and envy are powerful drugs. Instead of putting so much energy into wishing chaos onto someone or wanting things that they have, invest that energy into yourself so you can focus on what the problem really is, and that is you don’t believe that you are capable of accomplishing the same things or even greater. Your mind can be a prison if you allow it; you set those limitations. Focus on yourself to succeed; nobody is competition besides the person you were yesterday and the person you’d like to become.
Is there any advice you’d like to share with our readers who might just be starting out?
For those that are just starting out, I’d say be patient with yourself because quality will always outlive quantity. Many young entertainers or people starting out in various fields of interest want instant gratification. When they don’t receive instant approval, it causes them to doubt themselves or sometimes spiral. I believe self-validation is the most important validation that you can ever receive. Also, I would suggest to not taking things personally, even if it seems personal because the negative energy that stems from rejection that you may feel from criticism, professionals critiquing your talents/skills, etc., will cause you to lose sight of what is most important such as making improvements on your craft, stepping outside of your comfort zone, etc. Delivery can be sharp coming from people in the industry but don’t allow it to define you.
There are still things that I am learning and I wish that I knew from starting out until now. I am eager to learn more things about the legal side of entertainment such as music contracts and policies. I wish I knew that you can do extremely well as an independent artist, but now I know and it is not too late so for that, I am grateful!
Pricing:
- Juice Z Goods $24.99 Classic Unisex Tee
- Juice Z Goods $25.99 Premium Unisex Tee
- Song Features $350 plus 20% royalties
- Hooks $400 plus 20% royalties
- Tutoring (any subject) $150/hr
Contact Info:
- Website: https://linktr.ee/juice_z
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/djjuice_z/?hl=en
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zipporah-robertson-56521b240/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8s_cEmYljBE7MsPKnL1YdQ
- SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/djjuice_z?ref=clipboard&p=a&c=1&utm_campaign=social_sharing&utm_medium=text&utm_source=clipboard
- Other: https://www.bonfire.com/store/the-juice-z-goods/?utm_source=linktree&utm_campaign=the-juice-z-goods&utm_medium=store_page_share&utm_content=default
Image Credits
Photo by Felisha Carrasco **for the two professionally taken images**
