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Carlos Del Valle wears many hats and they all fit him well. A true hustler, Carlos, who goes by Los Antonio, knows what it takes to grind. Working his way up from an intern at the Blue Flame Agency on a $30 per week stipend to digital marketing coordinator at the same company, to working directly with Sean “Diddy” Combs, he’s always ready to capitalize on an opportunity and master tricks of the trade.
“It was just a journey also from being an intern, having a vision, and really just kind of betting on yourself, and just having a relentless pursuit of what you feel is needed,” Los told REVOLT. Now, he’s passing on those skills and that mindset through intimate conversations on REVOLT’s new digital series “No Sleeping In The Trophy Room.”
“No Sleeping In The Trophy Room” is a brand new show that will feature conversations between Los and leaders in their respective industries — full of encouraging sentiments and major keys. Los hopes the discussions between himself and the various guests will be helpful, and offer encouragement and solitude for viewers through adversity. “I really feel like these conversations really helped me personally during these times…It’s like mental warfare out here. It’s one thing to be stuck in the house, but it’s another to be stuck in the house and stuck in your mind,” Los tells us in an exclusive interview. “I’m hoping to inspire the next generation of creatives, entrepreneurs and thought leaders.”
The show officially premieres Monday, April 6, 2020. However, special editions, including one with Jaylen Brown, are now available. Featured guests on the roster for season one include DJ, producer and co-founder of Soulection Joe Kay; luxury travel consultant PJ Kev, stylist and founder of the Litefeet movement King of Spank; and celebrity photographer Kaito, among others.
We caught up with Los to discuss his professional rise, his roles on the series, the motivation behind “No Sleeping In The Trophy Room,” and what he hopes viewers take away from it. Read our chat with him below.
How did you come to this point in your career?
I started my career as an intern at the Blue Flame Agency, which is a marketing agency that was owned and operated by Sean “Diddy” Combs. I started there as an intern for about a year. They gave us a stipend of about $30 a week. I became familiar with a lot of different trades from digital marketing to experiential marketing, within wines and spirits, film, media. Digital marketing and content was something that just held my interest.
It was at that point where my mentor, Aubrey Flynn, offered me my first job. I became a digital marketing coordinator at the Blue Flame Agency and after that, I just worked my way up the corporate totem pole. I saw an opportunity within Mr. Combs’ team to really connect the dots between his lifestyle and the products that he would surround himself by, whether it be Ciroc, AQUAhydrate, we helped launch REVOLT. All the things that were going on around Mr. Combs in general. [I was] really kind of forcing my hand and trying to do things to court an opportunity.
So, that ended up pushing through around 2016 or 2015, I believe. That’s when my work had afforded me an opportunity to work directly with Mr. Combs in Los Angeles, and for the next three years, I lived in L.A. and I worked directly with Mr. Combs. We pioneered his digital team and did a lot of great things on that side from selling out the “Bad Boy Family Reunion Tour” to the Can’t Stop Won’t Stop film that followed many Ciroc flavor releases, Deleon tequila, and many, many, many wins after that.
What advice would you give to someone aiming to follow a similar path or who looks up to you as career goals?
I definitely would say just to stay relentless. As creators, as entrepreneurs or as inspiring people, you focus on the direction as opposed to focusing on the attention. As long as you’re pushing forward, whether it’s in the smallest way or in a big way, the key is just to keep moving forward and stay relentless. Whether something works, or it doesn’t work out, at least you exerted yourself in a direction, and now you know what a new direction looks like. My advice to somebody would really be don’t hesitate, be relentless about what you’re passionate about and always stay curious, and have fun with it.
How did “No Sleeping In The Trophy Room” come about? What made you want to be involved?
I had the idea for this show around like 2017 or 2018… Through my work with Mr. Combs, I was moving around state to state, meeting so many different creatives, many different entrepreneurs and thought leaders that I was really blessed to kind of just cross paths with. There was a lot — a common thread — and that common thread was an unconventional approach to hustle. Everybody really had a unique story. And these were conversations that I would have with them while we’re on the road, or in between shoots, or we’re on set, or we’d be getting food. These were conversations that I had to have many of times with many different people, and I realized that this is something that we should expand on. I just felt like these narratives, these stories could really help people. They were motivational. They were unconventional things that people really fought to bring to life. “No Sleeping In The Trophy Room” is the mentality that fuels those visionaries.
What are some topics that viewers can expect to be discussed on the show?
[Viewers] can expect to be motivated by the truth. People can expect to hear a raw narrative of what it takes to better yourself and what it takes to actually push your business forward. You can expect to hear wins and losses. You can expect real gritty stories, but also really empowering stories. You can also expect to learn because the people that I’m talking to are experts within their own lanes. You can expect to be motivated and you can expect for that not to stop. This is definitely something very necessary. I feel, right now, there’s a lot of content out there. But, I feel like this is something that is a different offering. This will empower and motivate the next generation of creative entrepreneurs and thought leaders.
What made you want to interview these specific people for the series?
The guests were chosen because you look at the landscape of culture, it changes every day. There are people who come in and out of this thing, and there are people that are here to stay. There are people that really cause a shift and there are people that really live this. When I say ‘this,’ I mean, just being unapologetically them, and in turn that breeds style, that breeds trends, that breeds culture.
I picked these people because I saw what they were doing. I see that these people are culture shifters and original. They’re true to who they are. Those are the type of people that I like to surround myself with. Those are the type of people that I know that are creators and are always going to keep creating [and] pushing the culture forward. Those are the type of conversations that need to be a part of this and there are so many more people that will come next because every field has people that have the same energy, the same talent, the same gift.
What were the most remarkable conversations you remember?
There’s a gentleman by the name of Chief Johnson. He had done some entertainment marketing over at Puma. He had a great story about how he’s always kept his ear to the streets, and he’s such a conduit for culture when it comes to bringing culture to the corporate office. He was one of the many people that responded that was responsible for the Nipsey Hussle and Puma collab. That was a very interesting story to hear how that came about. Another gentleman Kelvin Mensa, I sat down with. He goes by the name PJ Kev. He’s doing amazing things for luxury travel. He’s in his mid-20s, he’s from Ghana, and he’s really pioneering a great lane for luxury travel, and he has a great story.
What sets your show a part from other motivational, hustler-inspired series? What makes you the perfect host?
What sets us a part is the transparency and the fact that we’re not just painting glory stories for people. What we are doing is showcasing the losses, the risk and the reward. Also, all of these people are currently in this right now. To be able to have an hour or two to sit down with some of these people, people who typically won’t have the time to do that, is limited time only talk.
What makes me the guy is the fact that I’ve done my 10,000 hours ten times, and I have no problem doing 10,000 more. I’m somebody that has worked my way up the corporate ladder. I have that story of going from an intern to the top of the building. My work has been published in Forbes. That’s a dream. I’ve also helped a lot of other people along the way. It’s not all about me. It’s about the people that I’ve helped and the people I will help through this show. I feel like a servant for a lot of other people and when I say servant, I mean we’re serving motivation, we’re serving a lot. I am the guy that people should look out for.
You also produce the show. Do you think being a producer impacts your hosting?
If anything, it makes me more aware of what to look for because I’m not perfect. Every shoot isn’t perfect. Every episode isn’t perfect, and that’s why I have a good team around me that holds me accountable to getting better every time. Me being the host and producer is a good thing. I get to critique myself in real-time. Through my experience, I’ve been all behind the camera, I’ve written treatments, I’ve written rollout plans. I just had to cut video. I understand how to book talent. This is what the work is about. Being the host and producer opens up my eyes, and sharpens my perspective. It helps me be more efficient when it comes to the show.
What is the one thing that you hope your audience takes away after watching “No Sleeping In The Trophy Room”?
I just want people to feel a few things. I want people to be motivated. I want people to feel like this is something new. I want people to see this and understand that this is the shift. We’re now in the business of giving back to our people. A lot of content takes from the culture and “No Sleeping In The Trophy Room” is putting seeds back into the game. This is about motivating people that look and sound like us. And I want people to know that they could come back and we’ll have something different for them each time.
Just don’t sleep in that trophy room! No sleeping in the trophy room is really a mentality. It’s wild because this isn’t a gimmick for me. When the cameras go off right now, we’re in a middle of a pandemic. It’s a crisis going on out here. The only thing that really keeps me sane is “No Sleeping In The Trophy Room.” That mentality. These conversations are therapeutic, and it really helps. I definitely want to leave you with this: This is a lifestyle. This is a mentality. “No Sleeping In The Trophy Room” is a real thing.