Miami, FL – November 1, 2019 – Say hello to Julieanna Goddard, aka “YesJulz“. YesJulz is an entrepreneur, talent manager, global influencer, and philanthropist. The Miami native and self-made entrepreneur took us back to her past as we sat down at her Coral Gables home for an intimate interview. In her early childhood years, Julz spent most of her time in foster care. At the age of 9 she was adopted by her mom, which at one point was the supervisor of the children’s home. After living in several different cities, never staying in one place for more than 10 months, Julz knew that her situation at that time was only temporary. Through the highs and lows she found her stride and created a non profit, Little Rascals Foundation, to help create and find outlets in the arts for underprivileged and displaced foster children.

YesJulz got her start in the entertainment and hospitality industry working as a VIP host at the top clubs in Tampa, and then continued her work in Miami as a VIP hostess at LIV, STORY, and FDR. In 2015, she founded 1AM Media, a female founded and operated powerhouse umbrella company which boasts a digital radio station, experiential marketing agency, management company and a record label. Although she’s found great success in all of these ventures, Julz is only just getting started as she aims to make the ultimate platform and community for the digital generation.

Today, Julz is bringing it back to where it all began in Miami. After traveling to LA, NY, and Boston, Julz stated, “No more moving to a bigger city to realize our dreams, we can stay right here. This is the place to be”… Read the full Q&A below.

By: Marissa Scarpulla

WRE: How did you come up with the name Yes Julz? Who is Yes Julz? 

YZ: Back when Twitter first came about, I was making a username, “Julz” was taken. I began to think about adjectives that could describe me. While brainstorming I thought “I take on any challenge and never take no for an answer, the name should be YesJulz!” In hindsight I love the name but these days I’m more like “No Julz” as learning how to prioritize my time and say yes only to projects that serve me has been a life changing pivot and one that has led to me finding joy in my profession again.

WRE: You’re very open about your past and about growing up in foster care. Tell us about your experience.

YZ: I am open about my experience being a ward of the state/foster child because I feel that we don’t hear it being talked about enough. Today, there’s all these new laws and opinions surrounding abortion yet, people don’t have the facts on the current state of adoption and foster care in our country. Telling women to go through with a pregnancy to ultimately “give the child up for adoption” isn’t a solution.

In America, there are over 500,000 children without a home as we speak. Statistics show that on average, 75% of fostered youth ends up in prison at some point in their life. I want any kid in foster care to see themselves in me and know that their current situation is just temporary. They can accomplish anything they put their minds to with hard work and the right resources and information.

I started Little Rascals Foundation to give at-risk youth the education and attention they need to change their narrative. I believe moving around a lot as a young child had positive long term effects on me and ultimately, shaped me to be the entrepreneur I am today. I learned early on the importance of networking and adapting to different environments. These are survival techniques a young kid moving from family to family subconsciously develops. We all have them, but its simply a matter of having the right people around you to set a good example in order to be motivated to use those characteristics in a positive way. When my mom was the supervisor at my children’s home, she was that person for me. After attempting to adopt me for a period of 7 long years, I finally had a permanent place to call home at 9 years old. I don’t know how she did it, but my mom managed to pay off all her lawyer fees, get a bigger house so that I could have my own room, and even somehow put me in dance, piano, and acting class all throughout elementary and middle school. I just want to pay it forward and be a light, the way my mom was, for as many other young creatives coming from a place of hardship.

WRE: In 2015, you found your biological father. What made you want to reach out? How did it feel growing up not knowing your parents?

YZ: I always knew my birth mother because I was in her custody on and off between the ages of 1 to 9 years old, but what I knew wasn’t that great. I understand now that parents are humans with their own journey, but all I remember from those times was how badly I wanted her to get sober. Both of my early father figures were in jail the majority of my life. I had faint memories of my stepfather, who also wasn’t the best guy, and I never remembered my birth dad.

Growing up, it was always hard for me to answer the question “where are you from”. I never really knew what to say. I had never lived in a place longer than 10 months, and suddenly I had a family. I still wasn’t sure if living with them now meant I was from where they were too. Was I Colombian like my current family, whose traditions and culture were the one I felt most accustomed to? Or was I Puerto Rican and Italian like the blood in my veins? Even knowing what city to say I was from was a tough one. I was born in Miami, lived in nearly every city in south Florida, and yet the only home I really knew was Boston where I moved once I got adopted. But even in that case we didn’t stay there long.

Aside from dreading that simple “Where are you from?” ice breaker question, I honestly never thought about the fact that I was adopted much until I got older. I always knew I was Puerto Rican and Italian but never knew anything about my Puerto Rican side of the family. When I moved to Miami I got a message from someone claiming to be my sister on facebook. It turns out that I actually had 11 siblings right here in Florida that I never knew about. That was an exciting discovery! I always wished to be closer to my sister from my birth mothers side so having the chance to develop a relationship with my fathers children has been the biggest blessing. Family is so important. I was hesitant about meeting him at first but after getting to know his kids I realized he may not be as bad as I thought.

I met my father for the first time in 23 years briefly for dinner in 2015 before he went back in to serve a few more years. I wasn’t ready then to build a relationship with him at that point but God is always on time. I’ve spent a majority of 2019 getting to know myself and I realized I am ready to really dive into my roots and learn more about who I am at the core so I can better understand my behavior patterns and eliminate some blockages. It’s hard to do that without knowing your parents so I am happy my father got out for good in July. We’ve hung out a few times since and he is actually super cool! Hoping he can have my Spanish up to par in time for 2020. He even came over to help me hang up some art in my new house, it’s been nice to have him around. I definitely see a lot of myself in him, the guy is the definition of the word hustler.

WRE: What charities are you involved in? 

YZ: I have my non profit Little Rascals Foundation which essentially has partnered with a local organization called The Motivational edge up to this point. I am a firm believer it’s best to work smarter than harder. My mission aligns closely with that of M.E so while I learn as much as I can about the philanthropic space, using my platform and resources to raise money for their cause through Little Rascals has been the main focus. In 2017 we were able to fund a music program for an orphanage in Haiti with the assistance of the Jack brewer Foundation. We supplied instruments and a school teacher for a years time. That was such a life changing trip for me. Its crazy how so little can go such a long way in a place like cite sole. Last year, we built a state of the art recording studio in Motivational Edge’s after school center in Allapattah with the support of my long time client Puma. Im looking forward to working on more projects with Ian at M.E, now that I’m home and can be more hands on with the kids. This is really the most rewarding aspect of my job. If I can succeed in aiding at least one young creative in making their passion their career, I will be happy and I know my mom will be proud too. Now that I’m typing this I realize I actually have done that in my own way as a manager with 070 Shake. During our time together we signed to a major label, closed a handful of brand deals and released her first project which ultimately led to her making a living off of her passion. It’s pretty cool.

WRE: What does it mean to give back to the community?

YZ: For me giving back is the only thing that matters. I love hosting and interviewing interesting characters. I love throwing a good party. I love story telling for brands I have admired my whole life but in the end, if I’m doing all of the above and it isn’t making some sort of an impact, what’s the point? My mom didn’t fight to make me her daughter for 7 years just so that I would have a lot of followers on Instagram one day, manage a poppin artist or throw a good party. It’s what I’m using my platform to say, what the artists I work with represent and what impact the experiences I’m curating have on the community I’m in that matter. I want to make sure that one day when its all done, my mom looks back and knows that it was all worth it.

I am open about my experience being a ward of the state/foster child because I feel we don’t hear it being talked about enough… I just want to pay it forward and be the light she was in my life for as many other young creatives coming from a place of hardship as I can.

Julieanna Goddard "YesJulz"

WRE: You’re most known for your presence on social media. How do you use social media as a platform to inspire others?

YZ: Back in 2015 when I started 1AM agency, I was looking for an example of a woman in this space whose steps I could follow. The closest I was able to get was memories of my younger days watching the show where Puff had someone go across a bridge to get him cheesecake. The shows on TV at this time were Laguna Beach, Love & Hip Hop, and The Simple Life with Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie. There wasn’t a show documenting any women who were building a brand that I could actually relate to, so I decided I would make my own and use Snapchat as my distribution platform. It was really just a way to show people what I was working on and hope that they learned what not to do from my mistakes. I still use my social media for the same reasons. In a time when everyone is trying to keep up with the Joneses, or in our case, the Kardashians, I feel being the best authentic version of ourselves is the most inspirational thing we can do.

WRE: How did you infiltrate the inner circle of the entertainment industry?

YZ: I began my career as a VIP host at the top clubs in Tampa and continued with my work as a VIP hostess at LIV and STORY. I’ve always had a great work ethic (got that from my momma), and was sure to make myself useful whenever I was. If my job only consisted of seating tables when they arrived at the venue, I was sure to go above and beyond to give the clients who dealt with me the ultimate experience. I did such a good job with this that eventually, I became the go-to girl in Miami for celebrities and brand representatives that were in town looking to produce an event, connect with a particular audience, or simply have a good time. Starting an experiential marketing agency was a way for me to build a brand, profit off of all the favors I was doing for the friends who eventually became clients, and make a real career out of connecting the dots, producing, and consulting. People in this industry want to have someone with good ideas that they can depend on to execute, while protecting their privacy and brand; I am that person.

1AM JAMS

1AM JAMS is an intimate jam session bringing talented people together in a space where we all feel comfortable. A safe haven so to speak. There are open mics in every city, but nothing like this. Local, raw talent, most of whom are undiscovered, who all share the same purpose: spreading love through music. Being that Julz is surrounded by music in most aspects of her life, these sessions were a no brainer. A way for us all to connect, stay grounded, and be ourselves. And what better place to have it in than Julz’s living room?

WRE: Throughout your childhood you moved around from Boston, Miami, and LA. What is the reason you came back to Miami? What does Miami offer that LA doesn’t?

YZ: When I left Miami, it was during a time that I was entering a new industry. I had made the pivot from marketing, promotions, and event production into the music industry and found that I was constantly having to travel to NYC and LA for meetings. The traveling became taxing, so I made the decision to leave for a few years so that I could gain the necessary experience and contacts to make strides as an artist manager and independent record label. 2018 was a crazy year for me, a lot of highs and a lot of lows. I found that I personally had no foundation in LA and I ended up losing my balance because of it. My home was, and will always be, Miami. This city is just special. What I love most about Miami is that there is a real community here and we stick together and support one another. Miami is a means of constant inspiration from our beaches to our parks, the art on our walls, the musicians making the music you hear in our streets. This city is a cultural melting pot that welcomes any and everyone with a smile and a good time. I’m excited to be back home. There is so much we have in store for the city. I hope to do my part so that the next young woman (or man) looking to start a media company has everything they need right here at home to do so. No more moving to a bigger city to realize our dreams, we can stay right here. This is the place to be.

What I love most about Miami is that there is a real community here and we stick together and support one another… This city is a cultural melting pot that welcomes any and everyone with a smile and a good time. I’m excited to be back home.

Julieanna Goddard "YesJulz"

WRE: Tell us who your biggest influence was that inspired you to start promoting parties?

YZ: I would say Puff was probably my biggest influence when it came to throwing parties. I always marveled at how he could walk into a room and change the energy simply with his presence. Chris Paciello is similar in that sense and was also the closest thing to a mentor that I have ever had. Working closely with Chris during the FDR Mondays era was life changing for me. Chris let me sit in on meetings, hear calls where he would negotiate deals, and taught me how his mind worked when it came to curating a room, building, and maintaining a network. I’m a 90’s baby, so MTV was also extremely influential for me. I was that one kid who would run home after school every day just to catch TRL. I always wanted to have my own version of a countdown show highlighting artists I enjoyed, hence why we have 1AM radio. I remember watching Carson Daly and Downtown Julie Brown thinking I would be like them one day. They seemed to bring the best out of my favorite artists whenever they spoke with them, but also made sure the people in the audience were engaged and having a good time. 1AM is essentially my take on an updated version of MTV for the digital age. I can’t wait for the day we have the proper backing and platform. We will be a force to be reckoned with and we will never fall victim to the politics of the industry.

WRE: What is something we don’t know about you? 

YZ: I love making music. I’ve been focused on building my company for the past decade so it’s been a while since I’ve taken the time to create for myself, but I hope to carve out some time to make music of my own before the year is up.

WRE: What’s next for you? 

YZ: Right now I’m enjoying sitting still for the first time in my life. Sounds a bit crazy, but the girl who coined the term “Never Not Working” really needed to learn how to be still. I’m looking forward to spending the rest of the year in Miami learning the new landscape of the city and connecting with the people here that inspire me. A lot has changed since I left Miami three years ago. It feels like I’m at the beginning of a very exciting new chapter in my life where I get to not only help others express themselves creatively, but also make space for myself to enjoy bringing my own ideas to life.