{"id":30083,"date":"2025-09-01T00:11:53","date_gmt":"2025-09-01T07:11:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sandiegotroubadour.com\/?p=30083"},"modified":"2025-08-31T11:18:41","modified_gmt":"2025-08-31T18:18:41","slug":"carrie-zavala-livin-the-dream","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sandiegotroubadour.com\/carrie-zavala-livin-the-dream\/","title":{"rendered":"Carrie Zavala: Livin\u2019 the Dream"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\"\"

Carrie Zavala. Photo by Kristin Albright.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cShe is a natural force to be dealt with, a super smile, strong vocals, and a great bandleader with a wild sense of humor. If you have met Carrie or heard her sing, I\u2019m sure you would agree\u2026I strongly recommend that no one stands in her way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Those are the words of Chet Cannon, who has hosted blues jams across the county, in his praise of 52-years-young vocalist\/songwriter and bandleader, Carrie Zavala, who currently fronts her band, Zavala Sol.<\/p>\n

Zavala\u2019s presence on local music stages has been a circuitous life\u2019s journey, so let\u2019s start at her beginnings.<\/p>\n

THE EARLY YEARS<\/strong>
\n<\/strong>A Colorado native, Zavala moved to California when she was six, along with her mom and five other siblings, settling in Vista. Her mom got a job as a dispatcher for the Carlsbad Police Department. \u201cGrowing up in Vista, my mom had an open door policy; she was like the neighborhood mom,\u201d Zavala stated.<\/p>\n

After graduating Rancho Buena Vista High School, Zavala attended Palomar College for a semester. She left school after that one semester and got a job with the San Diego Sheriff\u2019s Department as a booking clerk. Two years later, at age 21, she joined the police academy. \u201cThere weren\u2019t a lot of females back then, I was usually the only female, but I wouldn’t change it for the world. I wound up working ten years with the sheriff\u2019s department and ten years with the Carlsbad Police Department, including work with the gang task force. After a work-related injury she decided on retirement in 2015, which gave her more time in raising her only child, her son Jayden.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/div>\n

\u201cMy mom is my superhero,\u201d Jayden exclaimed. \u201cGrowing up with just her, she always taught me that nothing is a given, and I had to work hard for what I really wanted in my life. She has done many incredible things that I look up to her for, such as her support when I was playing sports at my alumni Rancho Buena Vista High. Everything she has done in life she has worked 100% for it, particularly when she became a sheriff in San Diego County and then went on to work in a Gang Task Force in North County. I really admired her hard work to break gender barriers competing in a male-dominated field and becoming one of the best to do it.<\/p>\n

\u201cNot only that, but my mom has incredible talent as well,\u201d Jayden continued, \u201cas she has been singing as long as I can remember. I recall her singing the National Anthem at law enforcement events and even singing the anthem at Petco Park before a Padres game. She does what she loves for a living whether it be serving to protect the community or singing, as she always strives to be the best at what she does and she does a damn good job of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

PATTY CAKES<\/strong>
\n<\/strong>Zavala\u2019s mom played a prominent role in her life\u2014she affectionately called her \u201cPatty cakes\u201d\u2014as she eloquently and transparently reflected back on her relationship with her mom, who passed away in 2011.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s very difficult to explain to someone how close we were. I lived with her, I worked with her, and she was more than my mom. Even though times were tough financially, she always made sure we had a roof over our heads and food on the table. She even extended her home to some of our friends that didn\u2019t have a good home life; some friends actually lived with us. She was a big sister, aunt, daughter, friend, boss, and mom. She always managed to do the impossible and pushed me further than I thought I could. She knew I was capable even when I said I wasn\u2019t. She knew each of her children well and parented us accordingly. She was very determined to raise her daughters to be super independent and her sons to be the kind of men their fathers weren\u2019t. Her family was her life\u2026she was amazing.\u201d<\/p>\n