In this episode, I sit down with Waldo and Jacqui Solano — the couple who built Knoxville’s salsa community from absolutely nothing. Waldo shares his journey from Acapulco to the U.S. with a translator device in hand, asking “is possible work?” and discovering salsa in a way that changed the entire trajectory of his life.

We talk about what it means to start over in a new country, to take risks without a blueprint, and to build something meaningful through grit, creativity, and pure corazón. Waldo & Jacqui talk about surviving the 2008 crash, to printing flyers at Walmart, to pioneering salsa in a city that didn’t even know what salsa was, their story is a masterclass in resilience and possibility.

Waldo and Jacqui open up about entrepreneurship, mindset, navigating storms, and the courage it takes to reinvent yourself again and again. If you’ve ever felt called to build something bigger than yourself — even when the odds are stacked against you — this episode will inspire you to believe in what’s possible.

Follow Waldo y Jacqui:

www.youtube.com/@WaldoyJacqui

https://www.salsaknox.com/

Facebook: Waldo y Jacqui

Instagram: waldo.solano