The Fantazmical Life of Zoro – Drummer Extraordinaire

Amid a culture that feels divided, depressed, and confused comes a formidable force of positivity. Zoro the Drummer is a man of conviction—compelled to make a difference and to let his God-light shine by every means possible.

He met Lenny Kravitz on the lawn at Beverly Hills High School while pretending to be a new student, introduced Whitney Houston to Bobby Brown, and sat on a plane next to Frankie Valli when the icon shared his “Jersey Boys” Broadway musical vision. He traveled with Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen on his Octopus, the world’s most expensive privately owned yacht, held court with Michael Jackson and the Jackson 5, and was honored at the White House; Jimmy Fallon sang Happy Birthday to him on the set of “The Tonight Show.”

However, before Zoro became one of the world’s greatest drummers who played for everyone from Lenny Kravitz, Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons, and Bobby Brown, to New Edition, Philip Bailey of Earth, Wind & Fire, and Lincoln Brewster, he was abandoned by his father at six months of age. As an impoverished young boy from the streets of Compton, he helped his family move from one apartment to the next with his Radio Flyer wagon. In rural Oregon, he lived in a car and tent with his immigrant mother and six siblings, showered in city parks, rummaged through Goodwill drop-off boxes for his clothes, experienced extreme racism, and raised exotic chickens.

Zoro wanted to play the drums so desperately that with his hands, he pounded on a cardboard box for his elementary school talent show. Then, his fate changed at his after-school job as a janitor at his high school. After cleaning the band room one day, he jumped on the drums and secretly wailed away. The band director caught him and invited him to join all the school bands. That day, a future drumming star was born.

Beyond Drumming

Zoro’s journey is not just about music but is also about faith. His belief in God, his hard work, and the unwavering love of his immigrant mother, Maria, who raised seven children alone, shaped his path. When Zoro was seven, Maria knelt beside him, tied her orange silk scarf around his neck, and whispered, “One day, my precious son, you will do something fantazmical with your life.” This moment of faith and love set the stage for Zoro’s future.

Zoro is one of the world’s most fascinating, inspiring, and encouraging men with the most amazing stories, but he is so much more. In addition to his illustrious music career, he served as a staff pastor at Bayside Church in Roseville, California, for five years. He has shared the Gospel of Jesus around the globe for the past forty years. From San Quentin Prison to Grammy and Oscar parties, Zoro has ministered to the down and outers and up and outers with equal enthusiasm. He knows his calling and carries it out unashamedly with love, grace, and great expectation. His new memoir, Maria’s Scarf: A Memoir of a Mother’s Love, a Son’s Perseverance, and Dreaming Big, is an incredibly inspiring and evocative read for a “time such as this” (Esther 4:14).

Zoro’s memoir, Maria’s Scarf, was years in the making. The adage, “Behind every great man is a strong woman” sets the stage for Zoro’s life—that woman is this man’s mother. “My mother was my hero and taught me the rhythm of battle, the march of audacity, and the cadence of persistence until I could finally climb out of our beat-up coupe where we lived for a time and onto the world stage. I promised to write a book to honor her one day, but I also wanted to pay tribute to my siblings, friends, and mentors who impacted my life most. We live in a culture that worships fame and celebrity and that places little value on the gatekeepers of our well-being, the guardians of our souls, and the people most responsible for our survival and thriving. 

“That burning desire to give honor led to my studying for fifteen years the craft of writing memoir. In truth, I’ve been writing this memoir all my life. At ten, I started a diary that I kept writing in through early adulthood. There are many diary entries in my memoir from my formative years, each a personal reflection of my journey. Some will have you bursting with laughter; others will reduce you to tears. All will entertain you. I also narrated the audiobook for people who prefer listening to a book.

Some of the most heartbreaking, heartwarming, hilarious, and hopeful moments that took a boy from the slums to the spotlight sprinkle the narrative. Through the love story of a family, a mother who gave her very best, and a boy who refused to give up his dream, Zoro “wants to touch the hearts of all and inspire people not to give up in the face of adversity.” Maria’s Scarf is a ticket to a fantazmical excursion that will lift your spirits and inspire you to reach for the stars by showing what’s possible when we dare to dream, work hard, and refuse to give up.

Family Update

“I have been married to Renée, the love of my life, for the past 29 years. Our 25-year-old son Jarod is in his second year of law school. Our 22-year-old daughter Jordan is in her third year of school in New York City studying to be a writer and writing teacher. The best part of my story is not that I was able to achieve my goal of becoming a world-renowned drummer. It’s that I became the father—whom I never had—to my children and the husband—whom my mother never had—to my wife. With God’s grace, the love of others, and a pulsing heart conviction, I broke the curse, becoming the patriarch of a new generation. Family is everything to me, and I’ve built my life around that priority because it will forever change my children’s and future descendants’ destinies.”

Zoro’s Ministry

“I have been in ministry most of my life. Still, in 2007, I founded Zoro International Ministries to lead as many people as possible to Christ and to equip them with the tools necessary to live out God’s purposes for their lives (Jeremiah 29:11-12)—to help them discover and develop their talents to impact the world the way God intended. The most powerful people are those confidently walking in their calling with courage, clarity, and conviction. My passion and where I find significance come through inspiring, uplifting, and influencing others.

“Ministry is people, and God uses my background, experiences, failures, successes, and spiritual DNA to encourage them. He fashioned me after five men in the Bible. I’m a radical evangelist like John the Baptist, a teacher like the apostle Paul, an encourager like Barnabas, and a musician like David—all inside this one man who desires to do everything with a spirit of excellence like Daniel. My talents and platforms as a drummer, speaker, teacher, writer, and mentor are merely conduits to express God’s love to different people groups.”

Sharing My Story in His

“Stories are an essential part of our survival, much like food, clothing, and shelter. Stories mark our humanity; they preserve our history and bring us timeless wisdom. A good book can spark hope, healing, and imagination like nothing else. God’s word in Mark 4:2 says, ‘And He taught them many things in parables.’ Jesus taught primarily through stories because that’s how we all relate.

“I am a Christian-cultural-influencer, and I’m committed to sharing the story God gave me in as many venues and forums as possible to inspire believers to never give up, to influence our Godless culture, and to point their hearts toward their heavenly Father and His goodness.

“My memoir is my most significant accomplishment because, in person, I can impact only so many people with music, speaking, or teaching. There are only so many one-on-one encounters I’ll have during my lifespan. I pray this memoir and its audiobook will impact people across the globe who I’ll never meet. I pray my story will outlive me and affect future generations because of its universal themes. My true-life tale is filled with twists and turns—trauma and triumph, love and hate, adventures and misadventures, and great acts of sacrifice. It is a story for both the young and the old—the sinner and the saint—the dreamer and the schemer. I was blessed to live it. I hope it blesses people who read it.”

Sheila E. Moss: author of Living to Matter: Mothers, Singles, and the Weary and Broken; Interrupting Women: Ten Conversations with Jesus; and international publications derived from teaching Bible and Christian ethics in Africa, Ukraine, Venezuela, and England; teacher of Bible classes for 40 years; mother of five adult children and grandmother of eleven.