Tavo was born in Mexico City. Around age four, his family moved to the United States — a brief stretch near the Bay Area, then farther into Fresno, in California’s Central Valley, where he grew up.

The neighborhood was shaped like an upside-down U, packed with kids. Trends moved fast through the friend group — bikes, skateboards, sports, dance — whatever was in rotation that season. The neighborhood was mixed, diverse, always moving.

It was an era when playing outside and entertaining yourself with your imagination was still a thing — before being so connected to technology. A kid constantly trying new things, curious about all of it, without yet knowing which one would stick.

Jabbawockeez. You Got Served. Step Up. Tavo watched all of it, then wanted to try it himself.

In sixth grade, he convinced two friends to perform in the school talent show — masked, choreographed, rehearsed roughly two hours a day. He organized the whole thing himself.

The talent shows kept going through the rest of school. He became known as the kid who could dance.

His father had also pushed him, early on, to greet people at parties — a small pressure that, later, helped him realize he was naturally good at talking to people, at holding a room.

The $7.77 Tee

Black tee. Red TDOM logo. $7.77. Released September 23, 2020.

It sold over 100 pieces in a couple of hours. Strangers were buying it — not just friends, not just people who already knew him.

That was the proof. The idea wasn’t only in his head anymore. Other people were responding to it.

Now he had to grow into the person capable of building what people were responding to.

Growing something meant learning to lead it — discipline, new habits, a different sense of responsibility than he’d needed before.

Becoming more intentional wasn’t a single decision. It was a slower, ongoing adjustment — understanding that the person behind the work had to keep evolving alongside it.

That rebuilding never really finished. It just became part of how he moved forward.

The Crossroads

Barbering had been part of his life for years — paused during COVID, picked back up after. At the same time, TDOM kept asking for more: creative direction, shoots, concepts, events, whole worlds to build.

The Decision

Around late 2025, he left barbering for good — not out of resentment toward the trade, but to give everything to the creative path instead.

He finally chose which life he wanted to give everything to.

The decision opened things up. Bigger campaigns, bigger sets, more collaborators, more of the world he’d been building toward.