When Kendall Rodriguez isn’t working as the Director of Operations and Administration for the Women’s Basketball Team at the University of Utah, she’s letting you know exactly what to do in Salt Lake City this weekend. Rodriguez moved here from Orange County, California in 2015 when she got the job with the basketball team. This is her eighth year working for the University.
Rodriguez understands how hard it is to move somewhere where you don’t know anyone and start over. “I didn’t have any friends when I first moved here so I had to really put myself out there.”
If you don’t know the name Kendall Rodriguez, you might recognize her social media handle: “Queen of SLC.”
“Actually, my husband came up with the name; so I can’t even take credit for it, and it’s still kind of cringey, but whatever!” she said. “It’s fun because sometimes I’m walking down the street and I hear ‘Queen of SLC!’ and I’m like ‘Oh my god it’s me, Kendall.’”
In the summer of 2022, an eight-second TikTok video Rodriguez made about a local soda shop in Utah went viral. When she got some traction on social media, she decided to keep it up and show people how much she loves Utah; and how much there is to do here. When she started to dive into the social media outlets, she would always hear how much “Utah sucks, Salt Lake sucks and there’s nothing to do here.” That fueled her fire even more to show people how cool Salt Lake can be.
“Utah gets a bad rep,” she said. “But seeing how kind everyone was and the amazing access there is to a downtown city feel, but then being 15 mins away from no cell service in the outdoors is a special thing.”
Rodriguez posts updates about experiences and activities you can do every weekend on her social media. She stays updated on events in the area like concerts, farmer’s markets, and family-friendly activities so that we don’t have to.
Rodriguez played basketball all 4 years at the University of the Pacific in California and then went on to play professionally in Germany and Australia before moving to Utah.
“Playing sports made such a positive impact on my life and I look back on the 4 years in college and it was the time of my life,” she said. “To be a small part of that for all the women that come through this program at the U is so fun.”
Rodriguez makes sure to keep her job with the basketball team and her social media presence separate so that players and faculty aren’t uncomfortable and stay compliant with the rules of the NCAA. The athletics department is aware of her account, and Rodriguez says it’s kind of a running joke in the athletics department.
“The department will be like ‘When are you going to review the football cafeteria?’ so it’s kind of funny that people in athletics know about my videos.”
On Instagram, Rodriguez has about 62,000 followers. On TikTok, she’s garnered almost 70,000 who trust her to recommend anything in Salt Lake City from restaurants to bars to fun activities in the community.
“I try to recommend places I already love, I want to help small businesses in the area, and I love to give free publicity and not tear down businesses even if they aren’t my favorite place,” she said.
Rodriguez promotes many restaurants and bars in the area but also gets to stay at some new hotels and resorts to try out the amenities to potentially promote them and show her social media following fun places to stay. She makes a promotional video and posts it on her TikTok after her stay talking about everything she tried and how her experience was overall.
Rodriguez believes it’s obvious when creators talk about something they aren’t passionate about. Being genuine and authentic while letting your guard down is ultimately the best way to gain a following and have fun with it. “This is a creative outlet for me and it’s really just for fun,” she said, “That’s why the passion shines through.”
