For many Survivor fans in Westchester, watching the landmark Season 50 of felt unusually personal. Yonkers native Rizo Velovic (better known to fans as “RizGod”) became one of the breakout personalities in the last two seasons of the long-running CBS reality show.
As a student at Sleepy Hollow High School and a longtime Survivor fan, seeing a Westchester native compete on back-to-back seasons gave the show an unexpected local connection.
Following the May 20 finale, where Aubry Bracco was crowned the “Sole Survivor,” I sat down with Velovic to discuss growing up in Westchester, representing Albanian Americans on national television, and transforming a childhood dream into reality.
For Velovic, competing on Survivor was never a random opportunity or a passing interest. It was his dream. “I said it so many times on the show, but I was an eight-year-old kid wanting to be on Survivor,” he said. “Some people want to be doctors, some people want to be lawyers, astronauts – I wanted to be on Survivor.”
Across both seasons, Velovic said he dropped from 174 pounds to 128 pounds. Still, he said he never considered turning down the opportunity. “Regardless if it was nine days or one day, I would have been out there to live my dream,” he said.
Now, after back-to-back appearances on Seasons 49 and 50, Velovic has gone from watching the show from his couch to becoming one of its most recognizable recent players. Reflecting on that transformation, he described the experience as surreal. “Eight-year-old Rizo would be going bonkers right now,” he said. “He’d be saying I’m lying.” Throughout the interview, Velovic repeatedly emphasized confidence and self-belief as major parts of both his personality and his success on the show.
Velovic said growing up in Yonkers helped shape him into a “hard-working and very driven individual.”
“The reason why I love Westchester and Yonkers is for how diverse it really is,” he said. While his own family immigrated from Albania, he learned to work with people from all walks of life. That prepared him for the social dynamics of Survivor, navigating complex relationships within the diverse cast.
Referring to the “RizGod” persona fans have embraced online, he explained that the confidence viewers see on television is not an act. “It’s not really a persona – it’s who I am,” he said. “If you believe in yourself, you will go a long way.”
While competing on Survivor fulfilled a childhood dream, Velovic said the experience also came with an intense physical and mental toll. Since Seasons 49 and 50 were filmed back-to-back in Fiji, Velovic only had nine days between seasons. “The first thing I wanted to focus on was putting food in my belly, relaxing from living in a jungle out there, and spending time with my family,” he said.
Then, unlike Season 49, where players entered as newcomers, Survivor 50 featured returning contestants and longtime fan favorites. Despite competing alongside some of the show’s most iconic players, Velovic said he wanted to prove he belonged among them, and he feels he did. “I proved that I am that good,” he said.
Beyond the game itself, Velovic said representing his family and Albanian heritage became one of the most meaningful parts of the experience. “Albanians have never been represented on Survivor or American reality TV,” he said. He added that he hoped to positively represent both his community and immigrant families like his own.
Viewers underestimate how close contestants become during filming, he said. “We are spending 24/7 with these people,” he said. Even after the game ends, he explained, many of those relationships remain deeply important, citing Savannah Louie and Sophi Balerdi as two of his closest friends despite meeting them only a few months ago.
Near the end of our conversation, Velovic reflected on how Survivor ultimately strengthened his confidence and changed the way he sees himself. “To know that somebody from Yonkers, New York, could leave an impact on hundreds of thousands, potentially millions of people, means a lot to me,” he said.
He made it to Day 25 out of 26 on the show. Although his journey ended just short of victory, Velovic said he hopes his story can inspire others to pursue ambitious goals of their own. “If you dream big,” he said, “dream bigger.”
James Dauer is a student at Sleepy Hollow High School.
