Brian De Los Santos
The City of Angels has been (mostly) good to me. Yes, I’m that friend who — sometimes annoyingly — reps L.A. hard.
And maybe that paid off?
I’m the host of a new LAist Studios podcast, How To L.A. It’s a dream job for this city boy. I get to help Angelenos discover, explore, affect change and connect with our beautiful — yet complicated — city. I don’t have all the answers, but let’s find them together.
As an Angeleno via Mexico (I was born in Veracruz, Mexico and came here when I was 2), it’s important to me we tell the stories of our unique communities here in L.A., and we reflect them accurately.
Fun fact: I was an intern in our newsroom when I was 21. I returned to our news organization in 2014 — working in digital and audio — and then was back again in 2021 as editor of LAist.
I’ve spent hot summers in the 818, lived in KTown where a waft of delicious food is constant and grew up near West Adams/Mid City at a time when racial tensions were high in the 1990s. When people ask me why I love L.A., my answer is simple: It’s not the beautiful mountains, Hollywood or skyscrapers, it’s the communities and their stories that make living in the region a rich experience.
What's your favorite thing about L.A.? Send me a note. ✌🏽
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Two new Latina directors from L.A. update the play with queerness, joy and expressions of bicultural life. -
LGBTQ+ rights in L.A. were born in Silver Lake and Hollywood. West Hollywood became a destination for the community after being pushed out by police and national rhetoric.
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When I re-entered the country, I was greeted by that "Welcome to the USA" sign. It opened my perspective on the way I defined home.
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Even though I’m not technically Mexican American on paper, I had to face the fact that I was Americanized more than anything. It was a hard realization for me as a DACA recipient.
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I took the leap to file for advance parole and leave the country as an undocumented immigrant and DACA recipient.
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My good friend used advance parole to leave the country and return. Now it's my turn to go back "home."
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The blending of regional flavors and the ways Black and Brown communities have been living close to each other in places like South L.A. have created a specific cuisine here.
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Valentine's Day is one of the most lucrative times of the year for L.A.'s street vendors.
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The city has been a hub for new immigrants for decades
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We checked in with Controller Kenneth Mejia and LAist’s Frank Stoltze to preview how officials could work together in 2023.
