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When you walk into a room with Los Primos del Este, the happy-go-lucky guys immediately make you feel like part of the family. What they first cultivate with silly banter and lighthearted ad-libs eases into a more vulnerable, introspective atmosphere, comparable to a cathartic therapy session.

When I met the norteño-sax band in at Interscope Records — the major label that signed them in early 2023 — it was just a couple of hours before the official release of Los Primos’ new album, “Dulce Amargo,” on Thursday.

For a young band of players in their early 20s, they play it cool; “Dulce Amargo” is their eighth LP to date. The project feels thoroughly chiseled to their refined sonic tastes (influenced by Julión Álvarez, Legado 7 and Remmy Valenzuela) inflected with raw, sentimental lyricism and a wailing saxophone that commands each track with the spirit of an electric guitar.

“Play it back to back and actually start understanding the sound more and realize there’s new sounds being created,” said lead vocalist Geovanni Flores. “Because a lot of people get stuck in their old ways.”

Made up of five members — Flores, bassist and supporting vocalist Ariel Jesus Lopez, accordionist Juan Luis Hernandez, drummer Alejandro Tellez and saxophonist David Tellez — the group has built a steady momentum in the música mexicana genre. They’ve championed the resurgence of norteño-sax, a subgenre that fuses the accordion sounds of norteño music with an invigorating alto saxophone, made popular by legendary groups like Conjunto Primavera.

Since forming in 2017, the North Carolina-based band has gained over 2 million listeners on Spotify through catchy norteño-sax songs like “No Es Mentira (Version Norteña),” “Poema” and “Mami” — drawn together by a polka-like beat that has made them a staple of Mexican dance venues.

In 2024 alone, the subgenre grew by 39% in both the U.S. and Mexico, per Spotify.

The band took a few years to find its groove. Its 2020 debut album, “PDE,” experimented more with the prickly, sad sierreño sound popularized by acts like Eslabon Armado and DannyLux — as well as trap-infused corridos tumbados with a thumping tololoche. Still, this was music one could bop their head to, even if dance parties were limited during the global pandemic. With norteño-sax, the group could incorporate contemporary dating themes into songs that bring people physically closer to one another on the dance floor.

“There’s been a sense of maturity that’s happened within the group. In the past, we would just make music to make music and release it,” said Flores. “ We thought about every single detail now, even down to the album cover.”

Before getting into the thick of their recent music catalog, Los Primos del Este quickly unfurled details of the album cover, which shows the group sprawled across the flatbed of a white truck. The image was inspired by Alejandro Cartagena, a Dominican Republic-born Mexican creative who photographed carpooling laborers on the flatbeds along a highway in Monterrey, Mexico, in 2012. The project was a visual representation of how everyday people — often marginalized individuals — navigate transit in a sprawling suburban area.

Such an open stance on community issues appears to be a norteño-sax speciality. In 2000, their forefathers Conjunto Primavera previously told The Times that they make music for working-class audiences: “Wealthy people don’t like what we do.”

“Personally, I found myself in the bed of a truck at one point, low-income, trying to make something out of nothing,” said Lopez. “That’s the world I grew up in, and that’s the world I wanna show everybody. It’s not all sweet, you know?”

The band also nods to injustices faced by immigrant communities — including the recent fatal shootings of 52-year-old Lorenzo Salgado Araujo and 26-year-old Johan Sebastian Duran Guerrero by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in Texas and Maine, respectively.

“We’re willing to take the heat,” said Lopez, referring to the band’s pro-immigrant stance. “The community looks at us as a negative presence, but in reality, we’re hard-working, dedicated family people.”

It is both that honesty and vulnerability that are etched into the 14-track LP “Dulce Amargo,” which translates to “bittersweet” in English. The band shared that each member contributed details of his own personal experience to the brainstorming sessions — a process they likened to therapy.

“We were comfortable enough with each other to let [our] stories be heard,” said Lopez. “In the Latino community, there is kinda like that stereotype [that] you have to be strong.  I think this message goes out to everybody — if you’re feeling something, specifically the men, it’s OK to just let it out.”

The hazy love melody “Tremenda,” for example, underscores an intense yearning for connection. Written after Lopez was starstruck by a woman, its first lyrics begin in wondrous marvel: “Tal vez fue tu mirada,” or, “Perhaps it was your gaze.”

“What’s the first thing you do when you look at somebody? I look at the eyes,” said Lopez. “They say the eyes are the doors to the soul.”

Alejandro Tellez’s contribution came with the punchy “Linda Sonrisa,” that pleads for someone to realize the realities of the mistreatment they’re facing with another lover.

“How many times are you gonna let him do you wrong until you realize that you have the right guy in front of you?” said Alejandro Tellez in a sing-song twang. “That’s a story that I went through in high school.”

For Flores, the EDM-fused, echoing melody “Mejor Sin Ti,” struck a personal chord; could a relationship be the only thing standing in your way to personal success? “Some people do hold you back, some people tie you down — that’s what I felt,” said Flores.

Hernandez gets a bit teary-eyed when talking about his favorite song, “Sentimientos,” a whirling polka-driven ballad about an avoidant situationship, he said. “To me, it’s like we both kinda love each other already, but we’re kind of afraid to say it,” he explained. “A lot of people are afraid of falling in love again, so that song hits close to home.”

The concept behind “Mereces Mejor,” a trance-inducing ode with floating melodies that implores a loved one to recognize their self-worth, was inspired by David Tellez’s own experience with unrequited love: “She’s trying to go to the bad guy, and I’m over here giving everything I got.”

As the five artists prepare to take their new album on the road — including an upcoming performance at the Lone Star State’s Truck Show Texas Fest on July 25 — they want to make clear that norteño-sax is not a stagnant subgenre. Like most of música mexicana, it, too, is evolving, both in sound and lyricism, encapsulating today’s complex dating culture. Their emotional vulnerability is welcome in a field flooded with artists that may otherwise shrink away from such honesty — perhaps due to the stigma of mental health issues in the Latino community, especially among men.

“We understand that changing the sound may not be for everybody, but we’re making music for the next generation,” said Lopez. “Who knows? Maybe their parents might end up liking this too.”

The San Fernando Valley has lost many of the great spots that made it a hot dog mecca over the years — among them, the Weiner Factory, Rubin’s Red Hot, Vicious Dogs, QT Chicago Dogs and the Infield, late home of the fried Twinkie dog. It was a relief, then, to find Fab Hot Dogs in Reseda still open and thriving. Best of all, the shop still makes an excellent Bald Eagle Ripper, the original owner’s homage to New Jersey’s Rutt’s Hut, “home of the ripper.” The dogs are deep fried just until the casing rips and on top, is a version of Rutt’s mustard relish, which at Fab is browner and said to include Hatch chile powder, shredded cabbage and carrots, garlic, oregano, onions, celery seeds, cider vinegar, and Düsseldorf mustard with sweet relish. Fab’s ripper dogs first got the attention of this paper’s late restaurant critic Jonathan Gold not long after it opened in 2008 and then Guy Fieri for a 2009 Food Network segment. Since then, Fab has become known not only for the ripper but for its many dog variations, including a very good Chicago dog with the right pickle, neon relish and sport peppers; several bacon-wrapped franks (with jalapeños and peppers on the L.A. Street dog; barbecue sauce and cheddar on the Kansas City dog, and Swiss cheese and baked beans on the Boston dog). A rotation of whiteboard specials includes a Santa Fe dog with Hatch green chiles and cotija cheese, and even a mac ‘n’ cheese dog. Together they make up what Gold once called a display of “the American frankfurter diaspora.”

It looks like cream top beverages are sticking around L.A.’s coffee scene.

“You can’t open a coffee shop in L.A. without having a cream top, fortunately or unfortunately,” said Ryan Solomon, director of wholesale at the Little Marionette, on bringing the cafe from Sydney to L.A. in 2024.

A whipped topping typically made from condensed milk or heavy cream, fans of embellished beverages can’t get enough of the now-standard flourish that local coffee shops add to iced coffee and matcha drinks. The trend evolved from the Austrian Einspänner coffee drinks that first overtook Seoul’s coffee scene in 2016 before landing in L.A. not long afterward.

The verdict on cream tops is split among cafe owners, with some claiming that the rich, luscious topping can overpower the flavors of carefully curated coffee drinks. Last year, prominent L.A. cafes Maru Coffee and Mandarin Coffee Stand limited the add-on on their menus, with Mandarin Coffee Stand owner Sherry Gao saying that the trend went “a little bit out of control.”

But for Arian Behboodi and Jared Sielski, co-owners of Lynx Coffee in Sherman Oaks, the pros outweigh the cons.

“We appreciate the cream top drinkers, and we appreciate the coffee fanatics, and we really do try to have a little bit of both,” Behboodi said.

Now, local cafe menus are evolving beyond neutral cream top flavors and offering whipped toppings that pull inspiration from all parts of the world, such as an iced honey latte garnished with a Vegemite cream top at a Palms coffee shop and a cajeta cream top that recalls the gooey Mexican caramel sauce at a new cafe in Hermosa Beach.

“We’re putting on social, immersive figure drawing events for neurodivergent, queer nerds,” says Jennifer Martina, the producer at Nest of Friends, the nonprofit production company that stages biweekly figure drawing at Geeky Teas & Games in Burbank.

Martina and artist Sketkh Williams, Sketch by Sketkh’s host, provide a welcoming atmosphere across identities, skill levels and nerdy interests, while also playing to their own backgrounds in theater. The sessions feature dramatic lighting, staging and soundtracks, and use professional cosplayers as models. Embodying characters from “Star Wars,” video games, anime and other IP, these pros don’t just dress the part, they take pains to hit their characters’ canonical stances for attendees to capture.

For Martina and Williams, the events are an alternative to nude or more traditional figure drawing sessions. “That just doesn’t interest us,” says Martina. “We’re both theatrical people, so for us part of putting on a show is seeing characters, some cool costume design and a theme.”

• Best for: Practiced amateurs with nerdy interests
• When: Every other Thursday at 7:30 p.m.
• Ticket price: Starts at $23.18

This World Cup has made unlikely international stars out of a plucky Cape Verde squad, further catapulted the status of gargantuan Norwegian striker Erling Haaland and firmly planted Lionel Messi as the greatest player of his generation.

But the players on the pitch haven’t been the only ones catching the eyes of soccer viewers.

Another legend among legends has also cemented his legacy during this run: Aurelio Casillas — the fictional drug kingpin and protagonist at the heart of the long-running Telemundo series “El Señor de los Cielos.”

The 10th season of the program finds Casillas reemerging to recover his narcotics empire after disappearing from his family’s radar. Familial drama ensues as betrayal runs rampant and Casillas embarks on a vengeful crusade against his enemies to regain and avenge the death of his love interest.

The image of Casillas, portrayed by veteran Mexican actor Rafael Amaya, has been plastered all across Telemundo’s World Cup coverage.

In the ads leading into games, Casillas is there. During most commercial rejoins, hosts spotlight the “El Señor de los Cielos” final season‘s Tuesday premiere.

The promotion has gone beyond what most U.S. audiences might be accustomed to as the network has cleverly implemented in-game ad reads that seem to flow freely into match coverage.

If Haaland coordinates a strike that helps Norway regain power in the game, a Telemundo game announcer might point out that decorated drug trafficker Casillas has also been known to schedule timely strikes to help him regain power in the dangerous world of narco warfare.

The incessant and cheeky ad reads served as more than just a gimmick as social media users have taken note of Telemundo’s marketing strategy. Many have joked about capitulating to the network’s advertising and giving the show a try. Others have humorously pondered about the contents of the program, while some have defiantly proclaimed that they will never fall for the series’ propaganda.

Hate it or love it, people can’t stop talking about it.

During halftime of Friday’s high-octane Argentina-Cape Verde Round of 32 match, Telemundo sportscaster Adriana Monsalve nodded to the online chatter the show has generated.

“We’ve read your messages on social media,” Monsalve said. “Between those who have said they’ve been convinced and those who admitted that they will be watching ‘El Señor de los Cielos,’ all we have to say is thank you. We await you all this Tuesday at 9 p.m./8 p.m. Central on Telemundo and Peacock.”

This type of over-the-top promotion model has long been used by the network as a way to convince advertisers that running commercials on its airways is worthwhile, noted University of Oregon advertising professor Christopher Chávez.

“They’ve really had to scrap it out over the years and so their product placement has always been overt, whereas in English-language media, there’s at least some attempt to make it creative or artistic,” Chávez, who also serves as the director of his school’s Center for Latina/o and Latin American Studies, told The Times. “There’s just this history of announcers and creatives really just going all in on marketing and almost not disciplining themselves, and because you have this global platform, people are just taking notice and they’re having fun with it.”

Telemundo’s executive vice president of marketing and creative strategy, Claudia Chagui, told The Times that the company had a game plan for how to approach the moment for “El Señor de los Cielos.”

“We had a very clear strategy going into the World Cup,” Chagui said. “We knew what we wanted to do in terms of how to protect our core fans and how to attract English-leaning Hispanics and maybe even general market fans to come and watch it in Spanish and all of that happened. We knew that this launchpad for ‘El Señor’ was going to be the strongest platform we could have.”

Chávez remarked that the Telemundo likely put a lot of stock in engaging Latinos online in the hopes that they would have fun with the marketing rollout.

“[Telemundo] knows that Latinos are younger and tend to be more proficient users of social media and more likely to share content,” Chávez said. “They’re very aware of that kind of market research, so whatever they put out there, hopefully it’s going to be meme-able or it’s going to be shareable. I think they’re pretty much banking on that.”

Chagui said that while much of the viral online chatter is beyond the control of the network, Telemundo’s social team has been locked in to the conversations regarding the show.

“We have our ‘El Señor’ account and even our Aurelio account — who is commenting on some of these conversations — and we’re making sure that our community feels like they’re being heard,” Chagui noted. “There is a real fan community around this IP and we take that very seriously. We want to take care of our fans.”

The show has been able to have such reach this World Cup cycle because more U.S. viewers are opting to tune in to Telemundo’s coverage than ever before.

In a recent social media post, Telemundo said that nearly half of all World Cup viewers stateside are watching its coverage.

NPR reported that 20% of Telemundo’s soccer audience speaks English as their primary language. Telemundo Deportes leadership told the outlet that the network’s telecast numbers have increased by 122% since the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

“It’s so much better when we’re watching it on Telemundo, because the announcers are not simply announcing the game, they’re engaging with the audiences themselves,” said Mari Castañeda, University of Massachusetts Amherst’s Commonwealth Honors College dean. “They’re really leaning into a more Latino aesthetic that is much more loose, open, joyful, kind of like a party atmosphere that changes the vibe and makes it become more celebratory, which it should be. The World Cup is meant to bring people together and it really seems to be doing that.”

That level of involvement from the commentators was something that Telemundo’s marketing team made sure to instill in its talent pool, Chagui noted.

“We work with our sports team and say, ‘These are the things that are top priorities for us from a promotional perspective,’ and our team creates all those mentions for those commentators and we work hand-in-hand with the sports team to make sure that there’s time within the games for them to be able to make those mentions,” she said.

“We tweak that messaging along the way to make sure that it doesn’t become too repetitive, that people don’t get tired of it. And now when the season starts, you’ll see that those mentions are going to be even more organic and will be more related to what’s happening on the show at the time.”

An unexpected added element that fell into Telemundo’s lap was the dream run of Mexico’s national team in the tournament.

“We prayed for that, but it’s been tremendous,” Chagui said. “[The Round of 32 game against Ecuador] had over 17 million viewers, so talk about a dream promotional platform. We really couldn’t ask for more.”

Chávez saw this current cultural moment as a great time for “El Señor de los Cielos” to potentially add a slew of new viewers, especially among English-first audiences.

“One of the things that streaming platforms like Netflix has done is that you’re starting to now see preferences change,” he said. “American audiences are starting to consume Korean dramas, for example, or Spanish-language dramas … [these] platforms have changed people’s comfort levels with consuming content that is not necessarily in English.”

Chagui also credited Telemundo’s streaming home, Peacock, as an important driver of popularity for “El Señor de los Cielos.”

“Now everybody watches content in any language, so I think the partnership with Peacock has been tremendous, because we know a lot of consumers don’t watch linear television anymore, and so if you’re not available on the streaming platforms, then you already hit a brick wall … we have to be available where our audiences are consuming content,” Chagui said.

If you’re one of the many people intrigued by the series, but find the idea of doing nine seasons of catch-up viewing daunting — there’s no need to fear, Telemundo has got you covered.

Seizing on the show’s newfound increase in popularity, the network created a special episode of “El Señor de los Cielos” that recaps all nine seasons of the series in under two hours.

“We needed a catch-up strategy because core fans are going to want to catch up before the premiere of the new season, but we’re going to bring in all these new eyeballs with the World Cup, and so we had to have something that is easy for them to understand what the series is about so they can hit the ground running,” Chagui said. “That’s where we had this idea to do this 90-minute recap of all nine seasons and so since we launched that on Peacock and the consumption has been off the charts.”

But the appeal of the “El Señor de los Cielos,” which began airing back in 2013 and is inspired by the real-life escapades of Mexican drug lord Amado Carrillo Fuentes, goes beyond just the viral marketing.

“I think for a lot of the folks that were not watching it, but that now are interested and fascinated by the show, [the appeal] is that it’s based loosely on a true story,” Castañeda said. “That’s one of the things that in talking to some of the elders in the community is what connects them to the story itself, it feels like it’s something relevant and contemporary because it’s based on the potential of a true story that’s taking place.”

Castañeda added that the program’s high production value and explosive action scenes make “El Señor de los Cielos” seem like “a fun show to watch.”

Amaya’s turn as the sinister yet family-focused Aurelio Casillas has drawn comparisons to James Gandolfini’s portrayal of mob boss Tony Soprano — a distinction the actor dubbed an “honor” as “The Sopranos” is one of his favorite series.

In a conversation with The Times, Amaya embodied the corporate synergy that has piqued interest in his show.

“Our World Cup are TV series and I think that we’ve scored a bunch of goals during the decade that we’ve been telling a story that always been buzz-worthy and that has passed from generation to generation,” Amaya said. “All that is thanks to the viewers and to the characters who have evolved and remained relevant.”

In addition to the plethora of ads, the “El Señor de los Cielos” lead actor contributed to Telemundo’s World Cup coverage through a special program titled “Diarios de Fútbol con Rafael Amaya.” The show follows Amaya around L.A. as he speaks with soccer legends about the transformative power of the sport.

When asked what new viewers of the show should expect, Amaya kept it simple.

“They’re obviously going to see a series filled with adrenaline, betrayal, unexpected turns,” Amaya said. “In this 10th season there are a lot of changes, and I think it’s the best season yet.”

Storied norteño group Los Tigres del Norte announced Tuesday that they are teaming up with departing L.A. Philharmonic conductor Gustavo Dudamel for a special performance Aug. 21 at the Hollywood Bowl.

The show is part of a series titled “Celebrating Gustavo at the Bowl,” which looks to send off Dudamel in style as he transitions into his new role as the music and artistic director of the New York Philharmonic. The “Jaula de Oro” artist’s appearance is part of “Gustavo’s Fiesta,” which will also feature performances by other prominent Latino artists.

The norteño act has sold 37 million albums and recorded 500 songs over a career that’s spanned five decades. They have seven Grammy Awards, eight Latin Grammys and have had 66 songs land on Billboard’s Hot Latin Songs chart, the most of any Latin music act ever.

In 2018, Los Tigres del Norte became the first norteño act to headline at the Hollywood Bowl.

Recently, the “La Puerta Negra” hitmakers were immortalized in U.S. pop culture history when its members appeared in animated form in a December 2025 episode of “The Simpsons” and performed an original corrido about the escapades of Homer Simpson and Pedro Chespirito (also known as the Bumblebee Man).

Also featured on the Aug. 21 lineup are Grammy-winning singer Lila Downs, the all-female Mariachi Reyna de Los Ángeles, the explosive cumbia group La Sonora Dinamita and the legendary Mexican bolero trio Los Panchos.

The show will serve as Dudamel’s third-to-last performance as the music and artistic director of L.A. Philharmonic. On Aug. 22, he will be in concert with Foo Fighters. His farewell weekend will conclude Aug. 23 and will serve as a benefit for his homeland of Venezuela, which suffered catastrophic losses from twin earthquakes in late June.

Donations will benefit Dudamel’s Earthquake Recovery to Support Venezuelan Communities fund, in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme and the Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean fund.

July 5 (UPI) — One man was critically injured in a fire in Los Angeles Friday after illegal fireworks went off, setting two vehicles on fire in a motel parking lot.

The 22-room Crescent Inn motel in the Wilmington neighborhood of Los Angeles was completely evacuated from the incident. Los Angeles Fire Department Assistant Chief Carlos Calvillo said first responders discovered a wounded man near the burning BMW when they arrived on the scene.

“This is a good example of messing with illegal fireworks, fireworks in general, extremely dangerous,” he said. “This person’s body was severely traumatized from this incident.”

Investigators said commercial grade fireworks were found near the burning vehicles.

Emergency responders were called to a report of two vehicles on fire at about 8:30 p.m. PDT Friday. The Los Angeles Police Department also responded to the scene.

A single family home next to the motel was also evacuated. Twelve people, including two children, were displaced by the fire.

The cause of the fireworks going off has not been determined. Fire officials say they believe the man was smoking in the BMW.

The Autry’s current exhibition, “Life, Liberty, and Los Angeles” is an excellent show that takes a deep regional dive pegged to its 250th American anniversary programming. Of all the pieces, See Lee’s meticulously stitched “Hmong Story Cloth” (circa 1980) is a poignant chronicle of making the journey to an unknown future in the United States. Utilizing the traditional paj ntaub embroidery format, the textile documents Lee’s family fleeing war-torn Laos and resettling in Long Beach during the 1970s. The narrative unfolds in sequential sections depicting military violence at a chaotic crossing of the Mekong River; lower panels remember Thai refugee camps, a rescue airplane and a Greyhound bus. This visual testimony shares striking cross-currents with Latin American arpilleras and paños Chicanos, linking disparate diasporic traditions through the shared language of quietly political, deeply personal needlework — in this case, preserving a crucial chapter of Southeast Asian migration to Southern California.

🗓️ On view through Jan. 31, 2027

Like many outdoors lovers, I love a last-minute camping trip.

There’s a special kind of magic when the stars align, you snag a reservation and realize you’ll soon be sleeping under the stars in a place you’ve never been.

But given the popularity of California’s campgrounds, is it really possible to book a campsite on short notice? In this edition of The Wild, our weekly outdoors newsletter, I will explain not only how you can but also where you will be more likely to find open spots (even, if lucky, on a holiday weekend).

L.A. sits within a quick drive to both the San Gabriel and Santa Monica mountains, two expansive ranges that offer multiple opportunities.

But first, I want to share what I learned in my conversation with Mike Lee, owner of Campsite Tonight, a website and app that monitors campgrounds throughout California for cancellations so its users can book sites.

I’ve long been a skeptic of using private websites to book a campsite on public lands. But given Lee is an avid camper, dad and Californian running the site on his own, I wanted to hear him out.

Lee was motivated to take over Campsite Tonight a few years ago after finding himself frequently frustrated with how challenging it was to book campsites at state and national parks in California at times when his busy family could take a vacation.

Campsite Tonight frequently scans several websites throughout California and several other states (including Utah for those dreaming of a trip to Zion National Park). His site checks the popular campgrounds every 12 seconds for cancellations while less popular campgrounds are scanned often but less frequently.

He also offers data for popular campsites too, so users can learn more about when to look. For example, at Yosemite’s Upper Pines Campground, Lee includes that 11 a.m. Pacific is the peak hour when cancellations appear (and about 31% of reservations there are booked within seven days of arrival).

Lee’s app offers limited-but-still-useful features to free users, including some ability to search for open sites, and is $29.99 a month or $59.99 a year for advanced features, including the option to more rapidly book a campsite at a national park by essentially linking your Campsite account with your Recreation.gov account.

Running the website has “taught me, as I’ve looked at the data more and more, that last-minute camping is actually pretty achievable,” Lee said while sitting inside a tent in a campground near Yosemite. “The biggest thing is being flexible. Before, if I didn’t book it in advance or if I didn’t get [a site when I wanted], I would never look again. Now I look more.”

Lee said he’s noticed fewer cancellations on long weekends, although there will still be families that can’t make their trips. After we initially spoke, Lee built a page specifically to scan for campsites available over Fourth of July weekend. I was surprised by just how much remained open.

Scanning the page on Tuesday, I noticed a spot at Leo Carrillo State Park. Although it was for Wednesday night, I was tempted. Multiple campsites remained open in Los Padres National Forest, even over the weekend. A random campground in Sequoia National Forest made me look at just how far of a drive it would be from my apartment. And I noticed there was even a spot free at a Big Sur campground on Sunday evening. “No, you can’t, er, you shouldn’t drive that far for one night of camping,” I told myself. (Should I, though?)

That said, there are several first-come, first-served campgrounds near L.A., especially in Angeles National Forest, for those who’d like to stay closer to home or can’t find something online.

Here is a quick guide to what I recommend trying to snag. Given it’s a holiday weekend, it will still be more challenging, but if you can leave early Friday, I don’t think it’ll be impossible to camp at one of these spots.

For those looking for simple car camping (beginner)

Each of these campgrounds are in Angeles National Forest, offer piped water and vault toilets, and have sites with picnic tables, parking spots and campfire rings.

• Chilao Campground: A large campground with 84 sites spread over two loops, Little Pines and Manzanita. Its landscape features large boulders, sweeping views and pine trees (especially the eponymous loop). Piped water is available, although it is at times turned off, so please check the campground website before heading out. The Chilao Visitor Center, open on the weekends, is nearby.

• Crystal Lake: A 120-site campground north of Azusa. It sits at 5,539-feet elevation and features great views of nearby peaks, including Mt. Islip and Windy Gap. Visitors can fish in Crystal Lake when it’s deep enough and find a hot meal at Crystal Lake Cafe and General Store.
• Monte Cristo: A campground with 19 individual drive-in sites, including some with large shady sycamore trees. A small seasonal creek runs through the middle of the campground and has small pools in spring and early summer. (Note: Because of its proximity to L.A., this one can fill up quickly.)

For adventurers willing to plan just a bit, even last minute (intermediate)

These sites offer their own escape, but because they lack potable water (unless otherwise noted) and are farther away from L.A., they require more planning than those on the “beginner” list. Each site has picnic tables and campfire rings. The campgrounds below are in Angeles National Forest unless otherwise noted.

• Horse Flats: A shaded 26-site campground that offers easy access to nearby trails, including Mt. Hillyer and the Silver Moccasin Trail.
• Oak Flat: A campground north of Castaic just off the 5 Freeway with 20 sites situated around a nice small meadow shaded by several oak trees.
• Musch Trail Camp: This small-but-charming backpacking campground in Topanga State Park features flush toilets and sinks and requires only a one-mile hike in, a trek that’s on the easier end of moderate.
• Sawmill: A rustic eight-site campground whose main challenge, outside of its lack of water, is just reaching it, as campers must take a steep gravel road off Pine Canyon Road (see website for information on road closure).

For experienced trekkers looking for quick escapes (expert)

These backpacking sites offer backcountry adventures for those with the time and the right gear.

• Glenn Camp: A 10-site forested haven next to the West Fork of the San Gabriel River that’s reached via a seven-mile paved road that can be hiked or biked; no restrooms available, so campers will need to follow Leave No Trace principles.
• Valley Forge: Reachable via 2.4-mile hike along the Gabrielino Trail from Red Box Picnic Area, this six(ish)-site campground has picnic tables, campfire rings, vault toilets and is a sylvan refuge of mighty pines next to the pristine West Fork of the San Gabriel River.
• Cooper Canyon: A backcountry campground shaded by towering old pine trees with about five sites, offering vault toilets, campfire rings, klamath stoves, large picnic tables and bear-proof boxes. Because of the Angeles Crest Highway closure, you will need to reach the site either by walking the closed road or Pacific Crest Trail.

Regardless of where and when you go, I hope you have a wonderful time enjoying our public lands. Please remember to practice the Leave No Trace principles and, in short, leave it cleaner than you found it!

3 things to do

1. Restore native plants in Ascot Hills
North East Trees, a climate resiliency nonprofit, needs volunteers from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday at its native plant nursery in Ascot Hills Park (4371 Multnomah St.). Participants will get hands-on experience working with native plants as they help water and restore habitat. Learn more at the group’s Instagram page.

2. Sketch plankton in Playa del Rey
Nature Nexus Institute, an environmental equity nonprofit, will host two beach ecology sketching events: an online option Tuesday from 6:30 to 8 p.m. and then an in-person event on July 12 in Playa del Rey. Learn more at the group’s Instagram page.

3. Check out the birds in Calabasas
Two National Park Service volunteers will host an easy bird walk from 8:30 to 10 a.m. Saturday at King Gillette Ranch in Calabasas. Participants will walk less than a mile at an easy pace, stopping often to observe the birds. Children are welcome. Register at eventbrite.com.

The must-read

If you’re sitting there, daydreaming over your next adventure, consider this California wildlife factoid: Our state is home to 139,000 acres of protected public lands where nearly half of the world’s remaining old-growth redwood forests live. The allure of walking beneath these giants is what drew writer Edwin Goei to head to Humboldt County. Goei maps out a guide for The Times of how an Angeleno can make the long-but-worthy trip there (including how to snag an $80 round-trip flight). “I learned that Humboldt County — including the cities of Eureka, Arcata and Ferndale — is full of treasures beyond its abundance of the Earth’s tallest trees,” Goei wrote.

Excuse me while I go research flights there.

Happy adventuring,

P.S.

You have until Monday to snag a free California State Parks Historian Passport. In honor of both Juneteenth and the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the state is offering the pass — which typically costs $50 — to anyone who registers for it through ReserveCalifornia.com, but just for a few more days. The pass will be good through the rest of 2026 and will allow unlimited entry for up to four people to state historic parks and museums that charge a per-person admission fee or a vehicle day-use fee. I was amazed that it took less than 10 seconds once I was logged into my ReserveCalifornia account to secure my pass. Enjoy!

For more insider tips on Southern California’s beaches, trails and parks, check out past editions of The Wild. And to view this newsletter in your browser, click here.

Summer has just begun, but there’s a certain magic in the air in Los Angeles right now. On the heels of Juneteenth and Pride Month, the city is fully immersed in World Cup, which continues through July 19, with some of the matches being played at Inglewood’s SoFi Stadium. There are plenty of places to eat and drink near the stadium if you’re heading there for a game and plenty of watch parties at local restaurants and bars for those looking to cheer alongside other soccer fans.

If you’re staying close to home this summer, keep your taste buds entertained with Food’s guide to the 50 essential dining experiences that define living here, from an East L.A. taco truck crawl to pastries in Chinatown and Iranian cafes in Westwood’s Persian Square. There are also plenty of new bars to explore, including rooftop destinations with sparkling views of the city.

And if your summer plans involve travel abroad, bookmark Food’s international dining guides. Far from exhaustive, these food and drink recommendations encompass memorable highlights from past off-the-clock visits to major food hubs like London, Paris, Tokyo, Melbourne, Mexico City, Hong Kong, Lima and little-known Colima, Mexico.

Keep reading for even more dining ideas to keep you busy this month:

When summer hits the San Fernando Valley, finding ways to cool off is a must, which is why my kids grew up swimming at the Verdugo Aquatic Facility in Burbank.

(When it closed for upgrades, the kids on our street were so bereft that they set up a lemonade stand, hoping it would help expedite the pool’s reopening.)

The pool is open year-round, but it’s especially popular in the summer, when it offers recreational swimming, swim lessons starting at 6 months old, a junior lifeguard program, lap swimming and other sports.

There’s a fun activity pool for kids ages 4 and under, with waterslides, dumping water buckets, a play area and a shallow wading pool with a beach-style entry. Chaise longues, picnic tables with umbrellas, and multiple lifeguards give the public pool a resort feel.

On a recent Friday, the main Olympic-sized pool was busy with families, but there were still plenty of lanes open for lap swimming. I tried a Monday evening Aquatic NoodleFit class, where you use a pool noodle for low-impact resistance training while standing in the center of the pool. The instructor, Karen Eldridge, was warm and welcoming and gave clear instructions, even working up a sweat herself as we followed her moves on the pool deck. The workout was challenging and fun, but not overwhelming for students of all levels, body types and ages, thanks to the water’s support.

During the week, the activity pool is usually not crowded, but on weekends, staff closely monitor capacity as it can get busy. Burbank residents get priority and can buy presale wristbands online at BurbankParks.com from Monday to Friday between 9 and 10 a.m. If you can’t get into the activity pool, don’t worry. The recreational pool is a fun and easy backup option.

Size: 50 by 18 meters
Temperature: 80 to 82
Swim lanes: 7
Depth: 2.5 feet to 8 feet and a 12-foot diving well
Admission: Lap swimming, $5 to $9. Monthly membership, $41 to $96. Activity pool, $4. Water fitness classes are subscription-based and range from $99 to $110, depending on the class. (My Aquatic NoodleFit class costs $109 as a nonresident for an 11-class series).
Parking: Free.
Hours: Lap swimming, 5:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. Monday through Thursday; 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Friday; 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Recreational swimming, 11:45 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily.
Extras: Activity pool, snack bar, vending machines.

Visit Medellín, and everyone will tell you to try one dish: bandeja paisa.

Translated as a “countryside tray,” you’ll find the loaded meat platter at any restaurant in Colombia’s second-largest city. The spread is loaded with savory red beans; white rice; ground beef or grilled steak; a long, curved strip of crispy chicharrón; chorizo; morcilla (blood sausage); a fried egg; golden lobes of sweet plantain; a mini arepa; and a slice of avocado.

Though its origins lie in the mountainous, coffee-growing region of Antioquia, known as the home of the paisas (derived from the Spanish word for countryman), the dish is widely celebrated and eaten across the country. It’s a hearty lunch meal meant for one person, a combination of flavors and textures that transport you straight to Medellín, known for its rich coffee landscape, blooming flowers and eternal spring weather.

“The bandeja paisa is the seal of the Colombians,” said Gloria Hernandez, owner of Nene’s Colombian Food in Lawndale.

The dish is believed to have started as a filling, nourishing meal for campesinos (field workers), providing strength to get through a day working in the fields. “There’s a gathering of various dishes to make a bandeja paisa,” said Cesar Gutierrez, owner of Arepa’s Colombianas in Redondo Beach.

Over 40,000 Colombians live in L.A., according to the Los Angeles Almanac. Three-thousand miles from home, the city is host to several Colombian restaurants, food trucks and even a rooftop night market in downtown L.A.

From a longstanding restaurant in Larchmont to a favorite for modern Colombian cuisine in Long Beach, here are seven places where you can devour a bandeja paisa.

Twenty-four days after the polls closed on election day, Los Angeles County officials have certified the results from the 2,227,461 ballots cast. Despite questions raised about the pace of the vote count, a Times analysis found ballots this June were tallied faster than in previous cycles.

California is known to have a slow vote count, partially because of the state’s grace period for mail-in ballots. This year, counties were required to report most of the ballots by June 15, with some exceptions, including for mail-in ballots received within seven days of election day and ballots requiring additional verification such as signature curing. The process has spurred baseless claims of fraud from President Trump and others, leading the U.S. Supreme Court to take up a case on whether mail-in ballots must be received by election day to count.

The state has reported 9.4 million processed ballots. Officials estimate about 5 ballots remain to be counted and 17,650 are waiting to cure a missing or mismatched signature.

Compared with the last time both governor and Los Angeles mayor were on the ballot, county election officials counted more ballots, and tallied them faster than in 2022, The Times found.

In Los Angeles County, turnout jumped from 28% of eligible voters in the 2022 primary to 38% this June, according to the county registrar. Meanwhile, the share of vote-by-mail ballots dropped about 3 percentage points to 82%, indicating a rise in in-person voting.

Statewide, early results show 41% of registered voters turned up for the June election, up from 33% in 2022, according to the secretary of state. County elections officials must report their final results by July 3, giving state officials a week to certify all election results.

The Los Angeles Times reports election results from the county clerk as well as from the Associated Press. The AP provides ballot counts, a calculation of the expected vote and race calls for statewide and national races.

The expected vote percentage, or EEVP, is an estimate of the total number of votes that will eventually be certified. That number can be adjusted based on new information over time.

“Before counting begins in California, our estimates are primarily informed by turnout in past similar elections plus pre-election data on ballot returns, with projections based on what percentage of ballots had already been received at the same point in past elections,” AP director of election analytics Emily Swanson said in an email.

In the gubernatorial and mayoral races, more than half of the votes were counted by the end of election day, EEVP data show.

Swanson’s team also observed a faster vote count this year than in the 2022 and 2024 primaries.

In January 2024, L.A. County consolidated its election operations into a new ballot processing center in the City of Industry. Dean Logan, head of the L.A. County registrar-recorder/county clerk’s office, told The Times earlier this month that the facility, which is open to observers, is designed for transparency, security and efficiency.

“It doesn’t take long to count. The counting process is very fast,” Logan said ahead of election day. “What extends the time period is those options that are provided under California law for voters — to allow everyone the opportunity to vote up until election day, and then allowing us the time to process those with the same level of security and integrity that we did the ballots that were received two weeks before the election.”

Despite the faster count, the Associated Press took longer to call winners, suggesting these races were more competitive. The AP makes such declarations by determining whether there is an opportunity for a trailing candidate to catch up to the race leader. It has been calling races for nearly 180 years.

Both the gubernatorial and Los Angeles mayoral race saw a 30% increase in votes from 2022. The governor’s race received more than 9.2 million votes compared with 7 million in 2022. The Los Angeles mayor’s race received more than 850,000 votes, an increase from nearly 650,000 in 2022.

The vote counting process for California, Washington, Oregon, Nevada and Alaska may change for the November midterm election, depending on which way the U.S. Supreme Court rules.

Data and graphics assistant editor Sean Greene contributed to this report.

Growing up in suburban Detroit, there was deep-dish square pizza and there was round pizza. The round style was the kind of pizza you’d find at your local bowling alley, roller rink, arcade or neighborhood sports bar. It was thin, super crispy and you could pick it up and eat it with just a napkin.

I wasn’t aware that any of my hometown pizzas were considered trendy until 2016 when Detroit-style pies exploded in NYC and then, during the pandemic, in Los Angeles. But much like the square pizza, the thin, crispy, round pies have an identity as well: Tavern-style pizza has many names (party cut, bar pie, etc.) but it’s the slightly lesser known, thin-crust style of pizza born in the Midwest. And lately, it’s been having a moment in Los Angeles.

“It was the kind of pizza they served you at whatever bar you were at,” says fellow Michigan native Aaron Lindell of Echo Park’s Quarter Sheets. “I wasn’t aware then that it was its own style,” he says.

What makes it a Midwest-style tavern pie exactly? Essentially it’s a lower-moisture, higher-fat dough resulting in a thin, crackery, flaky pizza crust. Typically bar pies go lighter on tomato sauce and caramelize the mozzarella significantly, resulting in a molten matrix of cheese and sauce that takes me back to my childhood with each bite.

Despite its prevalence in Michigan and other parts of the Midwest, tavern-style is most commonly associated with the Chicagoland area, thanks to places like Vito & Nick’s. Lindell developed his own recipe for bar pie in 2023 that combines Midwest tavern style with those of the northeast to bump up business on slower nights. Now, the nights that Quarter Sheets has bar pies on the menu are some of the busiest of the week.

However, Lindell was far from the first to offer a take on tavern-style pizzas here in L.A. Eagle Rock’s Casa Bianca Pizza Pie opened in 1955 with the intention to bring Chicago thin-crust to Los Angeles. Fresh Brothers Pizza opened in 2008 in Manhattan Beach specializing in tavern-style pies and wings and the chain quickly expanded to 20 locations in the SoCal area. In 2013, Rance’s Chicago Pizza opened in Costa Mesa offering both Chicago deep dish and tavern-style (and eventually expanded to Long Beach in 2017). Midwest icon Gino’s East of Chicago even opened in Sherman Oaks in 2019, also offering their take.

And since the pandemic, newer spots have been doing their own versions much like Quarter Sheets.

Here are nine places to try tavern-style pizza around L.A. right now.

In a move that suggests a sharp battle to come with the administration of President-elect Donald Trump and upends conventional wisdom about who will emerge as the next generation of statewide elected officials, Gov. Jerry Brown picked House Democratic Caucus Chairman Xavier Becerra (D-Los Angeles) on Thursday to be California’s next attorney general.

If confirmed by both houses of the Legislature, he will succeed Kamala Harris, who was elected to the U.S. Senate in November.

Becerra, 58, has served 12 terms in Congress. Just days before the appointment, he had announced a bid to become the ranking Democrat on the powerful House Ways and Means Committee.

“It’s a phenomenal opportunity,” Becerra said. “It means I get to be home a lot more.”

Few statewide offices are as powerful, or prominent, as that of attorney general. The role has often been referred to as the state’s top lawyer and its top law enforcement officer, a nod to the breadth of responsibilities vested in the office and its leadership of the California Department of Justice.

Attorneys general not only must pursue cases of criminal and civil wrongdoing, they oversee criminal forensic work for most counties and make the final choice about defending state laws — even crafting the language that summarizes ballot measures for voters.

Becerra was beaming during an interview in his House office Thursday morning shortly after Brown offered him the job.

“I’m still processing,” Becerra said with a laugh. “I didn’t expect it.”

Becerra would be the state’s first Latino attorney general. The son of Mexican immigrants, he was the first member of his family to attend college, earning a law degree from Stanford Law School and a bachelor’s degree in economics from Stanford University. Elected to a two-year term in the state Assembly and then to the House in 1992, he rose through the ranks to become the highest-ranking Latino in Congress.

Becerra worked in the civil division of the state attorney general’s office, writing advisory opinions for former Gov. George Deukmejian, a Republican, and defending the state’s constitutional officers from 1987 to 1990 before entering the Assembly. He said he had always wanted to return to the office.

“It was a great place to be,” he said.

Brown’s pick was so sudden that Becerra has not yet had time to reactivate his state law license, though he would not be the first attorney general to have to do so. Inactive status allows attorneys to hold on to their licenses when they are not actively practicing law.

Becerra would also be the first attorney general appointed by a governor since Thomas Lynch, who was chosen by former Gov. Pat Brown in 1964. Few political appointments are likely to be as personal to the current governor as this one, given his own four-year stint as attorney general starting in 2006 and the fact that his father used the office as a steppingstone to governor more than five decades ago.

“Xavier has been an outstanding public servant — in the state Legislature, the U.S. Congress and as a deputy attorney general,” Brown said in a statement. “I’m confident he will be a champion for all Californians and help our state aggressively combat climate change.”

The choice sent political shock waves through California, in large part because Becerra was not on any of the widely circulated lists of potential picks. Brown had offered no details on whom he would pick or when.

Many suspected that he might choose a caretaker, perhaps even a career staffer who would simply carry out the office’s functions through the 2018 election. Virtually no Democrats who heard the news on Thursday believed that Becerra would be that kind of officeholder.

“He has the smarts, political experience and ambitions to run and win reelection,” said state Sen. Steve Glazer (D-Orinda), a former top political adviser to Brown.

If Becerra serves less than two years of Harris’ existing term, he could be eligible to run for up to two additional terms — eight years — as attorney general. Harris has said she plans to hold the position until she is sworn in to the Senate on Jan. 3, and at that point Brown could officially nominate Becerra.

Becerra said Thursday he’s thinking about the confirmation process at this point and not whether he’ll run for a full term as attorney general or another office in 2018. He must be confirmed by the state Senate and Assembly, both controlled by Democrats. Becerra said he hasn’t been told when a confirmation vote might happen.

Earlier, Becerra had flirted with a bid for U.S. Senate when Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) announced plans to retire, but Harris’ quick entry into the race kept him and other California Democrats from running.

Holding such a prominent statewide post would raise Becerra’s profile as the Golden State’s foil to Trump, potentially setting him up to run for governor or U.S. Senate in the future. The attorney general, by virtue of the office’s broad power, will likely be a key player alongside Brown in pushing back against Trump’s proposed efforts on issues important to California, including immigration and climate change. In Texas, a state that has its own experience fighting the federal government, attorneys general have been a major force in the battle over states’ rights.

“He has great tenacity and he respects the rights of all Californians — much-needed qualities for an attorney general given the troubling times ahead,” Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Paramount) said Thursday.

Several congressional colleagues echoed that sentiment.

“Many of the values that we stand by in California will be under attack in the next few years, and Chairman Becerra is the fighter I want in our corner,” Rep. Tony Cardenas (D-Los Angeles) said in a statement.

Becerra said that with Trump headed to the White House, he’s prepared to protect California’s progressive policies on immigration, the Affordable Care Act, energy and criminal justice. As California politicians embrace their roles in guarding the state against Trump’s policies, Becerra threw down his own gauntlet Thursday.

“If you want to take on a forward-leaning state that is prepared to defend its rights and interests, then come at us,” Becerra said.

A vocal advocate for Hillary Clinton’s presidential bid, Becerra was briefly floated as a potential pick for vice president or a Cabinet position. With Clinton’s loss Nov. 8 and no upward mobility available in House leadership, Becerra’s future political career was unclear.

He’d reached the time limit on serving as caucus chairman, the fourth highest-ranking House Democratic leadership position, and with House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) and the other two Democrats above him in leadership staying put, there was no path up the ladder headed into the next Congress.

Becerra serves on the powerful House Ways and Means Committee, and made a play as recently as Tuesday to be the committee’s ranking Democrat. He was quickly endorsed by the current ranking member, Rep. Sandy Levin (D-Mich.), who said in a statement Thursday that he respects that Becerra “feels a special responsibility during these difficult times to look after vital legal interests in his home state.”

Democrats across California reacted Thursday with effusive praise for Becerra. Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom called him “a thoughtful and effective leader, with a keen legal mind and a passion for giving a voice to the voiceless.”

In particular, some pointed out the importance of elevating a Latino politician to statewide office, alongside both Latino leaders of the Legislature and Secretary of State Alex Padilla.

“It’s good for the state’s future,” said Bill Lockyer, who served as attorney general from 1999 to 2007.

The announcement also meant early guessing as to who would replace Becerra in representing downtown Los Angeles and communities to the west and north in Congress. Becerra won reelection in November in the solidly Democratic district. A special election to fill the seat would probably take place in late spring of 2017, though the law gives Brown wide discretion on the precise schedule.

John A. Pérez, the former Assembly speaker and current University of California regent, announced his bid less than an hour after Brown’s announcement, and more contenders may follow.

sarah.wire@latimes.com; john.myers@latimes.com

Follow @sarahdwire and @johnmyers on Twitter

Read more about the 55 members of California’s delegation at latimes.com/politics

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As 2026 reaches its halfway point, the editors of De Los are eager to talk about Latin artists to watch — and share their hottest music takes. Over the years, award-winning music journalist Suzy Exposito and Director of Latino Initiatives Fidel Martinez have documented the rise of genres like reggaeton and música Mexicana in mainstream culture.

In her work for Vogue, The Times and Rolling Stone, Exposito has interviewed influential artists like Shakira, Cardi B and Bad Bunny (the last of which made history as the first Rolling Stone cover story written by a Latina journalist).

Martinez has an impressive roster of his own, having interviewed many stars in the Mexican and Chicano music scenes, from Fuerza Regida to Natalia Lafourcade.

Reflecting on a landmark year for Latin music

On this week’s episode of “The De Los Podcast,” they weigh in on the explosive impact of 2025 on the genre: between Bad Bunny‘s Super Bowl halftime show and Karol G‘s Coachella headlining performance, last year was nothing short of a groundbreaking for Latin music.

“Being there, you could feel barriers coming down,” Martinez, who reported live from the Super Bowl in February, said. “It wasn’t Bad Bunny trying to validate us in front of others. It was him saying, ‘This is who we are, and we are proud of who we are.’”

According to the RIAA, 2025 was the first year that Latin music sales in the U.S. reached $1 billion, in its 10th consecutive year of growth. In 2016, American Latin music sales were at just below $150 million.

“It highlights how quickly and with what speed the genre has been taking off,” Martinez said.

However, as Exposito notes, at times, it came at the cost of originality.

A Latin music trend that De Los is leaving behind this year

“Our generation is too married to the past,” Exposito said. “How can we evolve musically if we keep trying to re-create our grandparents’ music?”

Nostalgia, De Los editors note, has driven the wide-ranging popularity of last year’s most successful Latin projects. As Exposito says, the artists “mine the past in their own ways.”

In Bad Bunny’s “DtMF” and Karol G’s “Tropicoqueta,” classic genres like salsa, plena and cumbia took center stage. “DtMF” samples El Gran Combo de Puerto Rico while in Fuerza Regida samples Mexican classics like Vicente Fernández.

While comforting and educational for younger generations, Martinez argues that artists relying on nostalgia could turn that effort into becoming more experimental with their sound.

Some artists, however, are resisting the nostalgia trend, making De Los’ best albums list of 2026 … so far.

De Los’ 2026 Latin albums you need to hear

Suzy’s picks:

Alvaro Díaz, “Omakase”

“He’s experimental … and taking bold swings, with producers like Tainy,” Exposito said.

“Omakase,” which the Puerto Rican star released in May, blends Latin trap elements with electronic, R&B and in one track, cumbia, for a diverse, thoughtful album that Diaz equates in his De Los story to the Japanese dish omakase, or a platter decided by the chef.

RaiNao, “Marcría”

With a worldplay title that blends the words “malcriada” (badly raised woman) and “cria por el mar” (born in the sea), RaiNao’s project promises earthly, intimate lyricism with experimental musicianship.

“The way she melds jazz with reggaeton and folkloric elements, I really enjoy,” Exposito said. “I really appreciate people (like RaiNao) who can remix but also introduce seemingly disparate elements, like saxophone and Caribbean music.”

Other picks include Ibeyi’s “Offering” and Diles Que No Me Maten’s “Escrito en Agua.”

Fidel’s picks:

Julieta Venegas, “Norteña”

Venegas, who De Los interviewed last month, wrote a memoir alongside this album, which delves into her Tijuana heritage with Mexican collaborators like Bronco, is what Martinez calls “a chef’s kiss.”

“She’s such a fascinating character because she started as an indie rocker,” Martinez said. “This album is a love letter to Tijuana. It’s just the perfect fusion of tradition and pop.”

Hermanos Espinoza, “Linaje”

Two brothers from the Rio Grande Valley, Hermanos Espinoza performed at De Los’ SXSW showcase and blew the audience away with their live energy and accordion work.

“Their project talks about lineage. This album certainly has a point of view,” Martinez said. “With this album, they said, música Mexicana can be like rock and roll.”

Also on the list are Tito Doble P’s “Acomodo” and Trio Asesino’s self-titled.

To hear more about 2026’s emerging artists and De Los’ music hot takes, check out “The De Los Podcast.”

Walk into the Grammy Museum in downtown L.A., and you’ll see Clive Davis’ legacy everywhere.

The museum’s intimate performance space is named for the late record executive, and his visage greets guests at the front door. (Davis was the first million-dollar donor to the nascent Recording Academy archive and exhibition space.) His sprawling roster of acts — Bruce Springsteen, Miles Davis, Whitney Houston, Alicia Keys, Earth, Wind & Fire — defined an entire art form and business model as preserved in the Grammy Museum. Davis’ pre-Grammy gala was the most coveted invitation in music every awards season.

Davis’ death at 94 is “devastating,” said Michael Sticka, chief executive and president of the Grammy Museum. “Clive was always a north star of music and talent and artistry. We’re all lucky to have his legacy to look up to.”

Davis’ death marks the end of perhaps the most important and enduring career in the record industry. Sticka spoke to The Times about Davis’ remarkable longevity, creative vision and how a career like his will likely never be possible again.

Clive was a giant of the record business. How did his career shape the modern record industry?

His career was iconic. He really had a unique ability to not just bring an artist to their fullest potential artistically, but commercially. From attending Monterey Pop and first seeing Janis Joplin to Whitney Houston and Alicia Keys, I don’t think anybody had that ear in them the way that he did.

With Clive, what you got was not just hearing commercial viability, but an understanding of what was going on in the zeitgeist. That’s what propelled his career and legacy beyond most record executives.

His name’s on the building at Grammy Museum’s theater. What did he mean to the institution — not just for fundraising but as a living connection to music history?

He didn’t just donate to the museum. He donated his time, his historical knowledge of music, his firsthand perspective. He always kept tabs on what was happening in music. I always say the Clive Davis Theater is the toughest ticket in town for its intimacy and the level of programming we do. But he did an annual program at the museum where people could come hear stories directly from him. Once he decided he was in, he was all in.

His gala was the place to be every Grammy season too.

I don’t think anybody could gather a roomful of luminaries like that from entertainment, tech and politics in the way that Clive did. We were lucky to be a part of that. Even with the stature he had, he was still a physical presence there, he was approachable. He was always looked at as this living legend, but his legacy was continuously being built.

That’s true over the arc of his career, which saw him lead Columbia, Arista, J Records and more. He had a lot of resurrections as well as successes.

He had this ability to resurrect. Look at Santana and “Supernatural,” he was a producer on that album that was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame just last year. So many of us would just give up, but he just had this resolve to continue, and thank God he did.

The record industry is so different now than when he began his career. Artists find audiences on social media rather than being discovered by label executives. Is a career like his — a famous executive driven by their own taste and individual savvy — even possible today?

That’s true, artists break on social media before they’re even on record executives’ radars now. I don’t know if we’ll see that kind of career arc again. Clive had a rare combination of gravitas and being recognized so publicly. The man and his legacy are not going to be replicated.

Beyond the name on the theater, how do you hope the Grammy Museum will honor him with its programming in time to come?

I don’t know yet. We weren’t really prepared for this. We’re gonna have to sit down and think how to pay tribute to such a legacy. I think that the impact the Clive Davis Theater has, bringing in 120 artists a year — I couldn’t think of a more apropos name on the door.

L.A. bars offer something for everyone. Want to sip amaro cocktails in a moody Echo Park bar? We’ve got the spot for you. Or maybe you prefer a beachside tiki haunt with frozen Dole Whip and crab rangoons. What about a sprawling West Hollywood rooftop overlooking the hills, or a destination for locally produced sake in Sawtelle Japantown? Much like the drinks that flow from these newly established institutions, the options are endless.

A neighborhood favorite dive relaunched in its former Echo Park location, while a new gastropub brings Korean bar culture to Highland Park. In West Hollywood, a karaoke lounge elevates the art with luxurious surroundings, and just next door, a lesbian-owned LGBTQ+ club debuted just in time for Pride Month. Tapas seemingly is taking the city by storm, with two Spanish cafes on opposite sides of the city offering pintxos and bocaditos alongside vermouth and Tempranillo wines.

Nonalcoholic options are more thoughtful than ever, presenting those of us who aren’t drinkers with smart and layered concoctions that prove just as complex as their boozy counterparts. In Los Feliz, a veteran bar team launched a cocktail destination that puts the focus on L.A.’s seasonal produce, and in Beverly Hills, a three-Michelin-starred chef is behind a stylish new restaurant and lounge in a luxury retail shop. Here are 23 of L.A.’s best new bars to visit this summer and beyond. — Danielle Dorsey

Nathan Ngoy sent off for hauling down Mehdi Taremi, whose first-half strike was called offside, in a close Group G match.

Belgium were held to a scoreless draw by Iran in a frustrating encounter that saw the Red Devils reduced to 10 men and facing the possibility of group-stage elimination for a second consecutive World Cup.

A star-studded, though ageing, lineup, including Kevin De Bruyne and Romelu Lukaku, was fortunate to leave Los Angeles with a point on Sunday.

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Belgium controlled possession yet ceded the game’s best chances to a resolute Iranian defence.

Iran’s Mehdi Taremi had the ball in the net from a well-worked first-half free kick that was overturned for offside by VAR, while Nathan Ngoy was sent off after the break for hauling down the striker following a badly mishit back-pass.

The result means all three games in Group G so far have ended in draws. Stuck on two points, Belgium at least have the comfort of playing the tournament’s lowest-ranked team, New Zealand, in their final group game.

Iran will also need at least a point against Egypt next Friday. Having been frustrated by visa issues while travelling from their base camp in Mexico to play games in the United States, Team Melli will hope to focus on the football as travel restrictions are reportedly easing for their crucial trip to Seattle.

For the second Iran game running, protesters from Los Angeles’s large Iranian-American community gathered at the stadium to chant against the country’s current regime.

Inside the stadium, Iran’s anthem again drew a chorus of boos and whistles, a reception at odds with the response to the players themselves, who were loudly cheered throughout the game.

Having switched to a back five, Iran sat deep in the first half, allowing Belgium to dominate possession and play hundreds of passes around their penalty area without creating any clear-cut opportunities.

Target man Lukaku, back in the starting lineup after making an impact from the bench in Belgium’s 1-1 draw with Egypt, managed a solitary headed effort in the 36th minute, which sailed over the bar.

Iran had the first half’s two best chances, entirely against the run of play. Hossein Kanani’s low shot after a long throw was well saved by an outstretched Thibaut Courtois.

And Iran’s star striker Taremi had the ball in the net midway through the half after a cleverly worked free kick, but it was ruled offside.

The former Inter Milan man spun away from Belgium’s wall, swivelled and buried the ball, before VAR overruled the effort, to the dismay of a vocally pro-Iran crowd.

After the break, Belgium continued to huff and puff, while Taremi again nearly scored at the other end. Courtois did well to save after Kanani had flicked on a long throw to the Iran forward.

Belgium coach Rudi Garcia made a triple substitution around the hour mark, and his side immediately came close – Maxim De Cuyper’s point-blank effort from De Bruyne’s cut-back was well saved.

Substitute Hans Vanaken blasted a shot from a rebound well over the bar moments later, as the Red Devils finally began to knock on Iran’s door in earnest.

But disaster struck for Belgium as Ngoy was sent off. The centre-back had badly under-hit a pass back to Courtois and raised his arm into Taremi as the striker raced through on goal.

The game settled into a nervous, scrappy stalemate, though De Cuyper again came close with a low effort from just outside the box.

June 20 (UPI) — Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass on Saturday issued a declaration of local emergency as the city continues to fight a major fire at a cold-storage warehouse in the city’s Boyle Heights neighborhood.

The fire erupted on June 17 and has since caused smoke to blanket the surrounding area as the warehouse continues to smolder, leading the city to open 24-hour-per-day smoke relief centers for resident who cannot shelter-in-place.

The fire, which was described by Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Jamie Moore as “a very unique challenge,” started around 2:30 p.m. on Wednesday at the 500,000-square-foot building, ABC7 and The Los Angeles Times reported.

Fire officials said that hazardous materials, including ammonia, have been removed from the building, but foam insulation inside of the building’s walls, among other things, continues to burn.

“While the LAFD continues making progress, this is a major, multi-jurisdictional incident,” Bass said in a statement announcing the declaration.

“The City and County have opened spaces for families seeking relief from the smoke, and we will continue working around the clock and doing everything possible to put this fire out completely,” Bass said.

The ammonia at the warehouse has been pumped out and transported elsewhere, Lineage Logistics, which operates the facility, said in a statement.

The company also said that it believes the fire started when a neighboring business tested a solar array on Wednesday.

Aside from the insulation, city officials said that they also concerned about the rooftop solar array and lithium-ion batteries at the warehouse catching fire, as well as eventually clearing out roughly 85 million pounds of decaying — if not also burnt — food products, most of which is meat.

The LAFD has worked since Wednesday to ventilate the building so that firefighters can more safely enter the building to suppress the fire, department spokesperson Lyndsey Lantz said in a series of updates posted on its website this week.

which carried with it warnings for residents in the surrounding area to avoid smoke inhalation.

Although much of the smoke from ventilating the building had started to clear by mid-day on Friday, an anticipated change in the wind on Friday after, which caused the fire to also flare up, made smoke more visible than it had been since Thursday.

“LAFD crews continue to work diligently on the warehouse fire in Boyle Heights,” Lantz said in an update at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday.

“The smell of smoke has reached most of the city, and we encourage everyone to limit exposure as much as possible.”

When it’s sunny outside, there’s nothing better than relaxing on a spacious rooftop overlooking the downtown skyline, Hollywood Hills or the Pacific Coast.

Recently, a spate of alfresco terraces have opened across Los Angeles, giving us new views of neighborhoods we rarely glimpse from on high, like Old Pasadena and the San Gabriel Mountains, Beverly Hills mansions and the Long Beach harbor with the historic Queen Mary glinting under the sun.

With globe-trotting menus, nightly DJs and sippable cocktails that beg one more round, these seven new L.A. rooftops are all vying for a spot in your summer rotation.

Los Angeles is the best food city in the United States. When considering breadth and scope, quality of ingredients and cooking, diversity and innovation, and sheer volume, it just can’t be beat. There’s no beginning and no end to its wonders.

But it’s more than that. Although our city can feel chronically fractured, our foods and restaurants may be the only possible glue that binds us. So we asked our Food writers, what are the local dining experiences that define living in our city?

This is our answer. The following are not the definitive “best” restaurants or meals in L.A. — we have a proper critics’ list for that each year. Instead, these experiences are the foundation for understanding what it means to love L.A. through its foods.

Tell us if you disagree, or if there’s anything you think we missed. Whether you’re a hard-boiled native or a first-time visitor with a big appetite, we’re confident that any combination of these 50 dining experiences will make your heart sing with love for L.A.’s invincible food scene. — Daniel Hernandez