Listen to Los Angeles... Through These Podcasts

Imperfect Paradise

The Forgotten Revolutionary - Part 2

Every season of Imperfect Paradise is about something different, but they’re all incredibly well-reported and cover a California or LA topic you’ve probably not heard about before. Season 2, “The Forgotten Revolutionary,” is EarBuds curator Emma’s favorite, and it covers the story of 1990s Chicano student movement leader Oscar Gomez. Host Adolfo Guzman-Lopez expertly blends his own lived experience with his reporting on Gomez for a season that is intriguing, informative, and deeply personal.

L.A. Meekly: A Los Angeles History Podcast

The Route Less Traveled (Route 66 In LA)

This show is so, so great – the hosts are a joy to listen to, and the podcast covers niche LA lore, from the city’s unique supermarkets to our radio stations to the history of Los Angeles gangs. In Emma’s opinion, this is THE Los Angeles podcast you need. This pick talks about, among other Route 66 gems, the story behind the enormous anthropomorphic chicken statue Emma passes on her commute every day.

Smogland Radio

LA Pee Pee (or, why it’s so hard to find a place to pee in Los Angeles)

There are only fourteen truly “public bathrooms” in this city of almost 4 million people: this episode talks about why that is, how it impacts us, and what it means for the criminalization of homelessness.

On Our Watch

Conduct Unbecoming

On Our Watch is an excellent investigative podcast with a focus on California police departments and cases in cities around the state. The series covers case files obtained as part of the California Reporting Project, examining how our system fails to hold cops accountable. This episode covers Los Angeles and Bay Area police officers who use traffic stops to hit on and intimidate women, and how the system covered their tracks.

Party Crews: The Untold Story

Anatomy of a Party

Party Crews is a limited series about the party crew scene in the 2000s, a space where many young Latine Angelenos came of age in LA amid negative stereotypes of the scene and its participants in the media. The host was part of the party crew scene herself, and balances her own experiences with reporting on the murder of Emmery Muñoz in 2006, and why it remains unsolved. It’s a personal and investigative series with a Y2K feel, and a great listen – this episode takes us inside the making of a flier party, the communities behind the party crew scene, and what these events meant to those that were and are a part of the community.

Blame it on the Fame: Milli Vanilli

Blame it on the Fame: Milli Vanilli details the rise to fame and swift downfall of Rob Pilatus and Fab Morvan, the infamous R&B duo known as Milli Vanilli who were taken under the wing of German producer Frank Farian, and quickly discovered — the hard way — the difference between star power and real power. Comedian and actress Amanda Seales (Insecure, The Real) hosts the series.