City of Angels
because everyone needs angels every now & then
Cost me more to be free than a life in the pen’
Makin’ money off cuss words, writin’ again
Learned how to think ahead, so I fight with my pen
Late night down Sunset, liking the sin
-2Pac
Migrare
In the animal kingdom, migration is used as a means of survival. Animals, driven by instincts originating at the DNA level, migrate regularly throughout their lifetimes. This behavior, shaped and reinforced over millions of years by Darwin’s Natural selection theory of evolution, is key to allowing the species to thrive. These animals become comfortable with leaving their habitats in search of better environments, ones where resources are more plentiful, living conditions more favorable, and land more accessible for themselves and their future offspring. A species that chooses not to migrate increases its chances of extinction from starvation and other harsh environmental factors. Repeat that choice long enough and you’ll eventually have a species that ceases to exist. There is no free lunch—all living things must constantly fight for survival, including us. As humans, our mindset around migration should be no different. There comes a time in everyone’s life when a decision must be made: whether to leave for greener pastures and potentially thrive, or stay in environments that may not be conducive to becoming the person one wants to be, and fail to live up to life’s full potential.
The etymology of the word migrate is migrare, Latin for: “to move from one place to another.” Moving can be an uncomfortable thing to do, especially as an adult. It brings about uncertainty, and we can spend our whole lives over-indexing on trying to avoid that. But for the courageous ones who manage to push past the fears and negative self-talk, and somehow, some way make that leap even when afraid, great things usually follow. I’m a living testament to that.
Ten summers ago I made the decision to migrate from my hometown, leaving behind a lot of material things I owned, and most of everyone I had ever known in the city of Portland. The plan was to migrate down the west coast, swapping the City of Roses for the City of Angels, Los Angeles. The calculus that went into me heading south was simple: L.A. had more opportunities, more diversity, and better weather among a couple of other things, but truthfully those three factors motivated me the most. I also remember looking around in Portland and thinking to myself, “I don’t see many people who look like me thriving in this city,” and so really, like an intelligent animal who migrates for survival, I left—filled to the brim with optimism and naiveté. Two qualities I would need in plentiful amounts if I was going to survive the harsh reality of L.A. during my first few years here.
It's the city of angels and constant danger
South Central L.A. can't get no stranger
Full of drama like a soap opera
On the curb watchin' the ghetto bird helicopters
-2Pac
The Angels
The words Los Angeles translated to English mean, “The Angels.” A year into my arrival, this city gave me no heavenly vibes; truthfully, it felt like I was living in hell. Every day felt like a grueling battle as I fought to figure out my positioning. I moved here in my early twenties, right after a business partnership went up in flames, burning through $25,000 and reducing a once-valued friendship to ashes. The first year and a half I constantly questioned if I had made a mistake coming here. The juxtaposition between beautiful, bright, sunny L.A. and the dark sentiment of my inner mental state couldn’t have been any more drastic. As I was living through this time period of my life I couldn’t understand it, but looking back I now see that what I was going through was nothing more than the discomfort of change. It would take time for me to get my comfort back, but that was a feature, not a bug. Anxiety, channeled correctly, can be a great motivating force and truth be told, who knows if I would have strained so hard to get to where I’m at now had I been immediately comfortable upon my arrival. My fears, my struggles, my angels, ultimately made me who I am today. Let me tell you about a few of those saving angels that came to me over the years, in the form of people and fortunate situations.
My first angel appeared as a hiring manager who took a shot on me when things had come down to the wire in 2016. The situation was dire: literally get the job that day, or be forced to move back to Portland. Luckily for me, I did enough to impress my my soon-to-be manager in the interview and she believed in me, extending my Los Angeles stay. Thank you Tuanni (hit her with all your wine questions).
I received another angel in 2017 when I got a $25k scholarship to attend Hack Reactor. Remember that failed business I mentioned earlier? I used a song I had produced in that situation and flipped it for the scholarship submission. The scholarship competition involved recording a video teaching a skill that you held, and I chose to record a video teaching viewers how to sample music, turning it into a song. That right there is what I call the yin and the yang of life, a lot of situations can be circular and given enough time, everything works out eventually.
Another angel came to me when I got my first break in tech, getting a role at AuditBoard, a small startup at the time with only about 30 employees, located in Cerritos (I gladly commuted two hours daily). It was my first official software engineering role and even came with equity. Six years later AuditBoard would get acquired for $3 Billion by Hg.
Two years later, an angel arrived, showing up for me in the aftermath of dealing with the cathartic life-change that comes with ending a 12-year relationship during the pandemic. This angel helped me get my mindset right which led to me eventually getting back on my feet even if my legs were extremely wobbly at first. This angel was my mother.
A year after that, this city gave me another angel in the form of joining a fintech company I was passionate about called Dave (inspired by the story of David vs. Goliath) Dave started off the idea of a small neobank being able to provide financial resources to the underbanked and do so in a humane way. An ethos I felt good aligning myself with. I joined when it was still technically a startup and again got equity. Less than a year later Dave would go public with an initial public offering, valuing the company at a $3 Billion market cap.
As I wrap up my tenth summer, I now see why they call it the city of angels—this city has been good to me, and looking back I can’t fathom how my life would’ve played out had I stayed comfortable, stayed content, stayed in Portland. Had I given into the pain and left during those early years when things got unbearable to the point of stealing my appetite, I wouldn’t have gotten to truly enjoy this beautiful city in all the ways I’ve been blessed to be able to over these last few years. For that I’m grateful and I’m also very appreciative of all the friends I’ve made over the years, all the angels who’ve come to me and showed me grace and goodwill, and really anyone else who I had the privilege of going through this rollercoaster of a journey with.
It wouldn't be L.A. without Mexicans
Black Love, Brown Pride in the sets again
Pete Wilson tryin' to see us all broke
I'm on some bullshit out for everything they owe
-2Pac
Sin Miedo
The ability to migrate is a prerequisite for the dream of an improved life. Not allowing a person to do so greatly reduces their opportunities for bettering themselves. Recall that any animal that needs to change environments for survival but can’t will eventually die off—this is a fundamental law of nature. In America, the stakes of immigration are very high, and in 2025, couldn’t be any higher, reaching a boiling point this summer in my backyard, Downtown Los Angeles. I’ll be the first to admit: I don’t have all the answers when it comes to the inherent zero-sum game played around the world called politics. What I will say is this: Without fear, people should be able to seek out better for themselves and their families—this I fundamentally believe. And children should not be split up from their families, no matter how they got here, for the sake of enforcing rules. We need immigration reform and a better system that encourages and allows people to make the right choices. I’m hopeful that the trailblazers on the front lines fighting that fight will get the job done in the future.
Los Angeles is a city built on the backs of people who’ve migrated here from all over the world—from cities in America (like myself) and from other cities and places outside of it. The history of their contributions cannot, and I personally believe, will not be erased. America is one of the greatest countries in the world. I say this not to downplay its dark parts, but as a call to action for it to consistently improve. A burden that should always be placed on it because of its greatness. With more power comes more responsibility. The history of this country cannot be rewritten and must be acknowledged and respected in order to not make similar mistakes. As we write to the history books each and every day, it’s important to know it’s up to us to get the job done. I think we should all find our own unique ways to give back and contribute toward it being the place we’d like it to be in the future. Get out and vote, get involved, let your voice be heard in a way that’s true to you, create, inspire, be fearless.
Sin Miedo translates to: “without fear,” a solid ethos to hold when fighting for change, whether that be leaving everything and everyone you’ve ever known in your hometown for better opportunities, or fighting for change against a system you find unjust—do it without fear.
To live and die in L.A. it's the place to be
(Let my angels sing)
You've got to be there to know it
Where everybody wanna see
I hope that going forward you take an analytical eye to each and every environment you find yourself in. The places you exist in and the people you choose to spend time with in said places have an enormous potential to influence your life, both consciously and subconsciously. When leaving your comfort zone and reaching for something new, whether that involves migrating or just doing something for the first time, do it with the spirit of sin miedo. Life’s too short for anything otherwise. I hope to see you around L.A.
To Live & Die In L.A.
Instagram
Twitter/X
all images shot by Jose Zepeda of Balance Studios
This story is fire!