8 party crews putting Los Angeles on the map

LA's better known for its glamour and celebrity than its underground club culture. But that's starting to change thanks to a young, hardy and very up for it crowd who aren't willing to accept what they've been given by the city so far. Ready to fulfil high demand for good parties, a bunch of crews have sprung up in LA, all ready to put their hometown on the map.

Flying under tongue-in-cheek names and relying on word-of-mouth hype spread throughout extensive friends-of-friends networks across LA, the crews have rapidly garnered cult followings in the city's expanding nightlife culture. They're a new generation of promoters willing to think outside of the box and they've arrived in force.

Thanks to an abundance of LA-dwelling artists, the once "just for fun" party crews are snowballing into major brands (as the dance music vernacular goes in 2016), receiving frequent cameos from A-listers like Skrillex and A-Trak and returning weekly or monthly with more and more vigour.

Taking advantage of the sweet spot between dance music and rap - both of which thrive independently in the massive spread of LA - Brownies & Lemonade was born from co-founder Kushan and his friend Jose's first party hosting efforts at UCLA. Officially coming to life several years ago, B&L zeroed in on a crowd that had avoided being folded into mass festival culture and were seeking something a bit more raw.

"Music has an incredible presence in LA's DNA," Kushan explains, looking back on how far Brownies & Lemonade has come since his university days. "You can see it in the influence that LA has on the rest of the world. Whatever starts to buzz in our city, tends to dictate how the rest of world responds to music." Staying true to that line of thinking, B&L have become tastemakers in their own right, bringing in a variety of talents that spread across the hip hop and dance music board like Louis The Child, Keys N Krates, Mija, Lunice and plenty more.

B&L now commands two extensions of its party series: the heavily hip hop-tipped Camp Trill and Double Cross, which highlights DJ-centric acts. Quickly, B&L has caught the attention of more than just rising talents, nabbing surprise drop-ins from favored household names like Lido and duo Stööki Sound. Just ask LA-local Skrillex, who's popped in unannounced with Mija for a heavy, sweaty set.

[Photo: Quasar Media]

Ever catch that party-going itch on a Tuesday night? The guys behind Space Yacht did, and have made quite a name for themselves in the city thanks to it.

Started by a trio of friends each with their hands and interests in different aspects of the music industry (a producer and two eager, fresh-out-of-college entrepreneurs), Space Yacht has succeeded largely in part to its loyalty to remaining a completely organic experience, starting from the talent booked to the audience it draws in.

"The people who come through are there for a combination of community, new music, and just a nutty party in general," co-founder Henry Lu explains. Today, the party remains a free-with-RSVP event. Space Yacht has banked on the thriving population of young, keen minds with innovative interests in the electronic music space. "We are putting on underrepresented producers that we really believe in. They're acts that aren't big enough to play the bottle service clubs and ballrooms but are doing really interesting things in their respective scenes."

And at the root of the entire thing is a group of friends that sought to master the business of having fun (the name itself stems from a joke that one day their project would be so successful that they'd be able to Skype each other from their yachts while traveling in space). Staying true to that thread, photos from the weekly Space Yacht editions show a shameless type of debauchery, loaded with the wildest trends of Los Angeles fashion and the party's signature handout: pepperoni and cheese pizza.

A slice for one, and for all.

[Photo: Quasar Media]

Continued...

Ham on Everything founder Adam Weiss nestled himself into the booming rap pocket of Los Angeles, obsessed first with backpack hip hop and then artists like Lil B, Waka Flocka and Soulja Boy. After linking up with Romo and DJ Stereotype, who would eventually become his business partners, the trio stumbled upon the cheeky moniker for their series simply by promising that they would always go "ham on everything" during their parties.

Ham on Everything quickly garnered a devout following - lovingly nicknamed the 'Hamily' - by booking live performances from Danny Brown, Juicy J and even Adam's No. 1 from day one, Lil B.

"It's this really positive experience where you don't have to be 'cool'," Adam says as he paints the picture of Ham on Everything. "You can be ratchet, you can be turnt, you can jump around like an idiot, go fuckin' crazy in a mosh pit, twerk on top of a speaker stack - and you won't be judged." And in the spirit of the crazy youngsters of LA, the team behind Ham on Everything dreams big for its future. Eventually, Adam and his team hope to expand the series into a full-fledged festival - an ideal space for all the proud, party-loving weirdos of the city.

[Photo: Phuk It Foto]

Sharing a story similar to many in the city, the founders of Free Grilled Cheese began as a group of Los Angeles implants eager to find a unique, effective way to meet and build their own community. As one might guess based on the name, the networking party became centered around everyone's favorite after-school snack, but most importantly, the laid back attitude that comes along with its cheesy goodness.

"The grilled cheese itself acted as an ice-breaker, and the venues we chose (originally apartments and homes) stripped away the pretentiousness and feeling of 'I can't'.' The feeling of 'I can't approach ______ because he'll think I'm stupid', or 'I can't go hang out around ______ because I'm too scared,'" co-founder Steph Whittier explains. "Nobody was uncomfortable at FGC, and as a result, meaningful friendships and professional collaborations were born."

And indeed, the bizarrely unprecedented party has cultivated the warmest of cultures while still drawing in the exact A-Listers that Whittier alluded to. Major artists like Jillionaire have stopped in to offer their DJing skill sets while other mega names like Skrillex and Diplo have strolled through previous editions of the Free Grilled Cheese, all for the sake of the sandwich and a bit of tangle-free networking, done only as Angelinos could.

[Photo: Quasar Media]

Continued...

Dig Deeper came to be when two forward-thinking music fans saw something missing in the Los Angeles scene and decided to take the matter into their own hands. Masha and Alison Swing co-founded the party series out of a mutual love of house, growing it from a one-off night at a local bar to a serious staple of the Southern California underground scene that has brought in the likes of The Black Madonna, Solar, Axel Boman and many more.

"We were the newcomers, and now we’re the regulars!" Co-founders Masha and Alison cheered when asked about how they position Dig Deeper amongst the Los Angeles scene. "It’s been a trip to have labels and artists we respect in the global electronic music scene give us support. We're building the parties that we wished were happening."

Dig Deeper emphasizes consistency ("Trust me, it’s always going to be good no matter who they book", they stressed as the experience most of their attendees understand about the party) which has allowed the brand to balloon in its following and stature within the city's electronic scene. In fact, they've made such an impact on the city that it's now time for Dig Deeper to go beyond. The team behind the party aims to launch a label offset and take Dig Deeper on tour to other cities around the world.

[Photo: CK Nelson]

Making Shapes has been commanding the party circuit in Los Angeles since its inception in 2009. Co-founders Jeni Erickson and Alexandre Mouracade are talented DJs and longtime members of the scene and used their own promoter backgrounds and awareness to create a space that invited a variety of different groups of people out to dance floor in Los Angeles.

But besides a jam-packed floor, Making Shapes has succeeded thanks to its fearlessness of diversity. Each edition taps into a different energy - whether it be from hip hop to house and the underground - and Making Shapes has always embraced the lawless vibe of the warehouse.

Making Shapes has booked major names like Justin Martin, Magda and Simian Mobile Disco but still embraces its reputation as one of the prolific names in the city upholding the raw, intimate vibes of the Los Angeles party scene.

[Photo: NightMoves.me]

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Notoriously well known as one of the most over-the-top, sequins-in-your-face parties of the city, A Club Called Rhonda's presence is as impossible to ignore as its attendee's avant garde fashion taste, most oft made up of leather, harnesses and crossdressing - and that's only on a tame night.

Incepted by co-founders Gregory Alexander and Loren Granic, Rhonda has accomplished the exact goal her creation was intended for (Rhonda, though not a real woman, is the beloved, faceless feminine embodiment of the party). A hedonistic experience as most parties aim to be, Rhonda specifically emphasized a sexual freedom that stemmed largely from Alexander's own oppression of his homosexuality.

The party evolved from one-offs that jumped around the city's many venues to finding a permanent home at Los Globos in Silver Lake. Rhonda has seen many a prominent DJ flit through its doors (The Martinez Brothers, Felix Da Housecat, Seth Troxler, Simian Mobile Disco, to name a few) and continues to hold its ground as Los Angeles' mainstay, offering all the proud and loud wild childs of the city and beyond, as Rhonda continues to expand past just its Southern California stomping grounds and into new territories.

We just hope they're ready.

[Photo: Michael Mendoza & Mekael Dawson]

The story is all in the name of IHEARTCOMIX.

Founder Franki Chan moved to the city with the initial dream of becoming a comic book artist (hence the name), but was eventually pushed towards taking what he then thought would be a temporary DJ gig after facing financial difficulties.

IHEARTCOMIX, unlike most other successful, but relatively newer parties on this list, has been around and thriving for over a decade in the city of Los Angeles. Chan originally teamed with Steve Aoki (before the superstardom and definitely before the cake) after bonding from their shared roots in the underground punk scene in hopes of providing a different experience than the typical bottle service outing that was the dominant night out in Los Angeles then.

What launched Franki and his eventual party brand into success was his ability to recognize exactly that - the lasting power of establishing a brand. As his parties (with Aoki) began to grow larger, he saw that previously unknown artists they booked were becoming recognized and launching into their careers, and realized he was onto something. "Stand out and think beyond the party," Chan offers as advice to the younger generation of party brands arising in his city. "The world doesn’t need more of the same. If you’re gonna jump in, it’s essential to bring something new to the table."

Franki went on to independently establish IHEARTCOMIX and took the title as the first promoter to rope in Justice for a performance in Los Angeles in 2006, the first of many accomplishments that have allowed him to remain a leader after so many years. He sees IHC as one of the founders of the "party brand" phenomenon in the city and enjoys watching methods he first implemented in the early years resurfacing and being improved upon with each new brand that bubbles up.

"I can’t think of another city or time that has produced as many influential and franchised party brands as Los Angeles. It’s incredible and has affected music in massive ways," Chan said, recognizing many of the parties on this list as some of the most successful series that have been able to master the "brand" in a way that lures more and more party goers in with every new edition.

Now, IHEARTCOMIX continues to nail the perfectly obsessive niche point of music, which sees it now taking on a brand new streaming initiative simply titled PARTY STREAM that unites music, gaming and a high-end level of production that Franki explains is "rarely seen in the streaming community".

IHEARTCOMIX continues to be a cornerstone of the city's blossoming party culture, leaving behind something of a legacy in its own right as Los Angeles continues to usher in the next wave of party-loving kids.

[Photo: Jennica Mae Photography]

Valerie Lee is Mixmag's West Coast Editor and will bring you as her +1 to the next party. Follow her on Twitter