A Tesla registered to singer D4vd, legally known as David Anthony Burke, was found in a tow yard with a dead 15-year-old girl’s body in the trunk. Fans of D4vd have reacted as the case has been released to the public.
The decomposed body of 15-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez was found in a Tesla at an impound lot registered to D4vd in Hollywood on Sept. 8.
Fans continue to defend the artist, citing the lack of official charges, yet others call for accountability.
“I knew he was in Arcane, I heard some of his songs but when I heard about the body found in his car and all of the evidence pointing to how he likely did it, that sucks.” LBCC student Andrew Pastis said.
This incident promotes deeper conversations about the idolization of musicians and the lines between fandoms and celebrity responsibility.
“I think it was really interesting how everyone was so quick to jump on the train like ‘oh he was framed,’ ‘he didn’t do anything wrong,’ because if it was just some random guy, people would be fighting over it,” LBCC student Abbey Akeo said.
Since the discovery of the body, authorities have seized items, including electronics belonging to the singer during an overnight search in Los Angeles on Sept. 18.
According to the LAPD, the musician has not yet been made a suspect in the case, despite his Los Angeles home being searched overnight by authorities.
Authorities continue to investigate the cause of death of Hernandez, but it has been found that she had been reported missing three times since 2024 from her home in Lake Elsinore, California before her death.
The musician started his world tour in April and cancelled his final two U.S. shows in September, since the discovery of Hernandez’s body.
Despite the allegations, his songs have risen to the charts across platforms.
As the investigation progresses, authorities are working to establish a clear timeline of events and any involvement from those who may be connected to the case.
D4vd started his career sharing his music online and streaming on the platform Twitch, quickly rose to fame without a loyal fanbase.
The case has opened an ongoing debate around one-sided connections that fans develop with public figures, and how quickly celebrities and influencers can be placed on pedestals just for them to fall as fast when controversy unravels.
As public opinion continues to sway, some defend him and others condemn his actions, while others try to make sense of the situation.
“I feel bad for the people who liked him, but there is a point where you have to stop excusing that and cut your losses,” LBCC student Ronin Peralta said.
Outside hitter Kyla Jones had eight kills to lead the Vikings to a 3-0 win over El Camino on Wednesday at Long Beach City College.
With this win the Vikings extend their win streak to six and improved their record to 8-8 on the season.
Assistant coach Litara Keila commented on the team’s six game win streak and the overall improvement on the team’s chemistry.
“It feels good, we’re happy with our performance so far, we’re just trying to reinforce and remind the girls not to get complacent especially at this point in the season, heading half way.
We’re definitely finding our identity a little bit more and more but we’re on the way up to finally figuring it out. We have a little stuff here and there that we need to fix but I think the girls are finally understanding their chemistry and their growth at this point in the season” said Keila.
During the first set, both teams were playing well defensively, but as time went on the Vikings started to pull away and won the set 25-17.
During the second set the Vikings created a big lead with the help of middle blocker Ryleeh Tuaolo, who had 6 kills, and Jones to win the set 25-20.
Jones talked about her performance and what she thought she did well during the game.
“I feel like I did very well today, I was mainly trying to work on hitting lines, that’s what we’ve been practicing in practice and just trying to mix up my shots” said Jones.
On the final set the Vikings were moving the ball around and were setting each other up for shots. The Vikings won the final set 25-17.
Tuaolo talked about her performance and how the team feels after the recent wins compared to the beginning of the season.
“I feel like I did ok, I feel like I could have contributed a bit more, brought a little more energy.
We feel a lot better, we have way more confidence then we did in the beginning of the season.” said Tuaolo.
The next opponent for the Vikings will be their cross town rival Cerritos College.
“The girls are hyped, some of them were here last year watching sophomore night so they know what it means to play against Cerritos… they’re our rival but we try to remind them again that it’s just another game doesn’t matter anymore or any less than any other opponent,” said Keila.
The Vikings will play their next game away against Los Angeles Harbor College on Wednesday at 6 p.m.
While the world may not naturally have Twilight’s iconic blue filter, “Twilight in Concert” brings the magic of the saga to life by performing the film’s musical score live, for fans around the world.
As fall rolls around every year, Twihards go to social media to declare that “Twilight Season” has begun. What better way to celebrate than to watch the film with other superfans and live music.
Shows have and will continue around North America, Asia and the United Kingdom. Dates and locations can be found on the “Twilight in Concert” website.
To bring the romance of Bella and Edward to life, the orchestra was surrounded by candlelight.
Merchandise was sold at each venue, VIP ticket holders had early access and exclusive VIP merch bundles opportunity
Whether team Jacob or team Edward, fans would cheer alongside each other. Fans screamed at the entrance of every major character, with Edward receiving the loudest applause.
Fans laughed at some of the film’s most infamous scenes such as Edward’s “this is the skin of a killer Bella” line. Despite the silliness of certain scenes, fans could engage with it without judgment.
“I kept wondering, are people going to cheer for everything?” attendee David Alvarado, who came with his family, said
Despite his confusion at every cheer, he made sure to represent Team Jacob well.
“I made sure to cheer loudly for my side,” Alvarado said.
“I felt like a teenager again. It brought me back to when I first watched the series in the 2000s,” attendee Maria Carrillo said.
“Missed out on getting to scream over Alice,” said LBCC student Dannia Arias, who was unable to go.
The California shows have wrapped up, but “Twilight” will continue to be screened in theaters with an orchestra until Feb. 16 across the U.S. and U.K..
A student had an allergic reaction and was attended to in the A-building of LAC today. First responders were called to the Student Health Services office.
Authorities were called after 1 p.m., and a paramedic arrived at 1:09 p.m.
Police officers Kevin Stinson and John Ward waited outside of the office with a stretcher as the paramedic entered.
“A student is having some sort of… allergic reaction, she might not get transported so they’ll check her out for now,” Stinson said while waiting for a paramedic to exit.
By 1:19 p.m., it was decided that the student was fine and did not require hospitalization.
“No more than what was just administered (will be needed), they just wanted to check on her. She’s fine and is not going to be transported,” Ward said.
A receptionist at the Student Health Services office confirmed that the “student is fine”, and had left after the incident.
A fan who got into two fights at Cardi B’s meet-and-greet claimed the fights were the result of an overly aggressive security guard, an antagonizing fan who called her a “BIA”, “b—-” and a “dog” and backlash from claims that she didn’t purchase a CD.
Harmoney Karat Gold, the fighter, and Christopher Libane, another Cardi B fan who witnessed the start of the fight from inside Fingerprints, told The Viking how the initial fight with the security guard began.
“I just turnt it up you know and I’m like shoot, if I’m going to leave I’m going to leave with a grand entrance and a grand exit right after,” Gold said.
Harmoney Karat Gold fights Cardi B’s security at the Cardi B meet-and-greet at Fingerprints Music on Sept. 25. (Isaiah Ryan)
Libane told the story that fans were inside Fingerprints close to meeting Cardi B, when Gold began cutting people in line which infuriated those behind her, and the security.
“Yeah, she was drinking straight out the bottle the whole time and you know I thought she was funny because was saying some unhinged wild things, but she was clearly like Cardi’s biggest fan of all the people that I had seen throughout the day, she kind of dressed like her, kind of had you know a little bit of the same attitude and mannerisms,” said Libane.
Although Gold claimed to not have been drunk, she did claim to have drank while in line.
“I was drinking a little bit ‘cause I’m just having a good time. I’m kid free, you know, it’s a nice day out,” Gold said.
Gold told the incident more in depth stating that she asked people in line to cut because she had an event to attend at 6 p.m. and realized it was already 6:12 p.m., so she asked a few people in line if she could cut ahead. She felt comfortable requesting because she and the people around her had spent hours bonding while waiting to meet Cardi.
“We’ve been saving these spots, while everybody goes to the bathroom, come back, it was no drama, it was all just hyped up, and so when we get in there and I ask them if I can skip a couple of people, a few people said yeah and when it stopped, when they said no, it stopped right there and I said ok,” Gold recalled in an interview with The Viking.
Gold said that she cut one fan who had a daughter, and that even though he let her cut, he became upset when he thought that Blue Cherry, her cousin who came with her to the event and was holding Gold’s original spot in line, was going to cut as well.
Gold told him that she was calling Cherry to tell her to go outside because Cherry didn’t have a wristband to meet Cardi B, but the dad became upset and didn’t believe her.
He repeated out loud many times “oh that’s wrong,” “that’s messed up,” according to Gold and that’s what got the security’s attention.
Gold felt he kept repeating the phrases on purpose to get the security guard’s attention.
Libane confirmed that Gold did argue with fans, and according to him as well the security tried to solve the situation by telling Gold to get back in line, and she listened. Then he claimed that while she was in line, she mouthed under her breath multiple times about how upset she was with security, saying words like “f— that guy”.
Gold claims that security pulled her to the side to talk to her.
“I come to the side, I’m like okay, I’m right here whatever, what’s going on? I didn’t cut in front of nobody, I asked everybody, ‘he was like I don’t want to hear it, you’re being hostile, get out”, and so I’m like I’m not being hostile, but you know what, I just want my CD. He was like, “go get it somewhere else,” Gold said.
She expressed that she was upset at that moment because she had come that day to get her CD that she had already paid for.
Harmoney Karat Gold shows off the wristband and CD that she received at the Cardi B meet-and-greet, proving that she had access to the event. (Isaiah Ryan)
A close up of Harmoney Karat Gold’s tatoo that says “Gutta Ass B—-” as she holds Cardi B’s “Am I The Drama?” CD. (Isaiah Ryan)
“I snapped, it triggered me because after he told me I needed to go purchase it somewhere else or come back later, he says, ‘you lied anyway’, so that’s where it really pumped me up because I’m a Scorpio, I need nothing but the truth, you ain’t gonna lie on me… whatcha mean I’m lying, I’m lying about a $23 CD that I purchased to support Cardi B, another woman that’s just like me, a mother, you know what I’m saying? Out here struggling, getting out the mud, getting out the gutter.” Gold said.
Libane expressed that he felt security handled the situation too harshly, and said that he believes “the security was on a power trip.”
“Security was definitely, in my opinion, abusing their security power… He didn’t need to go that hard over somebody like, he’s like 300 pounds, she’s like 110 pounds, there was clearly a weight dynamic difference,” Libane said.
Harmoney Karat Gold shows the bruises that she left with after a fight between her and a security guard. Gold shared that the security guard was overly agressive with her. (Isaiah Ryan)
Libane described Gold as “a crowd fluffer” and “a motivational speaker” who said phrases like “you’re that b—” and “you go girl” to people in line, and said she kept him entertained the whole time they were waiting in line with her personality. He even was excited by the fact that, because she was ahead of him once she cut people in line, he would have the chance to see her interaction with Cardi B.
Harmoney Karat Gold and her cousin Blue Cherry pose using a fight stance during a photoshoot with The Viking News. (Isaiah Ryan)
“She didn’t deserve to be tricked, she was tricked to get out… he was trying to manipulate her to be like, ‘oh’ all sweet like ‘oh just come out, we’re just going to have a talk, we’re just going to have a talk, let’s just go outside’, and then that’s why things went off on the outside, because he didn’t fulfill what he was saying,” said Libane.
Libane expressed that he thinks Fingerprints needs to be more prepared for the demographic of fans that their events bring, since Cardi B promotes drinking and partying in her music. He claims they should have been more tolerant of the drunk fan.
“In my eyes, it was such an injustice.. We don’t know if this opportunity is going to come again, and she got robbed of that one time meeting her idol. And I just feel like Fingerprints definitely needs to make it right in some capacity, because yeah, it was definitely on the security guard,” said Libane.
The owner of Fingerprints, Rand Foster, shared that the security didn’t work for Fingerprints but was hired for the event by Cardi B’s team.
After Gold got escorted outside and the fight between her and the security guard happened, Gold drove back to the front of Fingerprints and got in another fight, this time with a fan.
Foster described the fight, confirming that the fan who Gold said called her a “BIA” was antagonizing her.
“So then she got drunk and then came back, dropped her car in the lane, like in the next lane over, jumped out of the car, ran over and punched the guy a bunch of times, and everybody was like he totally had it coming because he had been bugging her all day,” said Foster.
Esteban Contreras, left, pushes back Harmoney Karat Gold, center, after she punched him in the face during their fight outside of Fingerprints Music. (Isaiah Ryan)
Gold recounted the moment when the fan disrespected her.
“So as I was arguing with them, this guy comes up and he comes with a camera in my face and he’s like ‘aha you look like a BIA’. I look like a BIA? …he started calling me a dog and all this and all that.”
She stated that he was singing the lyrics of Cardi’s song “Pretty & Petty” at her, which is on her new album, where Cardi calls BIA “a lap dog”.
Gold explained the fight, in the same order as Foster and added that in the midst of her arguing with the security guard and the fan who was antagonizing her, a Fingerprints employee gave her cousin her CD, which came with a broken case.
Gold’s cousin, Blue Cherry, said Esteban Contreras, the man who antagonized her, made her feel uncomfortable and in her own words she said “he was such a weird, creep, pedo”.
“He was like oh who are you, you’re really pretty, he was like really creepy about it. Then when he was coming up the car I was like you need to back up, and he was like ‘Why are you being like that, I just want to be your friend, let me get a handshake,'” Cherry said.
He called her pretty when he was arguing with Gold up front at the store after the fight with security. He insisted on making up with Cherry when he went up to the car.
The Viking reached out to Contreras to ask for his side of the story, but he did not respond after a week.
Gold had some last words during the interview.
“This was an iconic moment for me, not because I was out here crashing out, but because you know I stood up for myself, and I’m not going to let nobody run me over,” said Gold.
Gold left off with a message for Cardi B saying, “I’m going to support her till the day I die” and “most definitely, if she needs me to do a video, I’m ready.”
Watch the video interview with Harmoney Karat Gold and Blue Cherry on YouTube.
CORRECTION: A previous version of this story had actor Treva Flores’ name written as Tre Va, and Jay’s stage name was incorrectly written as Random Chance instead of just Random.
“Life changing,” “gay Frankenstein,” “punk vaudeville” and “sensory overload.” These were just some of the phrases used to describe “The Rocky Horror Picture Show”, which was performed at the Art Theatre of Long Beach on Sept. 26 to celebrate the film’s 50th anniversary.
“It’s an impossible thing to explain to people. It is the only thing like it, and it’s crazy that it’s been going on for 50 years now,” said Indiana Jones, who played Dr. Frank-N-Furter’s creation Rocky for the night’s performance.
After stepping out of the century-old theatre at the end of the night, it was clear that people don’t just come to watch “Rocky,” they come to experience it.
“It’s religion for people with religious trauma,” said Fidelle Martinez, a Long Beach City College student and spotlight tech for the show. “I get to come in my slut-day best, and I get to come to the chapel and yell at a screen once a month.”
The audience participation is the heart of the performance, even before the film starts.
The performance begins with the entire crowd standing up and pledging their allegiance to “Rocky”.
Those who have not seen the film before are then invited on stage, where they perform simulated sexual acts to have their “Rocky virginity” taken.
Willow Mercury, the host of “The Rocky Horror Picture Show,” looks over the “virgins” to choose who gets a chance to win a small role in the beginning of the show. Virgins in the culture of “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” movie are people who have not seen the film before. (Jacyn King)
“Honestly, we get a lot of virgins. That’s a trend right now,” said cast representative Treva Flores, who played Dr. Frank-N-Furter.
Once the movie starts playing, the live cast comes on stage and acts out exactly what the audience sees on the big screen.
Actors Treva Flores, left, and Tim Curry look out into the crowd during a scene in a live recreation of “The Rocky Horror Picture Show.” The film was shown on screen while a cast acted out the movie for the 50th anniversary of the movie. (Jacyn King)
At some points during the performance, the cast takes the show off the stage and into the theatre aisles, fully immersing the audience in the world of “Rocky Horror”.
The standout performances of the evening were Va’s flamboyant and sassy Dr. Frank-N-Furter and the quirky, comical portrayal of Janet Weiss, played by Random, whose real name is Jay.
Portraying Dr. Frank-N-Furter, actor Treva Flores poses in front of their on screen likeness during a live recreation of the movie “The Rocky Horror Picture Show.” (Jacyn King)
Actor Random plays Janet Weiss and makes her way to Dr. Frank-N-Furter’s castle in a live recreation of “The Rocky Horror Picture Show.” (Jacyn King)
Random, left, as the character Janet Weiss checks her bag while legs act as windshield wipers as Amara Etcetera, right, acts as Brad Majors and pretends to drive on stage during “The Rocky Horror Picture Show.” (Jacyn King)
“This is my fourth time playing Janet. I’ve played every character and she is my favorite. I love the overacting and the ditsy aspect of the role, like sliding around on stage in your stockings,” Random said.
Amara Etcetera, middle, and Random, right, act as the characters Brad Majors and Janet Weiss who are shocked after the introduction of Dr. Frank-N-Furter, a self-described “sweet transvestite from Transsexual, Transylvania” during “The Rocky Horror Picture Show.” (Jacyn King)
Although the shadow cast delivered an amazing performance, the crowd truly makes the show an unforgettable experience.
Some audience members bought specially made kits at the theatre, containing props to mimic what the characters do on screen.
Examples include holding newspapers over their heads when Janet arrives at Frank-N-Furter’s castle, or putting on party hats during the dinner scene.
The audience also upheld the decades-long tradition of yelling out jokes during the screening, which were at times so loud you could not hear the movie.
“It’s a living piece of art. It’s been passed down since the f——— 70’s. New jokes get added in, old ones get forgotten, and it all comes together,” Martinez said.
Overall, “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” is a wildly entertaining experience, creating a fun atmosphere and a welcoming environment for new and die-hard fans alike.
“This is for weirdos, for people who are queer, for people who love sci-fi. It’s a party every time,” Flores said.
The shows are put on at the end of every month by local production company Bit of Mustard.
Their next performances of “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” will take place at the Art Theatre of Long Beach on Oct. 24 and Oct. 25 at 11:45 p.m.
Even as the first actors walked on stage for “Inherit the Wind,” the main theme of the growing rift between biblical ideals and modern scientific advancements was shoved plainly in the face of every audience member.
The play is based on the 1925 Scopes Monkey Trial that argued for the theory of evolution to be taught in schools.
The set was filled with pro-Christian propaganda, with signs hanging down with phrases like “READ YOUR BIBLE” and “SAVE our SCHOOLS from SIN.”
The atmosphere is crushing and very quickly establishes who the good and bad guys are, painting the pro-Darwin side as villains in the eyes of the rest of the small town.
The set pieces and actions of the play constantly express the naivety of the townspeople, utilizing our modern knowledge of how history plays out to showcase the true “bad guys,” ultimately painting Christianity, as a whole, in an oppressive light.
It seems overplayed at times, but its historic authenticity cannot be questioned, and it thrives in the irrationality plaguing devout believers of the time.
Matthew Harrison Brady, the defender of the Christian beliefs in court, is very animated, and his descent into madness as the play progresses is chock full of the mania you’d expect from a man growing disillusioned with ideas he’s believed in his whole life.
Instead of facing questions head-on, Brady hid behind the writings of the scripture. Even when there were none left to hide behind, he still clung profusely to his ideals.
Henry Drummond, the defender of evolution in court, is undoubtedly the other titan of this play, and, with a calm and cool demeanour, slowly gained the upper hand needed to break his opponent.
Drummond kept his emotions in check until Brady lost to his own, utilizing the moment to seize control of the trial and rain down the very hellfire unto Brady that he was accused of belonging to to begin with.
The supporting cast is what ties the story together, bringing life to the background of the play, with each cast member fully immersing themselves in their roles, no matter how minor.
Every scene was filled with life by the reactions of those who filled the jury, acting as an extension of the audience, being the same spectators as those carrying a program.
This play was wonderfully performed and an absolute blast to watch, with an assortment of cast members that were complemented excellently by the set and costume designers.
From the fiery passion expressed by Brady to the calm bravado carried by Drummond, this play captured the audience with its performances and posed real questions about the state of the current world.
The Long Beach Community Media Arts Film Club (LBCMA) and Echo Park Film Center hosted a night of new short films at PLACE Long Beach on Sept. 27, supported in part by the Arts Council for Long Beach.
Community members view the screenings at Place Long Beach on Sept. 27, 2025 in Long Beach, California. The program, presented by Long Beach Community Media Arts in partnership with Echo Park Film Center Collective, showcased personal documentary, essay and diary films. (Isaiah Ryan)
The event featured personal documentaries, essay films, and diary-style works, all curated by the LBCMA Film Club.
The screening also included “A Living Archive: Multi-Generational Stories from Long Beach,” a new collaborative film project, and documentary shorts created through Echo Park Film Center’s free Summer Intro to Documentary Filmmaking Workshop.
Filmmaker Tomboy Barbi speaks about their film “LA LOTERIA” at Place Long Beach on Sept. 27, 2025 in Long Beach, California. The program, presented by Long Beach Community Media Arts in partnership with Echo Park Film Center Collective, showcased personal documentary, essay and diary films. (Isaiah Ryan)
Each film offered a distinct and personal point of view, which touched on themes of family, identity and resilience.
One short film followed an immigrant father who engineered a homemade e-bike, nicknamed “Chopper Frankenstein,” with multiple batteries powerful enough to climb the steep hills of San Pedro. The story, filmmaker David Rodriguez explained, symbolizes perseverance.
“Everyone has hills in their life. ‘Ponte Las Pilas’ which translates to put in your batteries, but the connotation means put your heart and soul into it and do it well,” said Rodriguez.
Another film documented a father’s relationship with his two daughters through 235 drawings he created for their lunchboxes as they were kids. Some of the drawings have been animated and are planned to be wheat pasted around Los Angeles as a public art project.
Other works explored topics such as death, love, sorrow, grief, self acceptance and joy, all through a lens of liberation and hope. As well as short docs on the lives of ants and an expert typewriter repairman.
LBCC student and regular visitor to Place Long Beach, Vanessa Covington, said the event reflected the growing presence of community based art spaces in the city.
“Having a real community place, especially in an area that can get overlooked, shows that there’s a live art community here. Film can feel like such a gate kept medium, so it’s inspiring to see people from similar backgrounds making beautiful art.” Covington said.
Filmmaker Jacqueline “Jacks” Zaragoza described their piece as both creative and deeply personal.
Filmmaker Jacqueline “Jacks” Zaragoza pauses for a portrait at Place Long Beach on Sept. 27, 2025 in Long Beach, California. The program, presented by Long Beach Community Media Arts in partnership with Echo Park Film Center Collective, showcased personal documentary, essay and diary films. (Isaiah Ryan)
“My film felt very therapeutic, I released a lot of things I was holding on from my childhood. At the end of the day, closure isn’t real. Things are just experiences, and you take what you can from them,” Zaragoza said.
“The music I made for the film was meant to emulate that feeling of an existential crisis and anxiety attack, like when your heart’s palpitating and your skin tightens around your throat,” Zaragoza said.
The evening’s lineup reflected the collaborative spirit shared by all involved. The organizers’ mission, to make filmmaking accessible, affordable and community centered came through in every piece screened.
“At a place like Place LB, you feel the love. Everyone pushes each other past their limits. Don’t just use your creativity to survive, use it to express yourself.” Zaragoza said.
Long Beach City College music majors formed a band over the summer made of four guitarists, a bassist, a drummer and a saxophonist from different musical backgrounds.
The Jazz Book Club was started by Josh Shetland, Will Cardoza, Tyler Chlapecka and Idris Sol Perez as an effort to better their craft as musicians. What started as a group of four members eventually became a seven-member band.
“People crave music, and we just want to play,” Tyler Chlapecka, a founder of Jazz Book Club, said when asked what drives the band to practice.
From left to right, Josh Shetland, Tyler Chlapecka, Idris Sol Perez, Amber Cabello, Jack James, Alex Vega and William Gutiérrez sit together on a bench at Long Beach City College in Long Beach, California, on Sept. 16. These 7 music majors make up the band Jazz Book Club. (Isaiah Ryan)
Chlapecka is one of the band’s lead guitarists with a background in math rock, one of many genres that each member of the group specializes in.
Although they have seven official members, many other students and alumni play and practice with them on and off, further expanding upon the jazz and swing catalogue they play.
Although the band primarily plays jazz pieces, they don’t limit themselves to a single genre.
From top left in a clockwise direction, Jack James, Tyler Chlapecka, William Gutiérrez, Alex Vega, Amber Cabello, Idris Sol Perez and Josh Shetland look down at Long Beach City College in Long Beach, California on Sept. 16. (Isaiah Ryan) These 7 music majors make up the band Jazz Book Club.
“We’re able to play different tunes that you wouldn’t normally be able to hear,” Cardoza said.
Their name comes from a typical book club’s function, where “you get the chart, read it on your own and bring it to the class,” Cardoza said.
With each member of the band having vastly different musical backgrounds, which range from from classic crooner to midwest-emo, each member puts their own spin on the music that they play.
“Everyone can bring something from their background to make us sound more unique,” Shetland said.
Members of the Jazz Book Club (Upper left clockwise: Jack James, Tyler Chlapecka, William Gutiérrez, Alex Vega, Idris Sol Perez, and Josh Shetland) huddle together and look down at the camera as laughter breaks out during a slow-shutter portrait at Long Beach City College in Long Beach, California, on Sept. 16, 2025. (Isaiah Ryan)
Ranging from ages 18 to 34, the band members bring diverse influences to their music, including their drummer, who served as an ex-marine with drumline experience.
“As we’re moving into an AI future, the creativity of people is becoming more important, live music is a gateway to that,” Shetland said when asked about what personally drives him to grow as a musician.
The band stays connected with the community, aiming to grow the jazz scene within Long Beach while drawing inspiration from the bustling punk scene.
“Something about performing music with other people in front of an audience just makes you feel alive,” Chlapecka said.
Stories of hope, grandeur and distant lands were shared at Open Mic Night, hosted by LBCC’s Creative Writing Department on Sept. 19 at LAC’s P104 room.
Long Beach City College student Justin Castro recites a poem for the audience during an open mic night hosted by the English Department’s creative writing program at the Liberal Arts Campus in Long Beach, California on Sept. 19, 2025. (Isaiah Ryan)
Fifteen poets stood at a podium and read to the small gathering, each given a chance to express themselves in whatever ways they desired.
Freshman Maddox “Future Star” Harris drew wows from the crowd with the line, “Fear is what the world uses to steal your freedom, but don’t let that light be dimmed.”
Harris utilized wordplay and nontraditional rhyme schemes in his delivery, while still focusing on heavier topics that mattered to him to push messages of hope and perseverance.
Many students chose to write about their past and the hardships they’ve faced or have yet to overcome.
“From a young age, I just wanted to write about the injustices in the world that I’ve seen,” Harris said.
Emma Boucher’s “Turn of Phrase” spoke about her experiences of overthinking and how people often make things harder than they need to be.
Others wrote of loss and remembrance, and the changes that losing those close to them has had on their lives.
Marie Beccue recites a poem for the audience during an open mic night hosted by the English Department’s creative writing program at the Liberal Arts Campus at Long Beach City College in Long Beach, California, on Sept. 19, 2025. (Isaiah Ryan)
Students embraced that while change is scary, emphasizing the idea that loss is neither all good nor all bad as an experience.
Not every student chose to stay grounded, such as James Greene’s “The Beacon You Built,” a telling of a letter sent in a fantasy world that dove deep into how mental health affects everyone.
Greene hosts a World of Warcraft server with his friends and uses these stories as a way to flesh out the lore of that world.
“We can’t really cover all this deep stuff all the time, so stories like this help make it more like, immersive you know,” Greene said.
Some students wrote stories that gave in to the appeal of writing letters to past lovers filled with yearning for different outcomes of the pasts they left behind.
Long Beach City College student Robert Almarez recites a poem for the audience during an open mic night hosted by the English Department’s creative writing program at the Liberal Arts Campus at Long Beach City College in Long Beach, California on Sept. 19, 2025. (Isaiah Ryan)
Nandini Reddy, an English major, wanted to create a judgment-free zone for aspiring writers and called for anyone to come up, even if they haven’t written anything themselves.
“Even if you haven’t read anything, share something. Poems from your favorite writers or anything you want us to hear,” Nandini said.
Long Beach City College student ___ recites a poem for the audience during an open mic night hosted by the English Department’s creative writing program at the Liberal Arts Campus. The event was held Sept. 19.
Long Beach City College student Nandini Reddy recites a poem for the audience during an open mic night hosted by the English Department’s creative writing program at the Liberal Arts Campus in Long Beach, California on Sept. 19, 2025. (Isaiah Ryan)
Any student willing to tell their stories can sign up for Open Mic Night, no matter how long or short the poem.
The Creative Writing Department hosts at least three Open Mic Nights a semester, with the next one scheduled for 6:30 to 8 p.m. on Oct. 17 in LAC’s P-104 room.
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