Written by: Daniela Foster

My name is Daniela Foster and I am a proud lifelong Los Angeles resident. This city has been so important to my development, and it is the place where I first fell in love with the rave. From chill house shows in Hollywood at the clubs to techno parties in random warehouses in the middle of downtown, Los Angeles has it all for electronic music. In fact, a week before the Los Angeles fires began I was ringing in the new year at Forever Midnight over at the Los Angeles Convention Center. I was with my loved ones feeling carefree in my rave escape. 

January 7th, at approximately 10:30 am, I saw what I thought were just random grey clouds out of my window. Turns out it was the smoke from the Palisades fire, which was burning about six miles away from my house. It would be the first of many fires to strike the Los Angeles area within the month of January. The Palisades and Eaton fires were the most destructive and took the longest to put out, and ultimately left many people displaced. I was extremely lucky to be living in an area that was central enough to not need to evacuate, but many I know do not share that luck. Everyone in Los Angeles knows someone who was impacted by the fires. Despite being a very large city, Los Angeles is also a small tight knit city with a strong sense of community that can come together in the blink of an eye.

That first weekend of the fire, lots of promoters of both official club events hosted by the likes of Insomniac and local underground afters ended up cancelling and donating their proceeds to several fire organizations. Those who decided to keep their parties going that weekend hosted donation drives, in which donated goods worth $10 or more give attendees free entry. While there was a mixed consensus on whether or not it was ethical to host underground parties in the middle of a natural disaster (complete with TikTok drama), there was still good to come from it (in the form of financial donations and items for victims). 

One of the most creative (and helpful) ways I’ve seen a promoter help their community was by promoting volunteering! The LA Raver, a Los Angeles based electronic music newsletter and party promoter, offered guest list spots to all their 2025 shows if people either volunteered with them or showed proof of volunteering at a fire shelter/donation hub. Promoting direct action to help those in need during a time of crisis in the city was a great move on their part and showed their commitment to the city.  January also saw a lot of benefit shows in Los Angeles being held by larger artists. Jamie XX added an extra afternoon show to his sold out run of shows at the Shrine with all proceeds going to fire relief. Insomniac took the whole month of January to turn all their Los Angeles area shows into fire fundraisers. There are many other concert fundraisers for Los Angeles set for the year too, ranging from Rufus du Sol to Michael Bibi. Artists ranging from Cloonee to Deadmau5 had custom merchandise sales that raised money for multiple organizations in the area. Los Angeles is a city that thrives off of music and sees many talented artists come out here to “make it”, and those who did made sure to give back.

It has now been about a month since the Los Angeles fires, everything has been put out and the electronic music scene is going at full force out here. While I know many Angelenos who were still raving in January, I ended up taking that month off due to mental and physical health reasons. I finally attended my first rave of the year mid February and am preparing for my first festival of the year as I write this. For many people, myself included, raving is therapeutic for me. It gives an outlet to release my stress and anxiety. It has brought me so many loved ones I cannot see my life without and has provided me with a newfound sense of confidence and belonging. The Los Angeles rave scene is something near and dear to my heart and I am proud to be a Los Angeles raver right now.