From the Editor in Chief

BOB GRUEN This native New Yorker is one of the most well-known and respected photographers in rock and roll. He has captured the biggest names in Rock and Roll through his lens: from John Lennon to Johnny Rotten; Muddy Waters to the Rolling Stones; Elvis to Madonna. Shortly after John Lennon and Yoko Ono moved to New York in 1971, he became their personal photographer and friend. In 1974 he created iconic images of John Lennon wearing a New York City t-shirt and standing in front of the Statue of Liberty making the peace sign. As chief photographer for Rock Scene magazine in the ’70s, Bob specialized in candid, behind the scenes photo features. He toured extensively with the emerging punk and new wave bands including the New York Dolls, Sex Pistols, Clash, Ramones, Patti Smith Group, and Blondie, and has also worked with major rock acts such as Led Zeppelin, The Who, David Bowie, Tina Turner, Elton John, Aerosmith, Kiss and Alice Cooper. Gruen is the author of several books, and his latest, Right Place, Right Time: The Life of a Rock n Roll Photographer was released last year. Gruen photographed the legendary Nile Rodgers for this issue, in his Westbeth studio, page 52.

JOMOCUTS For 20 years, has been the top barber of the music, sports and film industries. A modern day renaissance man who is also a father, entrepreneur, designer, artist, martial artist, dancer and inventor. Jomocuts tended to Nile Rodgers’ locks for our cover shoot on page 52. ANDREW MATUSIK loves collaborating with talented stylists, models, and artists and is devoted to creating striking images through great composition and beautiful light. For this issue, he photographed our summer beauty story on page 60.

MATT KAPP is an award-winning documentary filmmaker and writer who wrote and co-produced the acclaimed documentary 16 Acres. He wrote about Silverstein Properties newest building, the US Bank Tower, on page 40.

BRIAN DUPREY is a New York City-based fashion and celebrity makeup artist. His clients include Harper’s Bazaar, Michelle Lee of Allure, Kiss Cosmetics, and Macy’s, to name just a few. He worked with Nile Rodgers for our cover shoot, page 52.

VICTOR LARA Born and raised in LA. Lara is a self-taught photographer and has been taking photos of his native city since 2012. He focuses on capturing unique and elevated points of view. See his photo of the Los Angeles skyline on page 16. MIMI FISHER is a veteran fashion stylist whose work can be seen in L’officiel, Noise, and Hamptons magazine, among others. Her costume design and styling is featured in Roger Waters’ tour movies, The Wall, and Us + Them. Mimi’s work frequently combines her two passions, music and fashion, and in this issue, she styled our cover star, Nile Rodgers, on page 52.

LISA MADANI As a dynamic communications and PR strategist, Lisa has worked with DOWNTOWN, as well as collaborated on public relations and internal communications across luxury fashion and cosmetics. She resides in Paris and is developing the internal communication strategy for one of the world leaders of virtual and 3D technology in France. She styled the swim fashion story on page 74.

KATIE MCELVEEN got her start as a travel writer reporting on what to see and do in the small towns of her home state of South Carolina. In addition to DOWNTOWN, Katie’s work has appeared in Islands, Fodor’s, Sherman’s Travel, Destination Weddings & Honeymoons, Global Traveler, Town & Country, Real Simple and other publications. For this issue, she explores Saint Germain des-Prés in Paris on page 86. THOMAS CONCORDIA is a pho-

tographer, filmmaker, and creative director with three decades of experience in the fashion and beauty industry. Concordia’s photographs have been featured in publications including Vogue, W, WWD, Elle, In Style, and Harper’s Bazaar, in addition to being a frequent contributor for Getty Images. He’s currently working on a film documenting influencers across the country in the post-pandemic landscape which will premiere at FIT this fall. For this issue, he photographed the Miami swim story on page 68.

MIMI LOMBARDO is a freelance fashion editor, writer and stylist, who has worked for T Magazine, Travel and Leisure, Departures, and Haute Living. Currently she is represented by DeFacto Inc and is driven to create fashion images with talented photographers. She styled the summer beauty story on page 60.

LANA DE DONCKER A little over 10 years ago, Lana started her professional photography journey as the directory of photography for DOWNTOWN. She currently resides in Antwerp, Belgium, where she focuses on portraiture. She photographed the swim fashion story on page 74.

California DREAMIN’

The City of Angels is the siren’s song for musicians, writers, and artists.

by Deborah L. Martin photography by Victor Lara

THE CITY OF ANGELS, LA-LA LAND, TINSELTOWN: Los Angeles is a city that has inspired thousands of words, in both song and story. It is a city that seems to have been invented for creative souls. Raymond Chandler’s The Big Sleep, arguably the ne plus ultra of noir fiction, takes place here. Don’t forget Elmore Leonard’s The Black Dahlia, James Ellroy’s LA Confidential, or Michael Connelly’s Harry Bosch series. Then there’s Joan Didion, Charles Bukowski, Harlan Ellison, Ray Bradbury and hundreds more who were so inspired by LA that their greatest works are blueprints to life on its streets. Musicians? Too many to list. Iconic clubs? Whisky a Go Go or the Troubadour anyone? Hotels? How about a bungalow at the Chateau Marmont or the Grace Kelly suite at the Hotel Bel Air? Cocktails by the pool at the Beverly Hills Hotel, dinner at Gjelina, Chicken and Waffles at Roscoe’s, a great nosh at Canter’s. Rodeo Drive, Sunset Boulevard, Melrose Avenue. It’s all here. In the pantheon of great American cities, Los Angeles looms large. It is the lightfilled yang to New York’s moody yin, but don’t let all that sunshine fool you. Underneath it all beats a creative heart, a layered and complicated history, and all of the excitement of the continuing American story. DT