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I’m Brandon, and I connect entertainment, tech, and philanthropy to build really fun action campaigns that support causes with Urgency Network. 

What’s your historical Los Angeles and New York connection?
I played in a band in Pennsylvania from ages 17-24 and most of our teams were based in New York & LA. When I decided to forego college to pursue a career of no money, I would take trips to both cities to network and scrap my way into the industry. Eventually both cities became regular tour stops, and I got to know a lot of people that carried over into the work I do today.

Describe your experience in LA and your experience in NYC
I’ve tried to live in every neighborhood I could in LA to see what suits me best, and a few years ago I decided that place was Venice. I don’t know how else to describe it other than I stick to the people and places that I love, and try and tune out the rest. It’s certainly a love / hate kind of thing, but I can’t think of any other US city I’d rather call home right now.

When I think my NYC experience I think of being broke, hungover, and in need of a really long nap.. but always excited to return.

What was the biggest challenge of moving from NYC to LA?
My family is all on the east coast, and there’s a grittiness to NYC that LA lacks. Avoiding the dead of winter and waking up everyday to sunshine helps bring peace of mind to such things.
How can LA and NYC best engage with each other?
Bring on the Hyperloop! I actually think NYC and LA do a pretty good job of engaging eachother, but maybe some friendly competition over who can be the most startup-friendly, most sustainable, or which city’s hipster district can grow the best moustache.

Favorite LA secret spot
There are many, but I really like The Old Place at Malibu Lake. It’s the only spot I know where you can drink wine in an old barn, eat country food, and see real Malibu cowboys, Mel Gibson, and Cheech all at the same time.

Favorite NYC secret spot
My favorite NYC secret spots are the friends’ apartments with spare bedrooms. Never give those away.. This is also a copout answer as I rarely remember the names of places I go (see response #2 “NYC experience”).

What would you be doing if you weren’t working on what you are?
In one way or another I feel like I’ve been doing the same work whether it was when I was in a band or working for another company, prior to having started my own. It’s hard to imagine doing anything else, but there was a time I thought I was going to be a band dude for the rest of my life… so who knows.

I’m secretly hoping that there’s another “Searching for Sugar Man” thing happening, and my band is currently blowing up in South Africa and one day will headline Coachella.

From the 2462 Miles newsletter: connecting NEW YORK CITY + LOS ANGELES