Security Check:
(Technically) at GLG Share, and (usually) a Protagonist.

What’s your historical Los Angeles and New York connection?
I started flying to LA while at Harvard mainly to film celebrities speaking out against child sex trafficking on behalf of my nonprofit, Minga. I fell in love with LA and my (now) best friends there. NYC was always just a bus ride away, so when launching BrightCo I spent significant time pitching brands in NYC. I eventually moved in with my investor and her family on the UES. Three years later, I can’t imagine living on just one coast.

Describe your experience in LA and your experience in NYC
On any given night in NYC, my friends and I will attend two to four events, each for just a few minutes. In LA, my friends and I choose one event or activity and just do that. I notice in NYC I develop a broader, but looser network while in LA, I get to focus on deepening relationships. LA always feels like a vacation while life in NYC is so packed that I seem to be permanently tired there. The mix of both cities in my every month keeps me interested and engaged in the two different lifestyles.

What was the biggest challenge of moving from NYC to LA?
I’ve been spending more time in NYC and find the weather challenging… that said, as someone who got my license at 18 and first started living in LA when I was too young to rent a car, maintaining and driving my Prius in LA is a struggle. What I miss more so than either city when I’m away is the people- both LA and NYC have become home because of my friends. 

How can NYC and LA best engage with each other?
There’s a large network of fluid LA-NYC’ers, hopefully more companies, brands, and cultural experiences plant roots in both cities from the start. We need to promote sharing talent between the two venture communities and make sure both attract the capital and inspiration needed to motivate entrepreneurs to take on important opportunities. Whatever company I build next will certainly have a presence in both cities.

Favorite LA secret spot
The windy upper streets of Laurel Canyon- best place to see wild animals and Sunset blvd. simultaneously.

Favorite NYC secret spot
The gated garden/park on Greenwich ave (near Equinox).

What would you be doing if you weren’t working at GLG?
If I was not at GLG, I’d be building a new university.

Inflight Entertainment: tell us what song/album, TV show, podcast, or web videos you’ve been watching lately.
I’ve been listening to “Beautiful Pain” by Eminem and Sia on loop.

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