Party Crews: The Untold Story

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For many Latinx kids in the ‘00s, the party crew scene was a safe space to express themselves as they came of age in the grit and glitter of Los Angeles. A space to make friends, forget about your problems and dance the night away. But the scene wasn’t always physically safe. There were shootings and police raids. Many adults saw the scene as gang-adjacent and the media fueled negative stereotypes of kids who were out of control. One of the teens who got caught in that easy narrative was Emmery Muñoz, after she was murdered in 2006.

Host Janice Llamoca goes on a Y2K-filled journey back in time to her own party crew days to find out what this scene meant for teens like her and Emmery, and why – to this day – Emmery’s case remains unsolved. From iHeart, VICE, and LAist Studios in partnership with My Cultura Podcast Network

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Recent Reviews
  • Vince (hinge)
    Great Show!
    From the investigation of a mysterious murder to the detailed description of party fliers, this show was throughly entertaining from start to finish. I feel I got a great understanding of a culture I had no idea existed. Props to the whole team involved in production. Plus the host sounds pretty sexy too.
  • 56577Gud
    Too many ads
    This is a great show!! I’m loving it but I just started episode 5 and after the show title intro and alllllllllllllll the commercials, the story doesn’t begin again until nearly minute 7. That’s 20% of the 35 minute episode in ads alone and I don’t want pay attention anymore to this extreme annoyance.
  • glendy :-)
    Stop using LatinX
    It’s such a derogatory term that strips away Latin American culture.
  • nadi624
    Insightful and Nuanced
    I really appreciate this podcast exists. Not too many nuanced analysis of complex environments of POC communities, particularly humble Latino families and teens. I grew up in the 90s in an LA suburb one cop on the podcast called “the party crew capital” and while I had nothing to do with that scene, I saw how it lured kids that I went to school with. My main bone to pick with this generally solid podcast is that it tries to depict the party crew scene as a safe space (for some), while also acknowledging it wasn’t. It had a hard time reconciling that, perhaps that was the point. Janice seemed offended that they tried to tie this scene to Emery’s death but sadly doesn’t seem like it can be ruled out just yet. Who knows. No doubt our community is over policed and hearing those undercover TV reports made me cringe. But, at the end of the day this scene could be violent environments where young people were killed, had access to drugs, and at least in my neck of the woods was a gateway to gangs. There should be better options for us than there were/are. Thanks for doing this reporting, and I sincerely hope Emery’s family gets justice. PS could’ve done w/o that website ep and maybe a little less about the host discovering how her body moves…otherwise, kudos!
  • Roy Obie
    STREET FAME ENT (MH)
    Wow! Brought back memories. What a great podcast.There’s was a time when party crews joined as a family. Unfadabke dream team etc
  • Frijolez flava
    Amazing
    This left me with a ball of emotions!I pray the family will one day get closure.This also made me wish I grew up in LA to have such fun memories.God bless the family
  • Caboom88
    Great reporting, but the ads!
    I was a millennial party crew attendee back in the day who also grew up in the SGV (Baldwin Park), so this one hit real close to home. Insightful, reflective with strong narrative, but starting with 8 mins of ads is wild. Thankfully, it’s easy to fast forward, and I know people gotta eat. Looking forward to more from Janice Llamoca!
  • WendyR8930
    Refreshingly raw yet respectful
    This podcast was surprisingly genuine and went in depth enough to shed light on a horrible murder. I resonated so much with this podcast because as a Hispanic millennial, the narrator really told the story of growing up as children of immigrants. I hope more people listen to this powerful story.
  • SHAZ ILLYORK
    🗑
    Because you said Latin X
  • Tati_cruz94
    Loved it!
    Honestly, I wasn’t sure if this would be something I’d like because I had never heard of a party crew. From the very start I was captivated by the story of the party scene in LA and Emmory’s story! Also, yes there were party horns but they definitely weren’t excessive and yes there were a lot of ads but I just skipped right over them.
  • @Gringo_Mark
    Excellent p.c
    Wishing we had party crews in Miami growing up in the 90’s. Saludos
  • Kid_Moe
    Latino
    So much wasted potential here, and they use the “Latinx” term. This disrespects the culture and history they’re trying to depict from the get-go. It’s LatinO.
  • bfjdjdid
    Great podcast
    Really enjoyed!!!
  • ladiebeegirl
    So informative
    This is such a great podcast and the host is so good! I loved it.
  • quedible
    Sound mix …
    I really wanted to listen to this podcast and relive my wild youth. Sadly I can’t because of the wall to wall music. I wish hosts would understand that some of us either can’t pay attention to words and music at the same time and that they would either leave out most of the music or at least mix the sound so the music doesn’t compete for our attention with the host and interviews.
  • Bad app dev
    More commercials than podcast
    Title says it all. Hard to follow because keeps stopping for the MANY sponsors.
  • Elmontebaby
    Dj airhorn
    I know it was from the time this all happened but it’s just cringy haha! 80’s, 90’s, 00’s had party crews and each had their own fun but dangerous events. Took me back to the 90’s as a teen but my dance venues were Florentine Gardens El Monte and Hollywood!
  • Blackskt
    East Los Dreamer
    Listening to the narrative I feel like I was living in her shoes! Such a great story to look back on and remember the tiny little details we of the 00’s ! Crazy how generations have changed!
  • pw122456
    Great podcast
    Don’t complain about ads on a free podcast, people should be allowed to make money. Pay for a service that does it with no ads or shut up and give them a legit rating! Good work on the actual podcast!
  • by50&;hx
    Meh
    Interesting story but the narrator spends so much time talking about herself and reliving her party experiences it gets old and boring.
  • Kayeleonie
    Great podcast….
    But too many commercials.. great info ….great host..
  • Daqyre
    Different perspective
    In the early 1990’s I was very much involved in the part crew world. Unlike my friends I saw this as more of a business opportunity then party time. I promoted my own events and at a young age I hustled and found myself producing fairly large events throughout Los Angeles. Listening to your podcast I had an opportunity to really reflect on this time and realize how truly dangerous it was. It’s hard when you have to separate a bit of the nostalgia from the stark reality. I myself was saved by the scene I used the money I earned at these raves to pay for my first year of college. The neighborhood politics and money involved in these events led to a very dangerous scene that thankfully I escaped unscathed. Thanks for this podcast!
  • lindafbird
    Ads and more ads then music
    Not enough content to make it worth dealing with all the ads.
  • Annita Vacation
    Great podcast!
    Great podcast but too many commercials. This was a great show to binge and also a fun investigative journalism.
  • Runstreet
    Gray story but too many ads
    An interesting look at something I had no idea about. Great storytelling but the ads are so excessive, I struggled to keep listening. I’m used to ads in podcasts but this is the first time I’ve gotten so thrown off by excessive and repetitive ads that made it hard to keep listening.
  • Shuichi_Minamino
    Lovely Storytelling
    There’s a comment on here by Sweet-ish Caroline that completely misses the point of this podcast! The story teller is not only now realizing that the party crew scene was complex. She is bringing light to the reality of teens living in underserved communities — that they often are forced to find joy and safe spaces in less then ideal situations. The host is shinning the light on these teens’ resiliency and their ingenuity juxtaposing it to the harshness of their neighborhoods. These teens must make what they can with what they have. It is a coming of age story of two teens who were discovering their identities and trying to feel freedom in a complicated world. One teen’s journey was tragically cut short; another teen got to derive meaning from her experience. The host does a beautiful job of being empathic and thoughtful
  • GS215*
    ADS
    I find the amount of ads in each episode of the podcast to be excessive. The 10 minutes of ads at the beginning of each episode, along with additional ads throughout, are too much.10 min of ads at beginning of each episode as well as more through out podcast . Way too much
  • PriestHMC
    Good and bad memories
    Myself I’m from the generation before this. I lived in Rosemead and I too was in one of these girl groups that would hang out with truck clubs. When I look back at it now it was very problematic. I couldn’t imagine my own daughter living this adultish lifestyle as a 15 year old. A scene where older men are abundant. This podcast makes me realize that although I thought I was having so much fun, it’s kinda sad to be honest. This is dredging up fun memories with my friends, but I can see now how dangerous for a young girl this was and is.
  • Sweet-ish Caroline
    Conflicted storytelling
    While she wants to remember her party crew days as a “safe space” the host continually has to confront the reality that they really were not. It’s like she’s discovering just now what most adults already know. It’s a little tedious. Huge over-use of an air horn fir transitions. I really wanted to like this but keep setting it down and say “duh!!” A lot.
  • mspassell
    4754 stars!!!
    Technically a true-crime but the thing this show does most beautifully is capture the spirit of wild and fearless adolescence and that energy we had as teens when we never thought we could die, and the sparks that fly when teens find the freedom to teenage together in the middle of the night like there’s no tomorrow. This is a teenage love story, a romance. And also murder.
  • Jesse Alejandro
    Unique and compelling
    Janice Llamoca offers a unique perspective into a scene I knew nothing about, and does so with a journalistic rigor that makes her more philosophical conclusions feel earned. The soundtrack knocks, too.
  • bringbackgoodpodcastss
    So many commercials
    More commercials than content, especially for the first episode. I wanted to like it as I remember going to the same parties, but there’s no chance for nostalgia with this kind of storytelling
  • Thisappistrash21790
    So good!
    This series was really good! It highlights the importance of diversity in media and people who tell our stories. There was so much care given to Emmery’s story and life by someone who also lived in the same flyer party community. That same level of care clearly wasn’t there in the coverage when she died. The vulnerability of the host really brought to life the importance of this community to these teens.
  • Mdizney
    I was in the game and out this podcast
    Another old skool dj that was djing with me around the time of the podcast talking about the flyer parties from 2001-2006 posted this show and I had to listen! Brings me back when I was in my prime. I was one of the people up there as a dj, event producer, and Mc for many of these events all over Southern California party crew/flyer party scene. I left the scene to go to the 18/21 over clubs right at the end of 2005 and beginning of 2006 and remember this story. Thanks for the memories.
  • Nessa.86_
    R.I.P Stix
    I miss and love you my friend. Hector/ Stix/ Hectic Forever in my Heart. rock the Heavens 🙏🤍🕊
  • elniñosabe
    LETS GO!!
    MY NOS TANK GOT FROZEN ELEFANTE !
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