Conversation Live: Altadena Rising with James Farr

KBLA Talk 1580

KBLA TALK 1580’s Conversation Live: Altadena Rising is the show of record, chronicling this tragedy for the nation over the next 52 weeks. Host and journalist James Farr leads the investigation, documenting the community’s fight for accountability and its journey through roots, resilience, recovery, rebuilding, and reunion.

  1. 4 DAYS AGO

    Altadena Rising — Truth. Resilience. Community. Love. With Dr. Cornel West Jr.

    On this podcast episode of "Conversation Live: Altadena Rising" with James Farr—Dr. Cornel West. A Black prophetic voice. Scholar. Truth-teller. Together, we mark Altadena as sacred Black ground. Memory stands a weapon against erasure. Fire scarred it. Displacement tested it. Still, the people rise. We confront disaster capitalism. Carry Sankofa lessons forward. Ask tomorrow’s questions today. If Wakanda were real, Altadena would be one of its proud tribes—rooted, unshakable, rising.

    48 min

  2. 3 SEPT

    Black Family Breaksground, Altadena: The Emersons Story

    Coming up on this podcast episode of "Conversation Live: Altadena Rising" with James Farr, seven months. Eleven days. After the Eaton Canyon Fire, Jarvis Emerson broke ground for his Black Altadena family’s home. A home lost to flames. Shovels in hand. Soil that once burned. He begins to rebuild. We were there. Witnessed the prayers.—the joy. The hope taking shape. In this conversation, we take you inside the groundbreaking ceremony—praises going up, blessings coming down. Recovery isn’t just bricks. It’s reunion. Roots. Restoring what fire tried to take. Jarvis shares the breaking point,  the fight, the faith, and the prayers that bring his family home. For the Emerson family, their land in Altadena is not for sale.

    52 min

  3. 25 AUG

    Asset-Rich, Cash-Poor: Generational Wealth Re?Imagined

    On the podcast episode of "Conversation Live: Altadena Rising" with James Farr, Dr. Brent Musson joins us to ask the question Black Altadena is still living with thirty-two weeks after the fire: Generational Wealth Re?Imagined. Musson, an Altadena native, housing policy expert, award-winning researcher, former Town Council member, and TEDx Altadena organizer, brings insight shaped by expertise and lived experience: Asset-rich, cash-poor families. FEMA funds are still missing. Insurance is falling short. Rebuilding costs are stacking up. “…some may have to sell their land — not by choice, but by the force of limited options. Dr. Musson breaks down practical, complex, and maybe controversial solutions as we explore whether this moment can flip the script on wealth, legacy, and community. Together, we confront what rebuilding really looks like and whether generational wealth in Altadena can survive — or be truly re?imagined.

    51 min

  4. 19 AUG

    Brandon Lamar: Charity or Surrogacy? Seven Months After the Fire — The Politics of Disaster Relief

    On this episode of "Conversation Live: Altadena Rising" with James Farr, seven months after the Eaton Canyon fire, who’s helping Altadena — and who’s just putting on a show? Pasadena NAACP President Brandon Lamar joins us to break it down. Neighbors are feeding and housing families with dignity, building systems that work. Even in success, there are lessons. From Hollywood and political candidates showing up with groceries — charity or political theater? — to fire survivors cast as extras in a campaign commercial, to the slow grind of recovery, Brandon and I explore what sustains a community, what resilience looks like, and what keeps hope alive when the system fails.

    50 min

  5. 11 AUG

    Working on a Building: Mayor Bass Leads L.A.’s Fire Recovery & Building

    On this episode of "Conversation Live: Altadena Rising" with James Farr, rebuilding isn’t just brick and mortar. It’s power, politics, and who gets left behind. Mayor Karen Bass breaks down L.A.’s push after the Palisades fire — fast-tracking permits, cutting red tape, and President Trump's response. In Altadena, builder Joel Bryant has put a shovel in the dirt, helping a Black family start again on the same ground the flames tried to erase. But every recovery has a side play. Tiffany Haddish and California gubernatorial hopeful Stephen Cloobeck made a public gambit — a grocery giveaway that drew thousands, left hundreds baking in the sun, and quietly cast community members as extras in a campaign commercial. The crowd didn’t see that play. Charity… or political surrogacy dressed as goodwill?

    49 min

  6. 6 AUG

    School, Smoke, and Survival: Altadena Students Rise with Dr. Lawton Gray

    On this episode of "Conversation Live: Altadena Rising" with James Farr, the fire is out, and the smoke is gone. But for students in Altadena, rebuilding and finding new normals are just beginning. Dr. Lawton Gray, principal of John Muir High School and a son of Pasadena and Altadena, joins the conversation to discuss how schools are responding to the lasting impact of the Eaton Canyon fire. From displacement and trauma to academic disruption and emotional recovery, this conversation explores what it takes to support students and families still navigating the aftershock. This isn’t just about returning to school—it’s about restoring stability, one classroom and one student at a time.

    51 min

  7. 30 JUL

    Breaking Barriers, Building Community: Fire and Robinson Family Legacy

    On the next episode of The “Conversation Live: Altadena Rising” with James Farr, a powerful and personal conversation with Dennis Robinson, great-nephew of Olympian Mack Robinson and Major League Baseball legend Jackie Robinson. We talk legacy, loss, and how his Pasadena-rooted brand, PASADENA CLSC, reclaims pride and reshapes narrative through art and culture. From Mack’s silver medal sprint in front of Hitler at the 1936 Berlin Olympics to Jackie breaking baseball’s color barrier — the Robinsons are a living testament to the resilience, dignity, and excellence that define Altadena and Pasadena’s Black community.

    49 min

  8. 30 JUL

    Martin Gordon: Still Waiting, Six Months After the Fire

    On this episode of “Conversation Live: Altadena Rising,” James Farr — Martin Gordon, Chair of the Pasadena Community Coalition, returns to share where things stand six months after the fire that scorched his home and rattled a community. His story mirrors what many feel: the flames are gone, but so is the help. While Southern California Edison avoids accountability, residents rely on patience and prayer. What does recovery look like when the system that failed you still holds the keys?

    50 min
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About

KBLA TALK 1580’s Conversation Live: Altadena Rising is the show of record, chronicling this tragedy for the nation over the next 52 weeks. Host and journalist James Farr leads the investigation, documenting the community’s fight for accountability and its journey through roots, resilience, recovery, rebuilding, and reunion.

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