Voices of Jackson Heights

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Jackson Heights is not one story - it’s hundreds. Voices of Jackson Heights is a short-form podcast capturing the everyday moments, memories, and experiences that make this neighborhood in New York City feel like home. Told entirely in the voices of people who live in, move through, and keep returning to Jackson Heights, each episode reflects on a small but meaningful personal experience. You’ll hear stories in many languages, across generations and cultures. Transcripts and English translations are included in the show notes for non-English episodes.

  1. Finding Peace After Work with Paola

    Jan 10

    Finding Peace After Work with Paola

    There’s a particular feeling that comes with getting home late. The streets are still awake. The lights are still on. You know you’ll find what you need. In this episode, Pao shares what it feels like to arrive in Jackson Heights after a long workday. The comfort of knowing something will be open. The ease of picking up food. The sense of safety that comes from moving through familiar streets alongside other people heading home.

    1 min
  2. Finding Calm and Convenience with Hernando

    Jan 10

    Finding Calm and Convenience with Hernando

    What does it mean for a neighborhood to feel livable? In this episode, Hernando reflects on Jackson Heights as a place designed for walking, aging with ease, and finding everything you need close to home. A calm, practical kind of love that only comes with time. English Translation Hello, my name is Luis Hernando Ramírez. I am Colombian. I arrived in the United States, in New York, 25 years ago, and I have lived in Jackson Heights for 18 years.There is one very important thing for my wife, which is the peace of mind she has from having everything close by. Transportation, grocery stores, supermarkets, pharmacies, hair salons, laundromats. She can walk 15 or 20 minutes from our home and find everything she needs. That is one of the great virtues of living in Jackson Heights. We have gone to restaurants, cafés, taken walks, visited museums, attended park events, and I have been very happy here. 34th Avenue is essential for walking, especially for those of us who are older. Roosevelt Avenue, with all its noise and bustle, is also a place where you can find absolutely anything, from a needle to heavy machinery. But for me, 30th Avenue is the most special. From around 75th Street to 89th or 90th Street, it is a very pleasant, multifunctional place. You can find everything along that avenue. I am very happy in Jackson Heights with my wife and my daughters.

    2 min
  3. Stepping Off the Subway Into the World with Francesco

    Jan 10

    Stepping Off the Subway Into the World with Francesco

    Some neighborhoods feel like destinations. Jackson Heights feels like an arrival. In this episode, Francesco Biascheri, visiting from Bologna, describes the first moment he stepped off the subway in Jackson Heights and felt as if he had landed in another country. Or several of them. Through colors, smells, languages, and food, Francesco reflects on what makes this neighborhood endlessly surprising, especially for visitors who think New York begins and ends in Manhattan. This episode is in Italian. An English translation is included below. Hi, my name is Francesco. I’m Italian and I’m from Bologna.The first time I saw Jackson Heights was when I got off the subway at one stop, and immediately I felt transported to India, or maybe Nepal. The colors, the smells, the people, the clothing. It felt less like stepping off the subway and more like stepping off an airplane.Every time my wife Valentina and I come back to New York, we like to visit Jackson Heights because within just a few blocks, everything changes. The language you hear changes. The smells change. The words, the food, the colors. In the end, it feels incredibly rich. Maybe it’s a bit predictable for an Italian to always talk about food, but honestly one of the best things to do in Jackson Heights is to go and taste cuisines from all over the world. There’s a place I love called Angel. It’s tiny, really tiny, just four tables, and it serves authentic Indian food that feels like a dream. And there are so many other gems like this. So if you come to New York, don’t stay only in Manhattan. Come take a walk through Jackson Heights.

    2 min
  4. Where the Music Never Really Stops with Johanna

    Jan 10

    Where the Music Never Really Stops with Johanna

    Some neighborhoods feed you. Others entertain you. Jackson Heights does both, often on the same block. In this episode, Johanna Ramírez shares what has kept her rooted in Jackson Heights since 2007. From Colombian groceries to Korean dinners, from summer DJ sets to music spilling out of local venues, this is a portrait of a neighborhood where variety is not a novelty, it is the baseline. Johanna speaks about food, music, and the quiet comfort of knowing that whatever mood you are in, Jackson Heights probably has a place for it. This episode is in Spanish. An English translation is included below. Hello, my name is Johanna Ramírez, and I’ve lived in Jackson Heights since 2007. I’ve always liked Jackson Heights, even before living here. I used to live in Long Island, and I would always come here to buy Colombian products and things you couldn’t find in other places.What I really like is the diversity of food we have here. One day you want Korean food, another day you want Indian or Bangladeshi food, or Dominican food, and everything is very close by. Another thing I really love is the music. One of my favorite DJs is DJ Rekha, who plays Desi and Bhangra music, and she performs here in Jackson Heights during the summer. We have all kinds of shows, and places like Terraza 7. They have music seven days a week, and there are always so many places to discover, like bookstores and libraries. There is always something to do here in Jackson Heights.

    1 min
  5. A Life Shaped by Love and Rice with Russ

    Jan 10

    A Life Shaped by Love and Rice with Russ

    Some stories don’t come out polished. They come out honest. In this episode, Russ reflects on his long relationship with Jackson Heights, shaped through family, food, and the quiet intimacy of everyday life. His voice moves between languages and memories, touching on what it means to belong somewhere through the people you love and the meals that stay with you. English Translation My name is Russel.I’ve been here for about 21 years. I really came to know this place because I was married to a Colombian woman. She is very beautiful. We have been together for almost 20 years.She is from Colombia, and through her, I discovered so many things here. I think about the food a lot. Eating rice, different dishes, pork, things like that. Some of the food reminds me of Haitian griot, even if it’s not exactly the same.These flavors, these meals, that’s what I remember most about being here.

    1 min
  6. Work, Walks, and the Park with Mayara

    Jan 10

    Work, Walks, and the Park with Mayara

    For many people, Jackson Heights isn’t just where they live - it’s where their days unfold. Mayara talks about the small things that make the neighborhood special to her: the park, walking her dog, and working locally. It’s a reminder that Jackson Heights is built as much from everyday rhythms as it is from big moments. English Translation My name is Mayara. I live here in Jackson Heights.What I like most about Jackson Heights is going to the park on 34th Avenue, walking my dog. I work here too. It’s a great place. I really like it here.

    1 min
  7. A Neighborhood That Never Leaves You with Valentina

    Jan 10

    A Neighborhood That Never Leaves You with Valentina

    Some places stay with you long after you leave. In this episode, Valentina reflects on why Jackson Heights still lives in her heart years after moving away from New York. What she describes is not just diversity, but energy. The feeling of moving through cultures, cuisines, and conversations in the span of a single walk. From favorite meals to the sense that the world somehow converges here, this is a story about a neighborhood that continues to pull you back. This episode is in Italian. An English translation is included below. Hi, I’m Valentina. I’m from Treviso. I lived in New York for five years, and now I live in Miami. Jackson Heights is a place I’ve always kept in my heart because it’s truly multicultural.There’s a strong energy that comes from having people from so many different cultures. In just one street, you can go from India to Asia almost instantly. My favorite place is Las Margaritas, where I had exceptional fajitas that stay in my heart every time I come back to New York. Whenever we return to Jackson Heights to visit our friends, we always go there to eat. Honestly, it’s a place where I would live, because to me it feels like the center of the world.

    1 min
  8. Pizza, Curiosity, and Growing Up with Sibelle

    Jan 10

    Pizza, Curiosity, and Growing Up with Sibelle

    Jackson Heights seen through a younger lens feels different. In this episode, Sibelle talks about growing up around the neighborhood, visiting grandparents, and a recent experience that turned pizza into something much bigger than food.

    1 min
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Jackson Heights is not one story - it’s hundreds. Voices of Jackson Heights is a short-form podcast capturing the everyday moments, memories, and experiences that make this neighborhood in New York City feel like home. Told entirely in the voices of people who live in, move through, and keep returning to Jackson Heights, each episode reflects on a small but meaningful personal experience. You’ll hear stories in many languages, across generations and cultures. Transcripts and English translations are included in the show notes for non-English episodes.

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