First Saturdays in Leimert Park Launches Free Cultural Series

The Leimert Park Village Merchants Association (LPVMA) has announced the launch of First Saturdays, a series of free events designed to showcase the Village's Black-owned businesses, music, food, and culture. The inaugural event, scheduled for Saturday, October 3, 2026, from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., will take place at 43rd Street and Degnan Boulevard in Los Angeles.

First Saturdays in Leimert Park offers a wide range of activities for children, adults, and families, including an in-store craft class at ALL CHILL Hip Hop Ice Cream Shop, a children’s storytime featuring "Brown Skin, Curly Girl" by Paula Swearingen at LORE, live entertainment and outdoor drumming at Queen Aminah’s Clothing, and a jewelry class and Shibori Dye Lab at SIKA by Queen Midas Gold. The day will conclude with a performance at the Barbara Morrison Performing Arts Center.

The October 3 opening is the first in a series of events leading up to the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Los Angeles. The series is not presented as an official LA28 program, but rather as an ongoing invitation for communities from across Southern California and beyond to experience the Village's unique blend of Black-owned businesses, music, food, and culture.

The Leimert Park Village, a historic center for Los Angeles' African American cultural community, has long joined culture with commerce. The Village's artistic life expanded in the late 1960s with the establishment of the Brockman Gallery and the Vision Theatre, which began serving the neighborhood as the Leimert Theatre in 1932. Over generations, merchants, musicians, artists, writers, restaurateurs, and community leaders have made the Village a destination where independent businesses also function as gathering places.

The October 3 event will feature music, art, and live performances, including drumming, jazz vocal, and musicians' workshops at The World Stage. Free yoga at the park led by Black Women's Yoga Co. and play 25 rounds of Plant Bingo at 4 p.m. will also be part of the day's activities. Visitors can move through the Village at their own pace, meeting the entrepreneurs behind its storefronts and experiencing food, fashion, wellness, recreation, literature, music, and performance within a few walkable blocks.

The Leimert Park Village Merchants Association (LPVMA) has invited residents, families, community organizations, and tourists from across Southern California and beyond to attend, meet the merchants, and experience the Village firsthand.

First Saturdays in Leimert Park Village is a platform to showcase the cultural richness that Los Angeles will share with visitors from around the world, especially in 2028. The support of District 10 Councilwoman Heather Hutt and the local community is instrumental in the activation of events like this.