San Diego's creative scene is thriving in unexpected ways. Musicians are crowdfunding their careers. Tea culture is evolving. A painter's lost dreams spark a bold new vision. The city's last alt-weekly falls, but its rebellious spirit fights on. And in a rare conversation, the city's outgoing and incoming poets laureate dig into the power of words. The Finest brings you the artists, advocates and disruptors at the forefront of San Diego's cultural revolution. Premiering Thursday, April 3.
The Finest- Trailer
March 18, 2025 at 11:13 AM PDT
S1: San Diego is known as America's Finest City.
S2: I love saying that. I love that that's our name because it's kind of true.
S3: I think San Diego doesn't always get seen as this cultural city , which to me is a huge misconception.
S1: From KPBS Public Media , this is the finest. A podcast about the people , art and movements redefining culture in San Diego. I'm your host , Julia Dickson Evans. I've lived in San Diego since I was a kid , and I love it here. I've worked as an artist , a fiction writer , and for the past decade as an arts journalist. And if there's one thing I've learned , it's that what makes San Diego the finest isn't just the food shows or art. It's the people and stories behind it all. We're going way beyond the headlines , way beyond a list of upcoming events to explore the changemakers.
S4: I decided like I was going to make Mira mesa a part of literature.
S1: The musicians striving to build a local scene in the increasingly brutal music industry.
S2: There are points at which I had no gas , no food , and I was like , well , I'm stuck here , so I'm going to have to take my instrument and go to a corner and just start playing.
S1: The journalist fighting to keep San Diego's last standing alt weekly alive.
S5: I took a bigger pay cut than I'd like to talk about on camera. Uh , to try to keep this going. It's very much what I love and what I will do if I possibly can.
S1: And a team maker taking Macha to another level.
S6: We're actually one of the only few shops in the states that are matcha fresh.
S1: And along the way , we'll uncover some fascinating stuff you might not know , like how much Spotify pays out for 5 million streams.
S7: That's it. Oh my God , that's low. Yeah , that's pretty good. That's. Hello.
S8: Honestly , doing that math in front of you just makes me so angry.
S1: Or that San Diego has an official poet laureate government artist. Yeah.
S4: Yeah.
S6: I don't know how I feel about that , but.
S1: We're taking you behind the scenes of art and culture in San Diego , introducing you to the people making it happen. Subscribe now to the finest wherever you get your podcasts. New episodes drop Thursdays starting April 3rd.
