Filipinos find healing, joy at LA Historic Filipinotown festival

It was all about healing, Filipino pride, and coming together over the weekend at the Baryo HiFi community festival.

On Saturday, thousands convened on Beverly Boulevard in L.A.’s Historic Filipinotown for the street festival, now in its second year, to celebrate Filipino American culture and creativity. The family-friendly event included popular Filipino-owned businesses, vendors and restaurants across Southern California. The neighborhood’s Unidad Park hosted free cultural workshops, children’s programs and special guests.

There were live performances from Filipino artists, including Pops Fernandez, VST & Co., the Bootleg Orchestra, P-Lo, Kiana V, Guapdad 4000, Yeek, Noodles and SOSUPERSAM.

New to the festival this year was a multidisciplinary art exhibit, Nike’s “Working Overtime”, which explores Filipino artistry through the lens of basketball, a beloved sport in the Philippines.

Organizers said that coming together to celebrate Baryo HiFi was essential, especially after the tragedy at an April 26 Filipino heritage festival in Vancouver, where 11 were killed after a vehicle ramming attack. The global Filipino community has since rallied together to mourn, begin to process and heal.

“As Filipinos, we’re often the ones working behind the scenes— whether in entertainment, healthcare or hospitality. We’re the backbone of so many industries, but rarely in the spotlight,” said festival organizer Stephanie Ramos before the event. “With Baryo HiFi, we wanted to change that and create a platform where our community could be seen, celebrated, and centered on our own terms.”

Added organizer Miles Canares, “This isn’t a corporate event — it’s a grassroots movement built by and for the community. That’s what makes it powerful.”