From Chino Latino to the Middle East: Uptown Love, Global Rage & Two Friends Who Don't Always See Eye to Eye
It started with the return of a beloved Chino Latino restaurant in Washington Heights and ended with two friends in an intense debate about the Middle East, Trump, and the future of America. That's Uptown Voices. That's Black & Blanco.
In this wide-ranging episode, Led Black and Octavio Blanco cover everything happening uptown — from community arts opportunities and free childcare to the upcoming theatrical release of Mad Bills to Pay, the Sundance award-winning film set in the Bronx that Led has been championing since he first saw it at Lincoln Center last year.
Then the conversation turns to the state of the world. Trump's $400 billion defense budget proposal. The war with Iran. The cost of living. The "Great Impoverishment." And a genuinely intense debate between two friends who love each other — and don't always see eye to eye.
This is what honest, unscripted community media looks like. No sugarcoating. Just Uptown.
If this episode resonated with you, please like, subscribe, and share it with someone who needs to hear it. It costs you nothing and it means everything to us. Spread love — it's the Uptown way.
SHOW NOTES
🎙️ Uptown Voices Podcast Instagram: @uptownvoicespodcast YouTube: Search Uptown Voices Podcast or find us on the Uptown Collective page
🎙️ Uptown Voices Podcast Instagram: @uptownvoicespodcast YouTube: Search Uptown Voices Podcast or find us on the Uptown Collective page
🎬 Mad Bills to Pay Opening April 17th at Regal Concourse (Bronx) and Film Forum (Downtown) Follow: @madbillstopaymovie on Instagram
🎨 Northern Manhattan Arts Alliance (NoMAA)
Website: nomaanyc.org
Instagram: @nomaanyc
Website: nomaanyc.org
Instagram: @nomaanyc
- Hispanic Society Outdoor Installation — $10,000 honorarium, deadline extended. Now April 6, 11:59 pm.
- NoMAA Labs Clown Workshop with Edu Diaz — April 21st
- America the Beautiful? — Open call for exhibition submissions, deadline April 26th
- NoMAA Third Annual Benefit Night at the Palace — May 27th
- Uptown Arts Show — June (date TBA)
🏛️ WaHi Chamber of Commerce Policy Breakfast
May 7th, 9am–12pm at the Armory Track & Field Center.
Uptown Voices will be live streaming the event
Register on instagram: @wahichamber
Annual Membership: $100/year | 501c3 donations tax deductible
🏫 Free Childcare — NYC 2K Program
Free childcare for 2-year-olds launching in NYC including Washington Heights & the Bronx Info: NYC.gov/childcare Jingle Contest with Cardi B — submit at NYC.gov/jingle | Hashtag: #NYC2KJingleContest | Deadline: April 13th
🎓 West Harlem Development Corporation — Free Columbia University Space
Free in-kind space for CB9 nonprofits — first come first serve, opens first Monday of each month Website: WestHarlemDC.org
🌸 Fort Tryon Park — Heather Garden Shearing & Community Parade
April 11th, 10am–1pm at Margaret Corbin Circle
🏥 Free Mammogram Screenings
April 23rd, 9am–4:30pm at River Park Towers Community Center, Bronx Courtesy of Senator Robert Jackson & the American Italian Cancer Foundation 📞 212-544-0173 | Bring photo ID (insurance not required)
🎒 Kindergarten Applications
Offers now available — call 718-935-2009 for info
🎨 Sweet Plantains — Open Call for Original Poster Art
Film by Anthony Rojas Instagram: @theanthonyrojas
TIMESTAMPS
00:00 — Welcome back & Happy Easter/Passover
01:14 — La Dynastia Chino Latino is back — and why it matters
05:27 — The cultural legacy of Chino Latino restaurants uptown
06:30 — Mayor Mamdani, free childcare & the NYC 2K Cardi B jingle contest
08:37 — Washington Heights & the Bronx included in free 2K pilot program
09:06 — NoMAA / Hispanic Society outdoor installation
11:07 — Anthony Rojas & Sweet Plantains poster open call
12:05 — West Harlem DC free Columbia University space for CB9 nonprofits
13:34 — Fort Tryon Park Heather Garden Shearing & Broadway Beautification
15:44 — Mad Bills to Pay — April 17th theatrical release
19:27 — Octavio's take on Mad Bills to Pay
23:26 — America the Beautiful? NoMAA open call & what it means right now
25:30 — Subscribe to Uptown Voices on YouTube — almost at 500!
28:20 — WaHi Chamber of Commerce Policy Breakfast — May 7th
30:45 — Free mammogram screenings & kindergarten offers
33:12 — Uptown Voices newsletter revival & something new coming soon
34:00 — Follow these four accounts for uptown community news
34:55 — The conversation shifts: Trump, war & the state of the world
38:14 — "The Great Impoverishment is Real"
41:45 — Trump's $400 billion defense budget — who does it really serve?
44:19 — The Middle East, colonial history & the cat's out the bag
51:53 — Iran, Israel & where Led and Octavio diverge
1:20:08 — A heated moment — two friends, one real disagreement
1:22:57 — Spread love, it's the Uptown way
01:14 — La Dynastia Chino Latino is back — and why it matters
05:27 — The cultural legacy of Chino Latino restaurants uptown
06:30 — Mayor Mamdani, free childcare & the NYC 2K Cardi B jingle contest
08:37 — Washington Heights & the Bronx included in free 2K pilot program
09:06 — NoMAA / Hispanic Society outdoor installation
11:07 — Anthony Rojas & Sweet Plantains poster open call
12:05 — West Harlem DC free Columbia University space for CB9 nonprofits
13:34 — Fort Tryon Park Heather Garden Shearing & Broadway Beautification
15:44 — Mad Bills to Pay — April 17th theatrical release
19:27 — Octavio's take on Mad Bills to Pay
23:26 — America the Beautiful? NoMAA open call & what it means right now
25:30 — Subscribe to Uptown Voices on YouTube — almost at 500!
28:20 — WaHi Chamber of Commerce Policy Breakfast — May 7th
30:45 — Free mammogram screenings & kindergarten offers
33:12 — Uptown Voices newsletter revival & something new coming soon
34:00 — Follow these four accounts for uptown community news
34:55 — The conversation shifts: Trump, war & the state of the world
38:14 — "The Great Impoverishment is Real"
41:45 — Trump's $400 billion defense budget — who does it really serve?
44:19 — The Middle East, colonial history & the cat's out the bag
51:53 — Iran, Israel & where Led and Octavio diverge
1:20:08 — A heated moment — two friends, one real disagreement
1:22:57 — Spread love, it's the Uptown way
