Free Garden Concerts and Summer Night Markets Headline Today

Los Angeles, CA · August 1, 2026

An early heat wave is rolling through today, but a robust slate of evening outdoor gatherings and free museum sessions offers plenty of reasons to head out as the air cools.

The Lead

Summer culture takes over public spaces across the basin today as evening markets, outdoor cinema, and free museum concerts line up for August's arrival. In Chinatown, Steep LA returns to Mandarin Plaza with its Summer Night Market featuring tea cocktails and local artisan vendors. Across town at Exposition Park, the California African American Museum partners with KCRW for a late-night celebration offering after-hours gallery access alongside live DJ sets and local food trucks. Meanwhile, family concert series resume in the Central Garden at the Getty Center. With hot afternoon temperatures keeping many indoors early, these community gatherings shift the city's energy outdoors after sundown, turning public plazas and museum lawns into focal points for neighborhood life throughout the weekend.

Local Pulse

  • Statewide Rent Hike Caps Adjust Today Annual allowable rent increases under state law shift to 8.7 percent for older, non-rent-controlled apartments.

  • Coastal High Surf Prompts Lifeguard Warnings Strong ocean swells from southern storms are producing dangerous rip currents along area beaches through Sunday evening.

  • I-105 Lane Closures Set for ExpressLanes Crews will temporarily shut down select freeway lanes this weekend to install overhead sign structures.

Today's Outlook

  • High 96°F · Low 66°F — Overcast Keep water nearby and plan outdoor activities for early morning or after sunset.

What's On Around Town

  • Getty Garden Concerts for Kids Getty Center, 4:00 PM Free outdoor family music featuring Dan and Claudia Zanes.

  • Latin Sounds Concert Series LACMA Hancock Park, 5:00–7:00 PM Free outdoor salsa and cumbia performance by master percussionist Fausto Cuevas.

  • Street Food Cinema: Cars The Autry Museum, 6:00 PM Twentieth anniversary outdoor screening with food trucks and pre-show games.

  • KCRW Summer Nights California African American Museum, 7:00–11:00 PM Free late-night gallery access, live DJ sets, and an outdoor beer garden.

  • 10th Anniversary La La Land in Concert The Greek Theatre, 8:00 PM Full live orchestra performing the Oscar-winning score under the stars.

Spotlight & Story

  • Watts Towers
    • Constructed by Italian immigrant Simon Rodia over 33 years starting in 1921, these 17 interconnected steel spires incorporate salvaged green glass, sea shells, tiles, and pottery fragments. Today, the site hosts world-class annual jazz and drum festivals.

Los Angeles Daily Digest — compiled from local sources as of 6 AM. For breaking updates, follow your local newsrooms.

Sent with care by MailerDot — your city, every morning.

More Los Angeles editions → · Subscribe →