{"id":244904,"date":"2026-03-31T11:12:24","date_gmt":"2026-03-31T11:12:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/244904\/"},"modified":"2026-03-31T11:12:24","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T11:12:24","slug":"how-to-have-the-best-sunday-in-l-a-according-to-thundercat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/244904\/","title":{"rendered":"How to have the best Sunday in L.A, according to Thundercat"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"la-sf-Thundercat-drop-cap.png\" <\/p>\n

The bass genius Thundercat has, to his regret, been spending way too much time absorbing bad news on his phone.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are cellphones at this point, basically,\u201d he said. \u201cThat\u2019s what life feels like. It\u2019s a weird one we\u2019re living through right now, to say the least. You have to try to stay inspired, to keep moving forward. But like, you\u2019re processing absolute hell and war in the background, and you\u2019re still supposed to look cute.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Sunday <\/a> <\/p>\n

In Sunday Funday, L.A. people give us a play-by-play of their ideal Sunday around town. Find ideas and inspiration on where to go, what to eat and how to enjoy life on the weekends.<\/p>\n

That whipsaw feeling \u2014 processing grief and destruction, while doing your song-and-dance to survive, all via the same rectangle \u2014 is the backdrop of Thundercat\u2019s new album, \u201cDistracted,\u201d his fifth LP and first in six years. The album is a typically dense and playful showcase for his extravagant musicality, and packed with guests like ASAP Rocky, Tame Impala and Lil Yachty.<\/p>\n

But it\u2019s poignantly introspective on tracks like \u201cWhat Is Left to Say\u201d and \u201cI Wish I Didn\u2019t Waste Your Time.\u201d \u201cShe Knows Too Much\u201d has a touching cameo from his late friend and frequent collaborator Mac Miller.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter [Miller\u2019s] death, there were a lot of questions, a lot of stones left unturned,\u201d Thundercat said. \u201cBut this song came to be from the simplicity of making music between friends. It\u2019s a language, a snapshot. It was a beautiful moment between us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Thundercat, born Stephen Bruner, grew up in L.A. immersed in the city\u2019s progressive jazz scene, playing with everyone from Kendrick Lamar to Suicidal Tendencies. These are some of the places around Los Angeles that still keep his inner comics-nerd satiated and musical curiosity fed \u2014 no matter what bleak news is blowing up his phone.<\/p>\n

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9 a.m. Find some coffee that slaps<\/p>\n

If I notice that I\u2019m doomscrolling, if stuff is getting a little bit too dark and weird and twisted, I\u2019ll put my phone down and go drink some coffee and get way too much energy. I\u2019ll go to the good old boys at Commissary<\/a>. That\u2019s good coffee.<\/p>\n

My day doesn\u2019t always consist of me picking my instrument up, but it\u2019s more like as it feels right. If I\u2019m not intentionally writing or working on somebody\u2019s music, a lot of the time it\u2019s just me. The time between is just as important as the time spent with music, so it\u2019s learning to be OK without my bass in my hands for a second.<\/p>\n

But there\u2019s still so much to learn about harmony and melody from that instrument, you know? Nothing makes up for spending time with an instrument and learning it in a different manner. That\u2019s how Larry Graham came up with slap bass. It has no bounds for what you want to create. It\u2019s just about how far your mind can go with it.<\/p>\n

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Noon. Pick up a comic book<\/p>\n

I find myself to be very much like a Lebowski-like character. The things that I enjoy bring me peace, like fashion and comics. The family at Golden Apple <\/a>on Melrose have been my family since I was a child. The family there has always looked out for me and been avid supporters of my career. They remember my dad bringing me in \u2014 I remember the day that Image Comics premiered at Golden Apple. It\u2019s nothing but love and artistry and great people to meet in Golden Apple \u2014 they\u2019ve been one of the through lines in my life that has just been consistent. L.A.\u2019s landscape keeps changing, but Golden Apple has been a beacon of nerdisms.<\/p>\n

\"\" <\/p>\n

5 p.m. Fun at the movies<\/p>\n

I have always been a fan of Universal CityWalk\u2019s AMC theaters, even though they charge ridiculous prices. Everybody\u2019s trying to keep their industry alive in this moment; it\u2019s of one of those grit-and-bear kind of things. But at the same time, the experience that you have there is absolutely golden. <\/p>\n

I love seeing movies there, because there\u2019s so much to do around there. There\u2019s a comic store, Halloween Horror Nights, Nintendo Land. There\u2019s a Hot Topic, because I am a goth hoochie daddy. I\u2019ve been going my whole life. I just enjoy going to the movies there by myself or with friends. Sometimes they get bored, because I will keep choosing to do this, but I don\u2019t care, because it is a movie theater that I love. It\u2019s always a joy to have AMC at Universal City Walk.<\/p>\n

8 p.m. Sushi that\u2019s a cut above<\/p>\n

One of my favorite restaurants in L.A. is a restaurant by the name of Asanebo<\/a>. It\u2019s a sushi restaurant that is of very high prestige. The chefs there are very loving and caring. They make the most amazing food on the planet. It\u2019s a beautiful environment \u2014 one of the best sushi restaurants, I would say, in the world. But it\u2019s about the history for me, and the family that is built there, from the waitresses to the hosts. They treat you like royalty there. <\/p>\n

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10 p.m. Fun with friends and all that L.A. jazz<\/p>\n

Most of the time, I don\u2019t know what the hell is going on. A lot of the time, I would rather just sit on the couch and watch \u201cStar Trek.\u201d I\u2019m not always wanting to immediately get up and just go sacrifice myself to the nightlife.<\/p>\n

I really enjoyed growing up playing gigs all over L.A., but a lot of those places don\u2019t even exist anymore. We could play outside the Hollywood Bowl. We\u2019d play at a dive bar or play at a wedding, but my childhood friendships were linked to to the functionality of music in my life. If we were playing at a musty bar or some weird coffee house, it was like, \u201cI get to play with Kamasi [Washington]<\/a>, and they\u2019re going to pay us in sandwiches.\u201d<\/p>\n

I enjoyed The World Stage in Leimert Park. Low End Theory at the Airliner \u2014 I\u2019d be hanging out with Flying Lotus or Tyler would drop an album and come up to perform. It was about my friends and hanging with the people that I love.<\/p>\n

I think as time progresses, I enjoy spending time with my friends \u2014 whatever that entails. If it\u2019s going out to a club and all that, seeing a friend perform, my friend Anderson has a beautiful club called Andy\u2019s<\/a>. There\u2019s a restaurant called Verse<\/a>, that\u2019s owned by my friend Manny, that serves absolutely amazing food and has live music. It\u2019s just fantastic. They just erected a Blue Note<\/a> here in Los Angeles, which is awesome.<\/p>\n

Where would you go to listen to a song by me and Channel Tres where you can dance on somebody\u2019s butt? I\u2019m still gonna say Andy\u2019s, but I can finish off the night at Living Room<\/a>. That\u2019s a good place to listen and enjoy the nightlife, just a great club.<\/p>\n