On the East side of MacArthur Park in a smoke shop along Alvarado Street, Brandon Romero is picking himself back up.

Five years ago, Brandon Romero’s aunt had enough. Brandon had been drinking. His mother passed away when he was 19, and Romero said he found an escape in drugs and alcohol. His aunt didn’t want him there anymore. So Romero left.

Romero didn’t finish high school. He was working various security jobs at the convention center, a Rite Aid parking lot, and the Dolby Theatre. He would sleep out of his Acura, crash at a friend’s place every few days to shower, and live off of Taco Bell and Jack in the Box one dollar tacos.

When he found a job as an Amazon delivery driver, after finishing a route, he would drive the Amazon van into the corner of the company lot, where no one checked, and sleep there. Then he’d wake up, work, and do the same thing again.

Last year, Romero found himself at a party with his saxophone, and decided to start jamming. A guitar player joined him, and Romero said it was an instant connection.

“Ever since, I kept in touch with him online,” he said. “[We knew that] one day, we're going to make some music together.”

Six months later, Cam Garetts, the guitar player, was forming a band, and they needed a saxophone player. So he called Romero.

“I’m glad I did,” Garetts said. “Brandon’s one of the most talented musicians I’ve ever worked with.”

Romero, now 27, said they decided to call the band H$tLR, because they felt like each of them were go-getters trying to make a living out of what they had. The band recently released two singles, and performed at The Redwood Bar in downtown last week.

When Romero lost his job, H$tLR’s bass player offered him a job at the smoke shop he owned. Romero took it. Eventually, he could afford his own apartment in Koreatown.

Still, the job is not easy. MacArthur Park, and the area surrounding it, is infamous for being one of the poorest areas in the city with the highest crime rates. Fentanyl use is rampant. Drug dealers, Romero said, are everywhere.

As a smoke shop clerk, many of Romero’s customers are addicts. Many of them are high when making a purchase. Romero said he’s been desensitized to all of it.

“A lot of people die here [in MacArthur Park],” he said. “A lot of stealing and murdering. Most of them are on fenty. I remember I sold a knife to someone, and he almost immediately used it on someone else. It was his drug dealer, and he owed him 300 dollars, and I guess he couldn’t deal with that. He killed him.”

Romero said he’s grateful to be in a better position.

“It's a trip talking to these people,” he said. “It makes me think I could easily become one of them. You know, I was homeless. I could have easily gotten into all that.”

Still, Romero said he tries to find humor in it.

“If I don’t, I’d just be feeling sorry for these people,” he said. “It's tough. It's hard to feel empathy for people that, you try to tell them, there's better things to do.You try to put some sense into them and they're always like, ‘nah, I'm trying to get the best. I’m trying to get high with the best things.’ And it's hard to talk to these people because you want to help them and they're just so far gone.”

Romero said he’s used to it. He said he’s seen a lot. Right now, he’s working, playing sax, and making shirts, trying to expand the business. He’s learning about drone videography. And he has an apartment.

“It's going well, man,” he said. “It's going well. Looking up. Everything's been falling into place.”