Abbey Ley
Music Writer

Abbey has been living in New York since June 2007, currently residing in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. She grew up in Dallas, Texas and then went to school for design at the Art Institute of Pittsburgh before relocating to NYC for the amazing career opportunities. She now works as a graphic designer and illustrator, and loves creating crazy gig posters for bands, most recently local indie pop/experimental band Peephole. Her favorite thing about living in the city is being submerged in the music culture and having access to more live music than she can imagine! This passion is what drew her in to cover music for 212 City. When she's not working or rocking out at a show, she also loves: cruising around the city on her vintage bike, snapping lots of photos, hanging out with her adorable dog and cat, picking up fresh fruit at the farmer's market, and taking off on sporadic road trips!

Troy Runge
Movie Writer

Troy Runge is a 23-year-old college graduate of St. John's University in Queens, New York. He earned a degree in Communication Arts. An avid film viewer, Troy's hobbies include television, film, and screenwriting. When Troy is not writing for 212 City, he can be seen hanging around New York City with his friends, watching television shows such as Scrubs and The Office or enjoying a movie during a quiet night at home. Some of his favorite films include The Karate Kid, Gattaca and Full Metal Jacket. He currently resides in Queens with his family.

Craig Younkin
Movie Writer

Craig has been intoxicated with film from early childhood. From Walt Disney to David Lynch, he considers himself someone willing to try anything and judge everything as fairly as possible. In his world, an action movie or low brow comedy can be one of the best movies of the year if done well and a widely praised Oscar candidate can have flaws. You can have all the pre-judgements about a film you want but once the lights go down, all that matters is what's on the screen and how it's making you feel. There are a lot of movies out there. His job isn't to tell you what to think. It's to be your tour guide and hopefully make the decision a little easier. He's about two things: being as in-depth and clear as possible and being totally honest.

He started reviewing in High School and continued on through college and into a position at his community paper. During that time he also contributed on the set of student films, helped put together tv shows for his High School channel, and did play-by-play for High School hockey, all while trying his best to create the kind of entertaining product that he would expect from anyone else. He received a Production Award of Excellence and a Sportscasting Award of Excellence at the end of his senior year. He also puts that same effort into writing full length screenplays, of which he has written two...but only one good. Craig has also participated in a few theatrical acting classes as well, which really helped him understand the craft better and was one of the few classes he actually got an A in.

Craig is a journalism graduate from Iona College in New Rochelle, NY. He hopes to continue to be as involved with film as he can be, all while whiling away the days in law offices, Recreation departments, and the like in order to pay the bills. In addition to film, Craig loves sports (football is a favorite), cooking, reading, writing, exercising, hanging out with friends, and finding the perfect beer for the perfect evening. He has also helped out many organizations including the United States Tennis Assocication. He looks forward and is very excited about this new journey with 212city and hopes that he can be as informative and helpful as possible. So as Terrell Owens says, "Get your popcorn ready" cause its gonna be a fun ride.

Katrina Grant
Style Writer

My name is Katrina Grant. I am 25 years old and live in New Jersey. I am currently pursuing a masters degree at Rowan University in Writing Arts with a concentration in Journalism. I am interested in anything that has to with fashion, movies, TV, celebrities and music. I hope to one day have a career in entertainment broadcasting in New York City.

Ray Wilcox
Music Writer

Lisa Ray
Music Writer

Lisa Ray finds musical treasures in everything from the Vienna Boys Choir to the compositions of John Zorn. Growing up in Texas, she memorized rap songs on the way to Christian school every morning. She lives in Brooklyn, teaches high school English in the Bronx, and parties wherever the music’s good.

Ximena Lopez
Dating Columnist

Ximena Lopez is a 28 year old Manhattanite, with a degree from Rutgers University in Journalism and Media Studies. Originally from Northern New Jersey, she moved to New York City to continue her career as a television producer. She has worked on series or specials with channels such as Vh1, ABC, My 9 network and currently Centric. Her inspiration for Kiss and Tell comes from conversations with friends, the train ride to and from work everyday and her life experiences. Her favorite thing about New York is the diversity of the people, and endless amount of things to do. With a passion for creative writing and pop culture, Ximena is very happy to be on the 212city team, and looks forward to exploring more writing opportunities in the future.

Paul Hansen
City Life Writer

Paul Hansen is a classical pianist who has won a number of piano competitions.  In addition,he has a Master's of Music degree in composition.  He has been the recipient of several Meet the Composer grant awards and has accompanied singers at such venues as Don't Tell Mama in Manhattan's theater district.  He has also produced, acted in, and written the music for a number of off-Broadway productions.   He was the executive producer of a Shakespeare theater company in New York for a number of years and is currently active as a stage director. He studied film production at USC and UCLA.

Karen Berliner
City Life Writer

Karen Holly Berliner is a seasoned freelance journalist with a true love and flare for luxury food, wine and travel writing.

Her passion for journalism coupled with her appreciation and driving interest in food and luxury travel, coupled with an insatiable wanderlust to boot, inspires her to explore this big world and bring back her finds to the local reader.

Her work has been featured prior in Singular Magazine out of Los Angeles, Westchester Magazine, Ocean Style, Island Life, NYC UES Informer, The Queens Chronicle, The NY Journal News, Dish du Jour Magazine and Times Square, among other publications. She is also a cast member of a radio show in expanding her broadcasting forums. She offers expertise in niche travel markets such as getaways, luxury resorts, cultural itineraries, spa finds and culinary & wine treasures.

From local spa escapes to 5 Star Caribbean Resorts and Hotels, native New Yorker Karen Berliner will happily share her luxury travel experiences with you. "Let me describe your paradise" she urges her readers, old and new.