Burned out on Los Angeles’ clout-chasing culture, content creator Amira Soofi was dying to move somewhere new — somewhere that felt more authentic to her.
Rather than ask her friends for advice, or prompt ChatGPT for lists of the best places to live in the U.S., the 30-year-old Left Coaster opted for more drastic measures — consulting her astrocartography chart.
Astrocartography, or locational astrology, was pioneered in the 1970s by astrologer Jim Lewis — it’s a quirky concept that’s making a comeback as young creatives reconnect with the idea that their birth charts can reveal the cities where they’ll thrive, struggle or fall in love.
Soofi’s quick scan showed her Venus line — linked to love, beauty, creativity and magnetism — running straight through New York City.
“I thought, alright, it’s time to be brave and start over,” she told The Post.
By October 2024, just a few months after her reading, Soofi did just that — packing up her things and making the bicoastal move, landing in upscale NoHo.
Within weeks of arriving in Gotham, the former Angeleno felt the shift “immediately,” saying that she “found community here in a way I never had before.”
By taking this bold leap, the avid TikTokker said she also managed to expand her visibility on the crowded social media platform — a difficult feat in today’s everyone’s-an-influencer era.
For a new wave of arrivals like Soofi, New York isn’t just a grind — it’s a city their charts say they’re meant to conquer.
These maps show planetary “power lines” across the globe, suggesting certain places will amplify different aspects of your life — career, romance, identity or upheaval — depending on which planets pass through.
Thanks to viral social media videos, astrology apps and a growing fixation on “vibes” and “alignment” among Gen Zers, the once-niche practice has surged back into the spotlight.
Popular Big Apple astrologer Lisa Stardust knows the pull firsthand.
A long-time New Yorker, Stardust said astrocartography provided clarity on why she struggled during college in Washington, D.C. — and why she ultimately returned home to The City That Never Sleeps.
“I went to college in Washington D.C., where Pluto was on my ascendant line,” she told The Post, describing the period as tumultuous and draining.
Pluto, often associated with upheaval and transformation, ran straight through the city. New York, on the other hand, sat on her Venus line.
“Venus is in my 10th house here, which means it’s really good for my career and public image,” Stardust said. “I’ve been part of the NYC astrology community for over 15 years and built a fulfilling life here.”
While some New Yorkers move based on what their astrocartography maps told them — others stayed because of it.
Gary D’Andre, 36, nearly packed up his life in Bed-Stuy last summer for Georgia, tempted by the idea of being closer to family.
But despite the pull south, something about New Amsterdam refused to loosen its grip — and he wanted to know why.
After booking a professional astrocartography reading with a psychic, he learned that both his Venus and Midheaven lines run directly through New York City — and, even more strikingly, through his own Bed-Stuy neighborhood.
To D’Andre, the alignment felt like too big a coincidence to ignore, convincing him that staying in New York wasn’t just a choice, but something predestined and fated.
Soon after deciding to stay, he landed his first full-time job and saw his business grow.
“Being in New York means I’m connected to my highest and best self,” he told The Post.
Still, not everyone is sold on letting the stars call the shots.
“Astrology is as much contextual as it is causal,” said Rachel Ruth Tate, a certified Hellenistic astrologer. “Your natal promise is your natal promise. The way you live it out? That’s free will.”
Tate warned that astrocartography is often misunderstood — even by professionals — calling it “a very complex modern adaptation of an ancient system.”
“Most people don’t have the background to use it effectively,” she said, though she noted that people with strong planetary ties to New York are often drawn there, whether they realize it or not.
Harlem-based psychoanalyst Rev. Sheila Poynter Johnson calls herself an “affectionate skeptic,” as she’s on the fence about these map readings.
“I don’t believe planets are pulling levers in my life,” she said. “But humans are desperate for meaning, and astrology gives us a poetic shortcut.”
As for those who swear New York is written in their stars?
“I believe you,” Johnson said. “Something worked. Just don’t give all the credit to the chart — it helped you say yes.”
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