Cover Stories
Metro Times readers once again share their online dating duds (and one success story)
It’s almost Valentine’s Day, which means it’s time for our annual Lust Issue — where Metro Times turns to you, dear readers, to regale us with your sexual escapades. As we did last year, we asked you to share your experiences with online dating. Like last year, we were once again looking for tales of…
How new laws targeting human trafficking are chilling online expression — and endangering sex workers
In 2012, following a divorce, a series of unfulfilling jobs, and a need to pay her mortgage, Addy Finch found out some men were interested in paying for her time simply because as a transgender woman, she offers something a majority of other women do not. “A lot of my clientele are straight dudes who…
American Pickers’ Danielle Colby on her alter ego, burlesque powerhouse Dannie Diesel
Danielle Colby has picked many things. The 43-year-old mother, “herstory” advocate, and self-proclaimed “Queen of Rust” has most famously served as the voice of reason on History Channel’s American Pickers for nearly a decade. Working alongside collectors Mike Wolfe and Frank Fritz onscreen, Colby manages Wolfe’s storefront Antique Archaeology in Le Claire, Iowa — just…
‘A Bowie Celebration’ celebrates with David Bowie alumni at Royal Oak Music Theatre
There’s a “Starman” waiting in the sky — his name is David Bowie. Since his death in 2016, a lot has ch-ch-changed. Keeping with tradition, “A Bowie Celebration” will return to the Royal Oak Music Theatre starring alumni players from Bowie’s many recording and touring bands. Led by Mike Garson, Bowie’s longest-standing member, the lineup…
Los Angeles dance team Diavolo put ‘Architecture in Motion’ at Detroit’s Music Hall
A great piece of inspirational wall art from TJ Maxx once said “dance like no one is watching” — this does not apply, however, to the team of dancers of Diavolo. “Architecture in Motion” is the latest from the Los Angeles-based dance studio led by director Jacques Heim. Diavolo has been flipping, leaping, and channeling…
Detroit’s Erotic Poetry and Music Festival makes its steamy return to Tangent Gallery
Valentine’s Day is so passé. Entering its 32nd year, the Erotic Poetry and Music Festival remains “Detroit’s oldest community arts celebration” of all things that make you squirm and squeal. Taking it off on the burlesque stage, Magenta DeMure, Sophia Von Stardust, Kitty & Eris, and Ravenna Munster. Poets Lady of Pain, Dena Luckett, and…
Detroit Institute of Art honors music of J Dilla with free annual concert
February is bittersweet for J Dilla fans. Born on Feb. 7 in 1974, the legendary Detroit hip-hop innovator spent his brief 32 years creating one of the most influential bodies of work through his many solo projects and as a founding member of Slum Village. Dilla, who died from cardiac arrest on Feb. 10, 2006,…
Umphrey’s McGee will jam with back-to-back performances at the Fillmore
Midwestern progressive jam band Umphrey’s McGee will be making its return to Detroit as part of a special two-night run. Known for its eclectic and improvisational two-set shows, Umphrey’s McGee has developed a devout fanbase after performing thousands of sets throughout the band’s two-decade career. Expect on-the-fly mash-up covers of popular songs, funky solos, and…
MOCAD to screen documentary about Kusama, the artist behind ‘Infinity Rooms’
Some might be surprised to learn that the most successful living female artist has been a voluntary resident of a mental hospital in Shinjuku, Tokyo since 1977. The incredible story of Yayoi Kusama, now 89-years-old, is as colorful, resilient, and subversive as the art she has created over her 70-year-long career. As a painter, sculpture,…
Detroit’s Pages Bookshop will host ‘Interior States’ author Meghan O’Gieblyn
Writer Meghan O’Gieblyn is quick to be labeled a skeptic by anyone who has read her latest collection of essays, Interior States — and with good reason. O’Gieblyn intricately applies her experiences of having been raised in Midwestern evangelical family to the “existential dizziness” she sought out as an adult to better understand herself and…
FBI’s widening corruption investigation leads to Taylor City Hall raid
The FBI raided Taylor City Hall, the home of Mayor Rick Sollars and several other locations Tuesday as part of an ongoing and wide-sweeping corruption investigation in Detroit and its suburbs. FBI agents and members of the Detroit Area Public Corruption Task Force swooped into city hall around 10:30 a.m. and also raided the mayor’s…
Bob Seger adds third metro Detroit date as part of farewell tour
After gifting metro Detroiters with the ultimate Valentine’s Day gift last week, Bob Seger has added a third date to his previously announced pair of shows in June. In an announcement Tuesday afternoon, Bob Seger and his longstanding Silver Bullet Band will perform on Wednesday, June 12 making it the “Katmandu” rocker’s 30th appearance at…
Detroit City Council denies Autorama ‘Smokey and the Bandit’ stunt jump request due to Confederate flag
Autorama is off to a false start after the Detroit City Council denied the car show’s request to do a stunt jump outside of Cobo Hall. A Smokey and the Bandit-themed stunt jump was originally planned to feature a replica of the “Bandit” Pontiac Trans Am featured in the 1977 movie starring the late Burt Reynolds. But…
Chef Matt Prentice returns with Leon & Lulu small plates restaurant collaboration
A new small plates restaurant-retail hybrid that’s a collaboration between Detroit chef Matt Prentice and Leon & Lulu c0-owner Mary Liz Curtin is in the works in downtown Clawson. The focus at Three Cats and a Cook will be affordable new American cuisine, The Detroit News reports. The cafe will focus on Michigan ingredients, and…
Kelly Clarkson might cover ‘Shallow’ at Little Caesars Arena and we’re deep in it
Seventeen years after rising to fame as America’s first ever American Idol and 14 years after Steve Carell famously blurted her name during his painful on-screen chest waxing in The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Kelly Clarkson is now contemplating the Meaning Of Life. The Grammy Award–winner, children’s author, and happy-go-lucky coach on NBC’s The Voice still charms…
Michigan is no longer the cheapest place to buy beer, study finds
Michigan has been dethroned as the cheapest state to buy a 24-rack of beer. The unsettling news comes in a follow-up to a 2017 study by Simply.Thrifty.Living analyzing the cost of beer in each state. The original 2017 study analyzed the cost of popular brands Bud Light and Miller Light from national retailers sold in…
Former Michigan GOP Senate candidate John James in the running for U.N. ambassador
After being defeated by Democratic incumbent Debbie Stabenow for a seat in the U.S. Senate in November, army veteran John James is reportedly in the running for U.N. ambassador. President Trump is considering the Sterling Heights businessman after State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert announced last week that she was no longer considering the position. The…
Bacco, Tribute chefs team up for Birmingham fine dining restaurant
A new restaurant helmed by two of the biggest names in Detroit’s restaurant industry is coming together in Birmingham. The restaurant, called Pernoi, is a product of Luciano DelSignore and Takashi Yagihashi, and is taking shape in the former Café Via space on Maple, the Free Press reports. When it opens sometime this spring, expect…
Michigan AG joins suit against Trump, calls national emergency a ‘publicity stunt’
Michigan attorney general Dana Nessel joined a federal lawsuit with 15 other states in opposition to President Donald Trump’s “national emergency” declaration to get funds to pay for a Mexican border wall. “This fake emergency is a publicity stunt that will raid our federal funding and cost us millions,” Nessel said in a statement. “We…
‘Oh my!’ George Takei announced as special guest at Motor City Comic Con
Motor City Comic Con announced today that George Takei will be a guest of honor at their annual convention this spring. Takei, the Star Trek star and social media influencer, is the convention’s most revered guest announced to date. Having spent his childhood in Japanese internment camps in the United States, Takei rose beyond his…
U-M Wendy’s restaurant decides not to renew contract following protests
A Wendy’s restaurant located on the University of Michigan Ann Arbor campus has decided not to renew its contract when the Michigan Union reopens in 2020. The decision follows protests over Wendy’s refusal to join the Coalition of Immokalee Workers’ (CIW) Fair Food Program, which partners retail food companies with farmers and farm workers to…
Actually, there was stuff going on in Detroit’s Capitol Park before Bedrock moved in
If you read the Free Press on Sunday, you might walk away with the impression that there was literally nothing going on in Detroit’s now-hot Capitol Park neighborhood before 2009. In a story titled “How Detroit’s Capitol Park went from desolation to a hot destination,” John Gallagher chronicles how the neighborhood was transformed into “one of downtown’s…
Hamtramck’s ‘Nicolas UnCaged’ fest will set a man on fire — and you can watch for free
Some people want to sit back and watch the world burn. Others, like the impassioned folks behind the annual Nicolas UnCaged festival, want to watch a man burn. (Full disclosure, I am one of those people.) The organizers of this year’s Nicolas UnCaged fest have elected acclaimed pyrotechnic specialist and stunt man to Cage himself,…
Twitter user shares photo of blooming Paczki trees in preparation of Fat Tuesday
Do you smell that? A westward wind carries the scent of fried dough and fruity filling. You can almost feel the powdered sugar on your fingertips. The call of a Polish eagle rings through the streets of Hamtramck and your stomach replies with a growl. It is almost time for Paczki Day, or Fat Tuesday…
Commuters crossing the Ambassador Bridge will pay less starting today
Commuters crossing the Ambassador Bridge today will find that the toll will cost them much less than it did yesterday. Starting Tuesday, Feb. 18, the Ambassador Bridge is rolling out its new commuter fee of $2.60 (U.S.) – a two dollar decrease from the previous fee of $4.60. The fee will apply to commuters crossing…
Protests planned in Michigan in response to Trump’s ‘fake’ national emergency
Five protests are planned across Michigan on Monday in response to President Trump’s “fake” national emergency declaration. The protests are among more than 250 to take place nationwide to oppose Trump’s controversial decision to declare a national emergency for border wall funding. Four of the five protests are scheduled for noon in Ferndale, Ypsilanti, Ann…
Ironic protest with Confederate flag causes confusion in Lincoln Park
A man holding a large Confederate flag and a sign that reads, “Black Lives Don’t Matter,” outside a Lincoln Park courthouse Friday was subjected to threats and counter-protests. But it turns out, 54-year-old Brad Peterson, whose face and hands were covered, is not another racist white man spewing hate. He’s black and Indian, and he…
Tlaib renews call for impeachment following Trump’s national emergency declaration
Detroit Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib doubled down on her call to “impeach the motherfucker” following President Donald Trump’s declaration of a national emergency. Trump declared the emergency on Friday as a way to bypass Congress to fund his long-promised Mexican border wall, a move that Democrats and even some Republicans have criticized as an overreach of…
Treasurer Sabree manipulated the local media to weaken foreclosure investigation
On Tuesday, dueling stories in the Detroit Free Press and The Detroit News revealed that Wayne County Treasurer Eric Sabree’s family purchased tax-foreclosed real estate off the county’s tax foreclosure auction. His family did so in violation of treasurer’s office rules, which prohibit family members from purchasing tax-foreclosed property. The county treasurer’s office seizes properties…
Shirtless WWE wrestler arrested in Detroit during traffic stop
Wrestler Jimmy Uso (real name Jonathan Solofa Fatu) allegedly attempted to go toe-to-toe with Detroit police on Thursday, before being arrested for disorderly conduct. The WWE superstar and SmackDown champion was arrested Thursday night following a traffic stop during which the 33-year-old wrestler allegedly removed his shirt and jacket and positioned himself in a fighting stance…
‘Totally disturbing’ discovery made at former mortician’s home in Detroit
Detroit police made some unsettling discoveries this week at the former home of a mortician on the city’s west side. In an alley outside of the home on Rosemont Avenue was a dirty, aging casket with the name of a woman, Dorothy Feagin, who had died nearly 20 years ago. When police opened the coffin…
Korean pub and sushi restaurants are planned for Southwest Detroit
A new Korean pub concept by prolific Detroit restaurateur Dave Kwiatkowski’s Detroit Optimist Society is in the works on Michigan Avenue in Southwest Detroit. A Korean sul jip – similar to a Japanese izakaya – is planned for the ground floor of a two-story building at 4639 Michigan Ave. just west of Interstate 96. Crain’s…
Metro Detroit health officials clamp down on CBD additives at restaurants
Just days after ChickP began advertising optional $5 CBD additives to its smoothies, health officials have put a hard stop to restaurants serving CBD-infused food and beverages. In recent years, CBD (short for cannabidiol) has been widely used for its therapeutic, non-psychoactive effects. Cannabidiol is a compound commonly found in cannabis, but it can also…
Developers propose transforming Detroit Art Deco landmark into apartments
The towering, long-vacant Lee Plaza on Detroit’s west side could soon become home to 180 apartments with retail space. The city announced plans Thursday to sell the 15-story, Art Deco landmark on West Grand Boulevard to two developers, Roxbury Group and Ethos Development Partners, who have proposed renovating the building at a cost of up…
Michigan’s low immunization rates threaten measles outbreak
The recent measles outbreak in Clark County, Washington – which borders Portland, Oregon – has reached 50 cases as of last week and health officials fear it will worsen. Most of the cases involve unvaccinated children between ages 1 and 10. Health officials say that communities need to have around 95 percent of the population…
Michigan GOP shoots down order to strengthen environmental oversight
The state of Michigan may still be cleaning up after the Flint water crisis, figuring out how to address the growing PFAS crisis, and dealing with toxic fumes choking Southwest Detroit, but the Michigan GOP appears to think less industry oversight is the answer. The Republican-controlled Legislature shot down an executive order by Gov. Gretchen…
Detroit rapper releases new video about Michigan winters – and we can all relate
In metro Detroit, we had a mild December, a cold-ass January, and now we’re dealing with the soul-crippling bullshit that is February snow. Detroit’s G’Mac Cash, the self-proclaimed “King of Parody Rap,” can definitely relate. In a new one-minute viral video entitled “Tired of the Snow,” G’Mac Cash spits bars over a trap beat in a way…
Duggan’s team denies lax oversight of Detroit demos
Mayor Duggan’s administration fired back at claims that the demolition program was lax in ensuring clean dirt was used to fill holes from demo sites. The city’s response Wednesday comes one day after Detroit Councilwoman Mary Sheffield called for a congressional hearing to determine whether the city neglected to ensure demo companies were not using…
Bob Seger finally adds metro Detroit dates to farewell tour
The wait is over — Bob Seger is bringing it back home two more times. It was announced Thursday morning that Seger and his longstanding Silver Bullet Band will perform at DTE Energy Music Theatre on Thursday, June 6 and Saturday, June 8 — making it Seger’s 28th and 29th appearance at the venue. Last…
Detroit City FC will face off against MSU men’s soccer team on 420
When Detroit City FC faces off with MSU’s soccer team on the international day of marijuana, the normally raucous supporter section might find itself somewhat languid. DCFC will host the Michigan State men’s soccer team in a preseason friendly on April 20. The game will start at 5 p.m., at the site of the Detroit…
Ex-Gov Snyder pardoned ‘career drunk driver’ who wanted lucrative promotion
This is what privilege looks like. Just before Christmas, Gov. Rick Snyder pardoned a 54-year-old Royal Oak man with a felony drunken-driving conviction because he wanted a lucrative promotion at the Michigan Association of Certified Public Accountants, the Associated Press reports. Jim Jagger, who had four drunken-driving convictions, applied for a pardon in late October,…
Councilwoman calls for federal probe of Detroit demolition program
Detroit Councilwoman Mary Sheffield is calling for a U.S. congressional hearing over the city’s federally funded demolition program. Sheffield submitted a request for a hearing Tuesday, a day after the Free Press reported that federal authorities had widened their probe over potential environmental hazards from contaminated dirt. “There is a stark difference between neglect and…
Officials delay alcohol ban on Michigan rivers because everyone’s pissed off
Mother nature is great and all, but it’s best experienced with an icy cooler of cold brews. That’s the message angry Michiganders sent to authorities after the U.S. Forest Service announced a ban on alcohol on the Au Sable, Manistee, and Pine rivers that was supposed to go into effect in May. The order prohibited…
Cher made us believe in more than just life after love at Little Caesars Arena
Sixteen songs, nine costume and wig changes, four video montages, three ABBA covers, and one duet with a late ex-husband via video screen, and what you have is but the tip of the iceberg in terms of Cher’s latest farewell spectacle. The iconic performer and actress took to the Little Caesars Arena stage Tuesday night,…
Great Lakes Brewing News’ sexist ‘parody’ starts brouhaha
Rape jokes aren’t funny. They’re not funny at the bar. They’re especially not funny when printed in an industry-wide trade magazine, and they’re not funny when you slap on an “Oops, I forgot to mention, this is just a parody” non-apology the next day. Bill Metzger, the co-publisher of bimonthly magazine Great Lakes Brewing News, found…
Detroit artist Senghor Reid makes waves with new series
For his latest series of paintings, Detroit artist Senghor Reid started with small studies, building a system of gestural movements that began to simulate something that surrounds us here in the Great Lakes State but perhaps can easily become taken for granted — water. “I started painting water and I asked myself, ‘What does this…
Review: Stay for the drinks at Ferndale’s izakaya, Antihero
There’s a lot going on at Antihero, metro Detroit’s latest Japanese izakaya. Nestled on Nine Mile in downtown Ferndale, it’s hip and swanky, with an almost Manhattan or downtown Los Angeles feel to it. The lighting is low yet warm. The building is made up of blond wood, which covers the bar, the booths, and…
New DIA pop art exhibition revisits the whimsy and turbulence of the ’60s and ’70s
The dynamics at play in the new pop art exhibition at the Detroit Institute of Arts are perhaps best exemplified by a work from Sister Mary Corita, a lesser-known Los Angeles artist who also happened to be a nun at a Catholic school. In “Enriched Bread,” Corita appropriates the bold colors and patterns of Wonder…
This Michigan seminar on marijuana and the workplace was half-baked
With recreational, adult-use marijuana now legalized in Michigan, businesses and their human resources professionals now have to reconsider rules about pot and the workplace. That was made pretty clear at the seminar “Michigan’s New Marijuana Law: What Every Business Should Know,” hosted by Trion Solutions on Thursday, Feb. 7 at the Auburn Hills Chamber of…
Journalism has a problem — and journalism’s problem is democracy’s problem
On Feb. 2, Jane Elizabeth, the managing editor of the Raleigh News & Observer and Durham Herald-Sun in North Carolina’s Research Triangle, tweeted that a “good portion” of the paper’s staff — and every other McClatchy newsroom — would be offered buyouts. “The business model may be broken but journalism is not,” she wrote. “Journalism…
Review: Lego Movie 2 is a playful, postmodern romp
Late-stage capitalism makes a mesmerizing display of its flexibility in The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part — squeezing emotion, laughs, and even a sense of wonder from what is ostensibly an extended toy commercial. The real magic trick here is that kids in the multiplex will eagerly gobble up this elaborate marketing exercise, as…
Horoscopes (Feb. 13-19)
ARIES: March 21 – April 20 You are trying to figure out how to get things to work with very little support from anything but “little old you.” For whatever reason you stopped needing anyone to show up to save the day a long time ago. Depending on the way you slant things, you’re either…
