Cover Story
Detroit’s digital divide is leaving nearly half the city offline
On a chilly November evening the neighborhoods of northwest Detroit are quiet — traffic on Grand River Avenue is unusually calm, and the area’s residential streets are mostly dark — but the Detroit Public Library’s Redford Branch is buzzing. An hour before closing time the building’s wraparound parking lot is nearly full; inside, dozens of…
DIA to open permanent gallery for new acquisitions in January
From Monet to Van Gough to Whistler and Sugimoto, the Detroit Institute of Arts sure knows how to name drop. The DIA family will grow in size on Jan. 12 as the opening of a new gallery will showcase the museum’s latest acquisitions and offer a transparent look at how these pieces found their new home.…
Sky Convington will deliver the sultry sounds of Billie Holiday during an enchanting tribute at Tangent Gallery
The 17th Annual Billie Holiday Tribute is performed by Detroit Music Award-winner Sky Convington and her band Club Crescendo, who will celebrate one of the most influential and daring jazz artists of all time by digging deep into her catalog to deliver the sultry sounds of yesteryear. Special guest band Dream Ellement will score the afternoon as…
Chamber rock songstress My Brightest Diamond to visit El Club
Rihanna may have commanded us to all shine bright like a diamond but surely she forgot the brightest diamond of all. Shara Nova leads My Brightest Diamond, an untouchable chamber rock, and orchestral baroque pop project. It’s been a hot minute since My Brightest Diamond released a record (2014) but Nova’s dropping The Twilight Tone next year…
Indie-darling Stef Chura to get loud at El Club
Named as one of Metro Times’ 2017 Bands to Watch, indie rocker Stef Chura just signed with Saddle Creek (Bright Eyes, Big Thief, the Faint) for a reissue of her debut record, Messes. For the uninitiated, Chura’s allure rests on her uniquely charged vocal flicker and lo-fi loose guitar style, both of which come together to…
Local rap star Miz Korona slated to perform with live band at DIA
You may have been introduced to Miz Korona when she slayed a rap battle outside of a food truck in Eminem’s 2002 quasi-autobiographical film 8 Mile. But Korona has grown far beyond her silver-screen debut. A critically acclaimed underground artist, Korona delivers honesty in true hip-hop fashion with a classic soul twist. She told Metro Times in…
The Chainsmokers are coming to The Fillmore
This one isn’t just for all of you Snapchatting, fidget-spinning dabbers who listen to pop radio. There is no cure for the infection that is DJ duo the Chainsmokers (and it’s totally OK), who have teamed up with the likes of Coldplay, Halsey, Daya, and some other human avatars we’ve never heard of. The Chainsmokers…
Social media pop singer Vesperteen to play Pike Room
If high-energy pop and sing-along friendly choruses are your thing then we think you might just love Vesperteen. The passion project of former House of Heroes singer, Colin Rigsby, Vesperteen channels contemporaries like Bleachers and the 1975 with a totally flamboyant festival-ready infectiousness. Still pretty fresh to the scene with only one EP out, Vesperteen has…
’90s Boyband 98 Degrees will heat up the Sound Board this weekend
This is not a drill. 98 Degrees is back and — oh my god why do we care? Oh, right. Because it’s 98 Degrees, that’s why! While it may be teetering on arctic temps outside, leave it to a middle-aged boyband to warm things up. Chalk it up to nostalgia and simpler times, but the return…
Monster Drawing Rally returns to MOCAD
Ready! Set! Draw! MOCAD’s 5th annual Monster Drawing Rally is both a public event and fundraiser featuring 70 artists… but there’s a catch. All eyes are on the artists who will be given two one-hour shifts to draw in front of a live audience. MOCAD’s annual event exposes an otherwise private process behind the madness.…
Detroit’s Jam Handy to host winter solstice celebration with yoga, meditation, and artisanal treats
With inches of snow on the ground, it’s hard to believe that winter hasn’t even officially begun. Days will continue to grow darker until the winter solstice on December 21 — when the season changes from autumn to winter and we start to accrue more moments of sunlight each day. To celebrate that transition, Kate…
Don’t blame DPD for failing to provide shooting data — blame Michigan’s FOIA laws
On Sunday, Vice News issued a report of a nine-month investigation that looked at fatal and nonfatal police shootings in the 50 largest police departments in the United States from 2010 through 2016. Noticeably absent from the findings: any data from the Detroit Police Department. When Vice mapped the shooting rate data from the biggest cities, they…
Child Bite’s Shawn Knight talks Wes Borland collaboration
Detroit noise punks Child Bite never seem to rest. They’re either on tour or putting out a rad record or promoting some touring friends’ local show. Vocalist Shawn Knight and his wife, Veronica, also founded and continue to run Berserker, an annual festival of strange and heavy music that grows every year. Last month the…
Roma Cafe will re-open on Saturday as Amore Da Roma
After 127 years in business, Eastern Market’s Roma Cafe shuttered last July. The Italian restaurant had been a staple in the bustling district, and many were sad to see it go. In October, we reported that a new Italian restaurant named Amore Da Roma would open up in its place. It had a projected November…
Eminem teams up with 1xRUN for unusual ‘Revival’ album merch
From projecting his album title on the Detroit train station to fake prescription ads for a fictional drug, Eminem is gearing up for the release of his much-anticipated album Revival (Dec. 15) in some unconventional ways. His latest promotional effort is a collaboration with Detroit-based fine art publishing company 1xRUN for some unique merchandise bundles featuring…
Five questions we have after listening to Big Sean and Metro Boomin’s ‘Double Or Nothing’
Leave it to Big Sean to drop a record unannounced (a week before Eminem’s Revival is set to come out — scandalous!) and then play a free hometown show a few days later. A bigger surprise than the release is that it’s not terrible. Big Sean teamed up with producer Metro Boomin on Double Or…
Jack White releases teaser of ‘bizarre’ new record
Previously, Jack White teased that his forthcoming record — his third solo album — would be “bizarre,” causing us to wonder what “bizarre” for White would even look like. Now, we have an idea. Today, White uploaded a psychedelic video track to his YouTube account that appears to be a teaser of snippets of various songs. It…
Detroit’s Town Pump Tavern submits entry for biggest food fail of 2017
Update: Coats says UberEats has contacted her and promised to refund her order in full within the next seven to 10 days. Kitchen mistakes happen all the time and normally we wouldn’t report on one. But a sad looking box of uncooked onion slices sitting in a pile of powdered batter mix that downtown Detroit’s…
Detroit’s Veterans Village is well underway — this video shows the progress being made
In November, a Wallethub study found that Detroit is the worst city in the nation for veterans — a staggering statistic that shines light on systemic issues many face after leaving the military. But, some Michigan residents are working to make life after the military a little easier. Gordon Soderberg is one of those people.…
A Detroit artist deconstructs Shinola’s ‘unfathomable’ marketing game
On March 13, 2013, Shinola President Jacques Panis made a presentation at the University of Michigan. The lecture, sponsored by the U-M Center for Entrepreneurship, was so off-the-cuff it almost appeared Panis came on stage without much of a plan. He spoke in a halting, disorganized manner, described Detroit as a wild place full of…
Downtown Detroit’s Foxtown Grille will close at the end of December
The Foxtown Grille, a high end Italian eatery that’s part of the Da Edoardo family of restaurants, will close at the end of the month. Owner Ann Barbieri Kolinski tells Metro Times that she couldn’t come to an agreement with the Ilitch family — wh0 owns the building at 2203 Woodward Ave. — on a new…
Detroit teen charged in connection with Noel Night shooting
[image-1] Sixteen-year-old Calvin Stephens has been charged in connection with a Noel Night shooting that left four teens hospitalized, according to a press release from the Wayne County Prosecutor’s office. Related Stephens is alleged to have shot three male teens, ages 14, 16, and 19, and a 17-year-old female at approximately 7:45 p.m. on Saturday,…
Freep: Let’s give Michigan’s rich more of our money!
Earlier this year, the Michigan Legislature approved $1 billion in state tax money for Dan Gilbert and other wealthy developers. The arrangement allows the rich and corporations to collect state residents’ income tax instead of the government. On Nov. 21, the Detroit City Council approved $250 million in local tax money for Gilbert to use on four…
Setting the record straight about the ‘Witch of Delray’
In our Gift Guide a few weeks ago, we mentioned the new book by journalist and author Karen Dybis, The Witch of Delray: Rose Veres & Detroit’s Infamous 1930s Murder Mystery. The story concerns Hungarian immigrant Rose Veres and her son, who became defendants in a sensational murder case in 1931. Prosecutors claimed Rose had…
Kesha and Macklemore have teamed up for a new tour and it includes a Detroit stop
Christmas came early, you guys. The comeback queen of justice and glitter is hitting the road— and she’s got company. The Adventures of Kesha and Macklemore tour kicks off its nine-week, 30-show run in Phoenix, Arizona on June 6 and will roll through DTE Energy Music Theatre on Wednesday, July 18. The co-headlining tour follows…
Fisher Building offers free photos with Santa this weekend
Need to take your kid to see Santa but don’t want to take a trip to some hideous suburban mall? Problem solved. The Fisher Building will host a perfectly wonderful Santa Claus this weekend and you won’t even have to pay to watch your kid sob while someone snaps a pic of them with old…
Bobcat Bonnie’s Wyandotte location will re-open this Friday
To conclude an eventful year for their downriver location, Bobcat Bonnie’s will re-open their Wyandotte spot this Friday — this time, it will be permanent. Related Having ended a contentious relationship with a previous business partner, Bobcat Bonnie’s owner Matthew Buskard was able to purchase the lease to their original Wyandotte location. Thus, Buskard and…
Henry the Hatter’s new Detroit location is open in Eastern Market
Over four months ago, Henry the Hatter owner Paul Wasserman closed his long-standing Broadway shop with no real idea what would happen to the 124-year-old Detroit business. To be fair, he still operated a Southfield location, but the loss of the famous downtown hat shop still seemed devastating. Related Then, in the fall, Wasserman announced…
Selden Standard owners are planning a New Center restaurant
The owners of the Cass Corridor’s Selden Standard are planning a new Mediterannean-focused restaurant in New Center. Owner Andy Hollyday and Evan Hansen tell the Freep that they won’t be open until 2019. The pair opened their popular small plates restaurant around three years ago. “We do a lot of Mediterranean cooking here at Selden, but there’s a…
Flint’s Capitol Theatre officially reopened after nearly 20 years
After 20 years of dormancy and a $37 million renovation, Flint’s historic Capitol Theatre finally opened to the public with a ribbon-cutting and public tour on Thursday. The theater — which was originally built in 1928 as a vaudeville theater, and later had lives as a movie house and music venue that hosted acts like AC/DC, Black Sabbath,…
Detroit’s historic Packard Plant will be the site of a new restaurant and brewery
An ambitious multimillion dollar redevelopment of Detroit’s historic Packard Plant began last May and it appears more developments have arisen since the groundbreaking. MLive reports that Arte Express, the company that purchased the sprawling, 106-year-old building in 2013, has announced plans to open a restaurant and brewery inside the former automotive plant, but few other…
This pitch video to bring a major league soccer team to Detroit will pump you up
Last week, Detroit was named a one of four cities that could add a major league soccer team to their professional sports portfolio. Dan Gilbert, Tom Gores, and the Ford family (who own the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Detroit Pistons, and the Detroit Lions, respectively) put forth the bid. Related Detroit faces some obstacles in beating…
Detroit singer-songwriters will come together to raise spirits — and funds for the needy
An annual event that celebrates Detroit’s acoustic singer-songwriter scene and helps assist charities will take place next week. It’s called Home for the Holidaze: The name is a holdover from back when it regularly featured a few performers returning to Detroit for a few days. Fifteen years after its inception, most of those expats are…
Novi theater unveils biggest movie screen in Michigan — just in time for ‘Star Wars’
Judge me by my size, do you? Well, when it comes to the big screen, size matters. Emagine Novi will unveil Emagine’s Super Emax —the largest movie screen in Michigan on Friday, Dec. 15. Following a official ribbon cutting at 9 a.m., the theater will show the highly anticipated Star Wars: The Last Jedi as the…
The Gold Dollar bar was quietly purchased in Ilitch-related development, recently released documents reveal
It looks like the Gold Dollar — the long-vacant bar that once hosted early gigs by bands like the White Stripes during Detroit’s garage rock boom — may have a new lease on life. But don’t expect to catch a rock show there anytime soon. The Detroit News reports that according to recently released documents,…
Review: The Barr Brothers perform an intimate set at the Pike Room
“We love you guys!” yells an impassioned fan from the small crowd in Pontiac’s Pike Room. “I didn’t even know you knew us,” replies Brad Barr, frontman and one-third of the Barr Brothers. This aloof, self-deprecating sentiment is part of what makes the band so lovable. Fresh off a Europe tour supporting The War On…
White supremacist Richard Spencer may speak at U-M during its spring break
An attorney for white supremacist Richard Spencer says that his client is requesting a speaking engagement sometime during the university’s break between Feb. 24 and March 4. The Ann Arbor News reports that U-M announced that it would work with Spencer on Nov. 21 and offered to host him on Nov. 29, but that wasn’t enough time for…
Hundreds of items for sale in Joe Louis Arena and Detroit Red Wings memorabilia auction
Joe Louis Arena, beloved home of the Detroit Red Wings since 1979, was shuttered this year after Olympia Entertainment opened their shiny (and admittedly very nice) new stadium, Little Caesars Arena. Sure, the Joe was showing signs of age, but many locals have come to love the arena for the nearly four decades of memories…
Detroit is the worst city for sleep in the U.S., according to study
According to a new study released this year, Detroit is the worst place in the nation if you’re looking to catch some Zs. Tuck, an organization that tracks and aggregates sleep data, compared factors including rates of sleep deprivation, obesity rates, unemployment rates, average commute times, air quality, light pollution, and ongoing construction and applied…
How Detroit could become a leader in eliminating food waste
The statistics on food waste in the U.S. are staggering – 40 percent of our food is thrown out, while 14 million children suffer from hunger. Locally, all the wasted food could provide everyone in Detroit with three meals 365 days per year. Logic tells you that there should be a way to get food…
Fake news alert: A Macomb County morgue employee was not accidentally cremated
Over the last several days, a “news” report that an employee at the Macomb County morgue was accidentally cremated has been making the rounds. If you agonized over this story, or felt sorry for the victim’s family, take heart: The story is as fake as they come. Related A story at “www.abcnews-us.com” featuring a purloined…
Why are there fewer black mayors leading big cities?
In 2013, Mayor Mike Duggan ran a successful write-in campaign and became Detroit’s first white mayor in 40 years. In and of itself it was an impressive political feat. But a look across the country reveals a trend: There are now less black mayors leading major American cities than there used to be. In 2000, nine…
Feds probe possible housing discrimination at a dozen Detroit apartment buildings
Controversial Detroit landlord Dennis Kefallinos is in hot water again as federal investigators look into whether families with children were discriminated from renting units at a dozen of his residential properties. According to an email obtained by Metro Times, the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Eastern District of Michigan is investigating possible fair housing rules…
The Ringwald offers holiday laughs with ‘The Santaland Diaries’ and more
Christmas traditions start in the oddest places. A rural German custom of the 1700s has become a $1.5 billion-a-year industry. A hymn played with accompaniment by a guitar in a small Austrian town 200 years ago is the third-best-selling single of all time. A 1983 sleeper comedy, at least around the holidays, becomes a 24-hour…
Ann Arbor’s Blind Pig sold, will remain a venue and not be razed for condos
It looks like the Blind Pig has been spared the fate of so many buildings in Ann Arbor — that is to say, being replaced by pricey condos or student apartments. On Tuesday, it was announced the building was sold to a new ownership group that plans to keep it as a music venue. The…
A Detroit woman is getting national press for looking like Beyonce
I don't get intimidated by nothing I don't compare myself to -B Comparison is the thief of joy… A post shared by SurB™ (@sur__b) on Jun 10, 2017 at 8:14am PDT There is no question Brittany Williams bears some resemblance to reigning pop queen Beyonce, but would you stop her on the street and ask…
Detroiters took more Lyft rides to Selden Standard than any other restaurant in 2017
While Detroit didn’t nab any spots on their list of national “Lyftie Awards,” ride-sharing app Lyft did take the time to calculate the Motor City’s most popular destinations. The Lyftie Awards are a year-end tally of rides and destinations with the most passenger drop-offs, and not surprisingly, Detroiters favored stops at hip restaurants, craft beer…
John Sims, a regular Renaissance man, returns to Detroit for lecture
John Sims is a true Renaissance man, which seems fitting, considering he is an alumni of Detroit’s Renaissance High School. Since then, Sims has gone on to have a career as a multimedia artist, writer, and producer — but even that is perhaps oversimplifying things. Over the years, his work has involved activism, mathematics, sculpture, music,…
Downhill skiing added as new feature to 2018 Winter Blast attractions
Winter Blast, a three-day cold weather tradition in downtown Detroit, will return Jan. 26-28 — this time with brand new additions to an already beloved lineup that includes ice skating, a food truck rally, and a zip line. Today, title sponsors Meridian and Quicken Loans announced the festival is expanding to include two snow hills,…
Sufjan Stevens just released a song about Tonya Harding
Sufjan Stevens just released a song about Tonya Harding. WHYYYYYYYYYYY! WHYYYYYYYYYYY! Detroit-born singer-songwriter, Sufjan Stevens released an unexpected tribute to a woman whom he considers “America’s sweetheart with a dark twist.” Harding, of course, allegedly paid her ex-husband to club the right knee of fellow skater and competitor Nancy Kerrigan, the night before they were to…
Erik Prince wants to build Trump a private spy network, according to report
Erik Prince — the founder of controversial military contract firm Blackwater, major GOP donor, Hillsdale alumni, and brother to Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos — wants to build President Donald Trump a private spy network, according to a report by The Intercept. The arrangement would allow Trump to circumvent the CIA and the so-called the “deep state.” According…
Patti Smith forgot lyrics during a Sam Shepard tribute and it’s totally precious
Oh, Patti. During a tribute concert for the late actor, playwright, and author Sam Shepard last night in Brooklyn, Shepard’s friend, Patti Smith stepped up to perform “Dancing Barefoot.” Halfway through the song, Smith smiled, laughed, and shook her head. She had forgotten the words but recalled a playful detail of her relationship with Shepard. “What…
Pot+Box flower shop will open a brick-and-mortar location inside the Fisher Building this week
Yet another local business has announced plans to open a brick-and-mortar location inside Detroit’s Fisher Building. This time it’s Pot+Box, a flower arranging company owned by Lisa Waud — the same entrepreneur and artist behind Flower House and Detroit Flower Week. Related According to a press release, Waud will open her shop on the north…
Le Petit Zinc is moving to Midtown
Parisian Cafe Le Petit Zinc will reopen in the former Dangerously Delicious Pies space in Midtown in mid-January. Owner Karima Sorrel shut down her Corktown space in September after a dispute with the building’s landlord, who is also Sorel’s mother. Since then, she has been on the hunt for a new home and finding new inspiration.…
Horoscopes (Dec. 6-12)
ARIES (March 21- April 20): You keep accusing someone of being too negative, when the fact is, you can’t handle it when people are 100% honest. Be careful with your judgments. Whoever you are putting down is way ahead of the game. If you could get over yourself you could learn a lot from them.…
Angel Olsen talks feelings, feminism, and how not to hate your own music
When I tell Angel Olsen that I once stood outside of my boyfriend’s house in a downpour while blaring her 2016 hit “Shut Up Kiss Me” from my parked car, she doesn’t seem surprised. And when I tell her that I played “Unfucktheworld” from her 2014 record Burn Your Fire for No Witness on repeat…
How Katie Von Schleicher makes depression danceable
It’s fair to say that Katie Von Schleicher is a shining example of a DIY musician Cinderella story. The 30something artist was working at Ba Da Bing Records in Brooklyn, New York when her boss and friend, Ben Goldberg, offered to put her lo-fi bedroom project, Bleaksploitation, out on cassette. Seeing this as an opportunity…
Review: Liang’s Oriental Barbeque is ‘offal-ly’ good
The phrase “whole beast cookery” in Detroit might conjure up, say, an image of a hip chef trying to be over-the-top precious in a fashionable Corktown restaurant. Of course, long before such a thing was a gimmick in some white dude’s kitchen in the U.S., it was — and continues to be — common practice…
New DIA exhibition searches for home
A new exhibition in the Detroit Institute of Art’s Prints, Drawings, and Photography galleries takes a sprawling look at the many meanings of the notion of home. Making Home is the first show organized at the museum by Lucy Mensah and Taylor Renee Aldridge, who joined the DIA last year as assistant curators under new…
Savage Love: What happened
I used to be a fan of your column, Dan, but something happened to you. Maybe it’s stress, the current political climate, or some other issue — I don’t know. I used to look forward to your columns because they were fun, smart, and helpful — but I don’t enjoy what I’m seeing now. If…
A friendlier face for pot in Detroit
Get ready for the new “QLine.” And I’m not talking about a train along Woodward. I’m referring to the current endeavors of Anqunette Jamison Sarfoh, the former Fox 2 newswoman known as Q. Sarfoh has used cannabis to treat the symptoms of her multiple sclerosis for some years, and since retiring from TV news she…
Conyers: Time to go
Some years ago, a press secretary for a powerful congressman, a woman I had come to admire and respect over the years, told me a story that was a stunner. She had been told — by another staffer — that part of her duties to the congressman would occasionally include “polishing his knob.” She was…
