Cover Story
It’s Detroit influencer Randi Rossario’s world — and we’re just living in it
Randi Rossario sits in a wicker chair inside of Brix Room studio in Farmington Hills dressed like a perfect Detroit fall day: burnt orange sweater, jeans, and boots. She touches up her dark-colored lipstick and makeup, glancing at her husband J.T for assurance. Lately, it seems every time you pick up your phone or your…
Detroit’s ‘Power Keys 2.0’ conference aims to prepare for careers in entertainment
As the Detroit entertainment scene continues to redefine itself and evolve, there is a need for structure and educational resources. And even though the days of Detroit being home to a major record label like Motown are long past, there are still industry professionals here willing to teach what they know to anyone aspiring to…
Detroit Public Theatre’s ‘Holiday Cabaret’ takes the stage for final weekend
It’s getting a little too cold outside, but this raunchy yet festive show could help warm you up. Detroit Public Theatre’s (DPT) Holiday Cabaret has been running since Nov. 29, and will have its final show on Sunday, Dec. 17. The performance offers a musical evening to get viewers in the holiday spirit with theater…
Detroit workers dump thousands of used absentee ballot envelopes
Bob Nelson was so surprised by what he saw that he began snapping photos with his phone. City of Detroit workers were unloading numerous “hay bale-sized” bundles of used absentee ballot envelopes at a dump on the city’s east side at McNichols near Mt. Elliott on Dec. 6. Thousands of envelopes containing the names, addresses,…
Short-lived gay nightclub Flaming Embers finds new home in weekly pop-up
The spark around a new queer nightclub in Detroit’s Broderick Tower was snuffed out nearly as soon as it was lit. Now the former manager of the short-lived queer hangout is moving on to a new space that will host a weekly LGBTQ+ night under the banner Queer Detroit. Queer Detroit will operate out of…
Detroit’s Satori Circus preps one-man show about the Bermuda Triangle
Having launched his one-man show in 1988, Detroit performing artist Russell A. Taylor, aka Satori Circus, isn’t quite a clown or a mime. Behind a face of white makeup with black markings, his performances include music, pantomime, film elements, spoken word, slapstick, and movement. He’s preparing to showcase a new performance art piece titled “SeaStories:…
Detroit’s Batch Brewing Company launching full-service restaurant
Corktown’s Batch Brewing Company is launching a full-service restaurant in its taproom on Wednesday. Developed by Chef Brendon Edwards, the new menu features a variety of entrées including Wild Boar Lasagna, Crispy Oyster Sliders, and Smoked Half Chicken Dinners. “Every business evolves with new blood,” Edwards said in a statement. “I look forward to sharing…
Winter Blast set to return to Royal Oak in 2024
The Winter Blast will return to downtown Royal Oak in 2024. Organizers announced the free winter festival is set for Friday, Feb. 2 through Sunday, Feb. 4 at Centennial Commons, located between Main and Troy streets and 11 Mile Road and 3rd Street. The festival features a mix of outdoor activities like ice skating and…
Frontier Ruckus releases new song, with album on the way
Got a Detroit music tip? Send it to music@metrotimes.com. Frontier Ruckus has new album on the way: The banjo-wielding Michigan folk band Frontier Ruckus has returned with new music, and a new album coming on Feb. 16, 2024. As the primary vehicle for singer Matthew Milia’s kodachrome songwriting, On The Northline will be the band’s…
Doja Cat and Ice Spice bring the heat at Detroit concert
Thousands of fans packed Detroit’s Little Caesars arena on a cold Sunday night to witness Doja Cat’s “The Scarlet Tour.” The Motor City was the 22nd stop of the 24-date tour that kicked off on Halloween in San Francisco, and is Doja Cat’s first arena tour. Born Amala Ratna Zandile Dlamin, the 28-year-old rapper and…
Fired nurses file whistleblower lawsuit against Wayne County’s crisis-ridden juvenile jail
Two nurses filed a whistleblower lawsuit against Wayne County’s troubled juvenile jail, alleging they were fired for exposing misconduct and numerous violations of state and federal law. The lawsuit filed in Wayne County Circuit Court last week claims the William Dickerson Detention Facility in Hamtramck is a danger to the youths held there. Nurses Tanzy…
Nicki Minaj is playing Detroit concert on 4/20
We never thought we’d be spending 4/20 with Nicki Minaj but, you know, that’s cool or whatever. The “Anaconda” rapper announced the dates of her 2024 “Pink Friday 2 World Tour” on Monday with a Detroit stop on Saturday, April 20. Minaj previously teased the tour on social media along with the release of her…
Detroit Youth Choir offers free ‘The Color Purple’ concert at Emagine Royal Oak
One of Detroit’s most wholesome homegrown groups is giving us a taste of The Color Purple before the movie hits theaters. The Detroit Youth Choir will be performing songs from The Color Purple, along with some holiday classics, at Emagine Royal Oak on Sunday, December 17. They’ll perform in the lobby of the theater at…
Detroit’s Music Hall unveils expansion plans
Detroit’s Music Hall Center is getting a facelift with a new building adjacent to the old one. Architect and Detroit native Tod Williams and his New York-based firm Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects | Partners (TWBTA) have released a rendering of the new design. Located at Madison and Randolph, the new Music Hall will stand…
Lapointe: Gilbert’s transit dream is both grand and grandiose
In a clean and tidy Detroit People Mover car on a gloomy Monday afternoon, the mood was quiet and peaceful because the compartment was totally empty. After my 75-cent sky-ride chugged counter-clockwise past Huntington Place station and then above the cloud-shrouded Detroit River, it eventually pulled into the Greektown station, where a middle-aged, female security…
Oxford shooter sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole
Ethan Crumbley, the 17-year-old who killed four classmates in a mass shooting at Oxford High School in 2021, was sentenced Friday to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Oakland County Circuit Judge Kwame Rowe imposed the harshest possible sentence, saying Crumbley was obsessed with violence and planned the attack for months. Rowe called…
‘Poor Things’ brings a woman back to life — and sexy times and social commentary ensue
Poor Things is a movie about a woman who receives a second chance to get to know her vagina. That’s what happens to Bella Baxter (Emma Stone), a formerly dead lady who is found and brought back to life by a deformed mad scientist Dr. Godwin Baxter (Willem Dafoe), whom she refers to only as…
Buy from Detroit artists this holiday season instead of large corporations
I was so close to getting my mother to agree not to exchange gifts for Christmas this year. I’m trying to simplify my life and don’t like accumulating random stuff. In the past, I’ve asked for things that I need, but I always seem to get a gift that will get banished to the depths…
Fundraiser created to help Detroit activist Malik Shabazz after massive heart attack
Supporters of Malik Shabazz, the fearless Detroit activist who had a massive heart attack in June, are raising money to help the minister cover growing health care expenses after he was briefly hospitalized again due medical concerns. Germany E. Bennett Jr., pastor of True Oracles of God ministries in Detroit, launched the GoFundMe campaign. “This…
Detroit ‘psychedelic church’ moves to take case to federal court
Soul Tribes International Ministries is taking its fight to sell psilocybin mushrooms to Detroiters as a religious sacrament to federal court. The “psychedelic church,” billed as Michigan’s first and located inside Bushnell Congregational Church at 15000 Southfield Road, was raided by the Detroit Police Department on September 22. The City of Detroit later brought a…
Shaquille O’Neal’s fast-casual Big Chicken chain to open 20 locations in Michigan
Earlier this year, Michigan-based restaurant operators H&D Group Investments signed a deal with Shaquille O’Neal’s Big Chicken to develop 20 locations across the state, with plans to open in Ann Arbor, Lansing, Flint, Saginaw, Mount Pleasant, and metro Detroit. The first location will be in Clio, set to open in early 2024. Now, the fast-casual…
Labatt thanks Michigan beer fans with free skate night at Detroit’s Campus Martius
Who wants a “cold one?” Beer company Labatt bought out The Rink at Campus Martius Park to host “Labatt on Ice,” a free skate night for beer fans to get in the holiday spirit with an “ice-cold Labatt.” In partnership with Downtown Detroit, the Michigan-based Labatt team will hold the event from 6-9 p.m. on…
Shun serves some of metro Detroit’s finest ramen in Madison Heights
For the most part, chefs at restaurants Metro Times reviews grew up cooking in kitchens at their parents’ restaurant, cut their teeth as a line cook for years, or otherwise arrived at their position steeped in culinary tradition. But every now and again, I encounter a chef with no culinary experience who never had a…
Cred Cafe combines coffee shop, speakeasy, and coworking in Detroit
A sign board outside an unassuming building on Jefferson Avenue reads “Cred Cafe Grand Opening today.” The shop is quiet inside with a simple list of drinks that get more interesting further down the menu — espresso, cappuccino, iced latte, espresso martini, mimosa pitcher, and a rise and shine shot. After standing in line for…
Hamilton’s is now open at Detroit’s boutique Godfrey Hotel
The boutique Godfrey Hotel chain opened its latest location in Corktown earlier this year, and it recently opened the doors to its full-service restaurant Hamilton’s, which is now open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner seven days a week. Hamilton’s is a collaboration between the Godfrey Hotel parent company and Chickpea Hospitality, the restaurant group behind…
Dueling kielbasas
Chowhound is a weekly column about what’s trending in Detroit food culture. Tips: eat@metrotimes.com. Families feud. Factions within them with axes to grind occasionally take swings at settling things. One such occasion in our clan was always Christmas Eve, when a long-simmering rivalry between two of my aunts boiled-over into heated competition to claim best…
Free Will Astrology (Dec. 6-12)
ARIES (March 21-April 19): I will cheer you on as you tenderly push yourself to be extra exploratory in the coming weeks. It’s exciting that you are contemplating adventures that might lead you to wild frontiers and half-forbidden zones. The chances are good that you will provoke uncanny inspirations and attract generous lessons. Go higher…
