Cover Story
In search of Detroit’s lost walls of dignity, freedom, and pride
One bright May day nearly ten years ago, in 2010, I was stooping in the dark, dank basement of a Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries facility on Mack Avenue and Fairview Street, searching for the remnants of what could be the oldest surviving outdoor African-American mural in the nation. Lawrence Lewis, the DRMM’s kindly, patient maintenance…
Welcome to the new generation of blues — Christone ‘Kingfish’ Ingram to perform in Ferndale
At 21 years old, most of us were likely doing the following: jerking off, playing video games, skipping out on work and college classes that had nothing to do with our major so that we could jerk off and play video games, crafting bongs out of pop bottles, and making out in cars and dorms,…
The Wright to host Women in Hip Hop Showcase with Charity, Aisha Ellis, DJ Problematic Black Hottie, and more
Missy Elliott, Lauryn Hill, Lil’ Kim, Nicki, Cardi, and Megan Thee Stallion — all women who shaped hip-hop and continue to push it real good (and to the limit) in a field that is still a boys club. (Just peep the 2020 Grammy nominations for best rap record. Ugh.) March is Women’s History Month, and…
Cinema Detroit to screen documentary about activist Marion Stokes, who spent 30 years recording TV news
What do you get when you take more than 84,000 hours of television across 70,000 VHS and Beta tapes, spanning 30 years? No, this isn’t an alternate take on Vanessa Carlton’s 2002 banger “A Thousand Miles,” this is the legacy of eccentric activist (and, perhaps, the greatest unknown archivist of our time) Marion Stokes, who…
Drink a White Russian and pay tribute to ‘The Dude’ at Tangent Gallery’s ‘The Big Lebowski’-themed bash
It’s hard to believe the Coen Brothers’ cult classic The Big Lebowski is now probably officially older than Logjammin star Bunny Lebowski. The second annual Dude Fest at Tangent Gallery will celebrate 22 years of the Dude, his Dudeness, El Duderino, and the best movie about a rug ever made. Also one of the most…
Get a megadose of jazz from Detroit royalty Joan Belgrave at Cliff Bell’s
Earlier this year, jazz vocalist Joan Belgrave was asked to join Karriem Riggins, Robert Hurst, Sheila Jordan, and others to honor Detroit’s rich jazz legacy at New York City’s Winter Jazzfest, which included a tribute to her late husband, beloved trumpet player Marcus Belgrave. Both Joan and Marcus began their jazz careers early in life,…
Bernie Sanders to hold rallies in Detroit and Grand Rapids ahead of Michigan primary
Democratic 2020 presidential contender and Metro Times cover boy Bernie Sanders is coming back to Michigan for a pair of rallies ahead of the state’s primary election. Sanders will hold a rally at 7 p.m. on Friday, March 6 at Detroit’s TCF Center (Hall C and D) and another at 12:30 p.m. on Sunday, March…
Massive vintage toy show returns to Royal Oak Farmers Market — and it’s not playing around
You’re never too old to play with toys — unless you’re, like, over the age of 80 and for some reason someone gives you a pogo stick, in which case we feel compelled to quote Shakira: “Hips don’t lie.” Anyway, lovers of collectible toys, comics, and other vintage items can come together to buy, sell,…
Dance in the dark with metro Detroit bands paying tribute to Bruce Springsteen at PJ’s Lager House
Though New Jersey may stake claim to 70-year-old boss babe and proud member of the resistance Bruce Springsteen, Detroit also has a hungry — and thirsty — heart. For Darkness on the Edge of Corktown: a Springsteen Tribute, PJ’s Lager House has enlisted 20 local singer-songwriters to pay tribute to the man who gave us arguably…
Recreational marijuana sales reach nearly $32M in first 3 months of legalization
More than 100 recreational marijuana businesses have received licenses to operate in Detroit, ringing up nearly $32 million in sales and $5.3 million in new taxes. From Dec. 1 to March 1, the state approved licenses for 61 recreational cannabis dispensaries, 26 growers, 11 processors, six event organizers, six transporters, and one testing lab, according…
Ian Abramson might wear a shock collar at Hamtramck’s Independent Comedy Club
Ian Abramson is by no means a shock comic, despite having worn his dog’s shock collar during a set on Conan. No, really. If the designated audience member disliked one of his obscure one-liners, they had the power to shock Abramson, which they did. The California native, a regular contributor to The Onion, also created…
R&B songstress and violinist Sudan Archives to perform at Detroit’s Deluxx Fluxx — and now’s the time to see her
When you hear Athena, the debut record from Sudan Archives, it’s hard to imagine the self-taught violinist in Cincinnati, Ohio. No offense, Ohio, but Brittney Parks, who performs experimental R&B as Sudan Archives, hardly screams “Midwest” — hell, she may not be of this world. In the fourth grade, Sudan Archives picked up the violin…
Popular pop-up chef to open Flavors of Jamaica restaurant in Pontiac
Chef Reniel Billups is bringing her Caribbean soul flavor to Pontiac. The founder of Irie Occasions Catering and Party Planning has been cooking up traditional Jamaican flavors around the metro area for several years. Her Caribbean-inspired pop-ups at hot spots around town like Detroit City Distillery and Lost River Tiki have put her food into…
Detroit Symphony Orchestra and Wu-Tang Clan add second Detroit show due to popular demand
If you missed out on getting tickets to the Detroit Symphony Orchestra’s upcoming sold-out performance later this month with iconic hip-hop group Wu-Tang Clan, you’re in luck. The DSO just announced a second date. The second show will be held at 8 p.m. on Sunday, March 22. Tickets go on sale to the general public…
The Greenhouse of Walled Lake will start recreational marijuana sales with a bang — literally
Three months after recreational cannabis sales became legal in Michigan the Greenhouse of Walled Lake will open on March 14 with a bang — literally. At 9 a.m., fireworks will explode across the sky to celebrate the opening. Also on hand will be more than a dozen vendors, including growers, processors, and edible makers, who…
Do you remember Detroit’s Black power murals? A U-M prof wants to know!
We received the following letter in response to Jeff Huebner’s cover story last week, “In search of Detroit’s lost walls of dignity, freedom, and pride.” I was happy to see Jeff Huebner’s article on Detroit’s historic Black Power murals on the cover of this week’s Metro Times. Students and I are researching the impact of…
Ian Svenonius’ stylish ’90s band The Make-Up heads to Third Man Records for a homecoming of sorts
The beauty of the Third Man Records Cass Corridor location is that it serves as a perfect homecoming location for a lot of the city’s great musicians and artists. Most everyone knows that the White Stripes and Negative Approach cut their teeth in the neighborhood. But Third Man also serves as a perfect homecoming venue…
Opioid prescription rates drop in states with medical marijuana — except Michigan
Here’s a headline that should confound the folks who still maintain that marijuana has no medical use: “Medical marijuana reduces opioid prescribing rate.” That was on the website for an organization called American Marijuana, a place that looks like it wants to sell you CBD products. I make no claim about the company’s products, but…
Detroit’s James Lipton, host of ‘Inside the Actors Studio,’ dies at the age of 93
Celebrated creator and host of Inside the Actors Studio James Lipton died Monday morning at the age of 93. Recipient of a Daytime Emmy Lifetime Achievement Award, Lipton died from bladder cancer in his Manhattan home Monday, while he was alongside his wife of 50 years, Kedakai Turner, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Lipton was born in…
How to share a joint without sharing germs
When you smoke marijuana in the winter, you sometimes get people with colds and other respiratory illnesses sharing. That’s your business if you want to do that, but most folks don’t want to share germs when passing around a joint. That’s especially true in this time of coronavirus. For starters, sick people shouldn’t be passing…
Michigan’s regulated marijuana market to lose significant source of cannabis
Michigan is phasing out a significant source of medical marijuana sold at dispensaries. Licensed caregivers will be prevented from selling marijuana to the regulated market beginning on Oct. 1, the Marijuana Regulatory Agency announced in a bulletin Monday. The original intent of caregivers was to provide cannabis to up to five medical cardholders. But the…
Detroit rapper Boldy James inks deal with Griselda Records
Detroit rapper Boldy James is joining forces with Griselda. Griselda burned up the charts with their most recent release, What Would Chinegun Do? The Buffalo, New York trio is comprised of Westside Gunn, Conway the Machine, and Benny the Butcher, who all hail from Buffalo, N.Y. Signed to Shady Records, Griselda’s style of raw street…
Most Macomb County communities banned recreational pot sales. Residents in one township are fighting back.
All but three of Macomb County’s 27 communities have banned recreational pot businesses from taking root within their boundaries. But on March 10, voters in one of those communities — Clinton Township — may override their local government’s ban as part of a ballot initiative that would allow up to 24 marijuana businesses. Since recreational…
Duggan explores relief for some overtaxed residents who lost homes to foreclosure
An untold number of Detroiters lost their homes to foreclosure after the city overtaxed residents by at least $600 million between 2010 and 2016. Now Mayor Mike Duggan, who at first balked at compensating those impacted by the overtaxation, says his administration is meeting with Detroit City Council to determine ways to compensate homeowners. But,…
Tri-county voters to decide on 10-year funding renewal for DIA
The presidential primary election isn’t the only issue on the March 10 ballot. Voters in Macomb, Oakland, and Wayne counties will also be asked to renew a 10-year millage to fund the Detroit Institute of Arts. A lot weighs on the outcome of the 0.2-mill property tax. The millage represents about 65% of the museum’s…
Blueprint aims to improve health of Michigan’s moms, babies
Like many states, Michigan struggles with dismal infant and maternal mortality rates. However, a new report provides a blueprint for ways to help turn the tide. The “Right Start 2020” report released by the Michigan League for Public Policy notes that despite improvements in outcomes for babies and moms over time, nationally Michigan ranks 36th…
Snowflake country fans are mad at Garth Brooks for wearing a Barry Sanders jersey, thinking it was for Bernie Sanders
Country music fans are angry after mistakingly thinking Garth Brooks is feeling the Bern. Fans are in an uproar after the country superstar wore a “Sanders 20” jersey at his Michigan show at Ford Field on Saturday, thinking it was in support of Democratic 2020 frontrunner Bernie Sanders. Of course, Michiganders know that Ford Field…
Detroit’s Fort Street Galley food hall abruptly closes Friday
After a little more than a year in business, the operators of downtown Detroit’s Fort Street Galley food hall announced it will permanently close at the end of the day on Friday. The Pittsburgh-based company that operates Fort Street Galley confirmed the closure to the Detroit Free Press. Galley Group is also confirmed that its…
Frita Batidos is now serving Cuban-inspired street food out of an Airstream trailer in Cass Corridor
If you haven’t gotten on the Frita Batidos bandwagon yet, you can still get in line outside its Airstream trailer. The eatery serving Cuban-inspired street food has now started serving it to us right on the street. A silver Airstream trailer parked right outside the Midtown Dog Park near the corner of Cass Avenue and…
Rep. Amash among 4 lawmakers to vote against anti-lynching bill
U.S. Rep. Justin Amash, of Michigan, was among four members of Congress to vote against a bill Wednesday that would make lynching a federal hate crime. By a 410-4 vote, the House approved the Emmett Till Anti-Lynching Act, named after the 14-year-old African American boy who was kidnapped, beaten, and lynched in 1955. Republican Reps.…
Democratic Michigan state rep joins call for Trump to #FreeKwame
So far, calls to release Detroit’s disgraced former mayor Kwame Kilpatrick from prison have mostly come from Kilpatrick’s family and Peter Karmanos Jr., a local millionaire supporter of President Donald Trump who thinks granting clemency to Kilpatrick could help Trump get the Black vote in Detroit. But now Michigan state Rep. Sherry Gay-Dagnogo, a Democrat…
Jolly Pumpkin’s wild ales now come in a can
You can now crack a cold one — if by “cold one” you mean one of Jolly Pumpkin’s wild ales. “Our customers have been telling us for quite a while that we needed to give them a way to enjoy our beers in different settings,” Northern United Brewing CompanyTony Grant CEO/CFO said in a statement.…
Michigan man charged with threatening Trump whistleblower attorney accused of another violent outburst
The Michigan man charged with threatening to kill one of the attorneys for the whistleblower who triggered President Trump’s impeachment trial is accused of turning violent in an interview with the FBI and repeating his threat. Prosecutors leveled the allegations Monday while urging a judge not to release Brittan J. Atkinson, of Gladwin County, from…
Extras wanted for Steven Soderbergh’s new film set in 1950s Detroit
If you’re an actor living in the Detroit area, it might be your time to shine. Steven Soderbergh, who once shot Out of Sight in the D, will be shooting his next film here as well — and he’s on the search for extras. The film, called Kill Switch, is set in 1950s Detroit and…
Samurai sword-wielding girlfriend attacks Ypsilanti man for not buying pot for her, police say
An Ypsilanti man told police he was attacked by his samurai sword-wielding girlfriend because he didn’t buy marijuana for her. Neil Patrick Wasinski, 28, who is identified as a woman in police records, was charged with several counts, including assault with intent to murder, on Jan. 18, two days after police say she stabbed her…
The Kitchenista blogger says teen son who went missing in Detroit is safe
Food blogger Angela Davis says her 16-year-old son is safe after having been missing since Saturday. Davis, who runs the popular blog The Kitchenista, wrote on Twitter that her son contacted her father on Wednesday. “Jaden reached out to my dad! He’s safe,” she wrote. “We don’t know where he is yet, but seems to…
The Stooges’ ‘Fun House’ is turning 50 — and it’s getting a massive vinyl box set and a Detroit exhibition to celebrate
Get ready to smear some peanut butter on your nude torso, folks. The Stooges’ Fun House is turning the big 5-0! Detroit proto-punk gods the Stooges’ sophomore record, 1970’s Fun House, will celebrate its 50th anniversary this year, and Rhino Records is giving it a proper party with a massive limited edition 15xLP box set, Rolling…
Ima’s spicy karaage fried chicken sandwich is hot stuff
There are few chefs in metro Detroit’s Japanese restaurants who can send out bowls that stand up to what Ima chef-owner Mike Ransom prepares in his kitchens. While eating the crispy fried-chicken don — one of the new bowls at Ima’s recently opened location across from Wayne State — I pondered why that is. In the…
An interview with the genre-bending band Saajtak, plus must-see acts at Hamtramck Music Fest
“I knew I wanted this to be an exploration,” says Ben Willis, recollecting his first year in music school and admitting his motives may have been different from those who were predominantly focused on technique or theory. Willis is one of four multi-instrumentalists comprising Saajtak, a certifiable Voltron-like convergence of virtuosos who each share that…
Politics and marijuana intertwine in 2020
Celebrities, musicians, sports figures, and even politicians have had their careers attached to marijuana in numerous ways, both good and bad. It was once big news when anyone of note came out in support of the stuff. Now the leader of the pack in the Democratic presidential primaries flat-out says that he’ll make marijuana legal.…
Savage Love: How do I learn to like giving the sloppy blowjobs my husband wants?
I’m a 31-year-old cis bisexual woman. I’m hetero-romantic and in a monogamish relationship with a man. We play with other people together. I’ve never liked giving blowjobs because I was taught that girls who give blowjobs are “sluts.” Phrases that are meant to be insulting like “You suck,” “Suck it,” “Go suck a dick,” etc.,…
Horoscopes (Feb. 26-March 3)
ARIES | March 21 – April 20: You’ve got enough to keep you busy; the last thing you need is to have to figure out what to do about your love life in the midst of all this. For the time being, just take care of business and let time handle the relationship piece. Diving…
Pardo for Blago
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