Cover Story
Dr. Todd Boyd pens book honoring the enduring legacy of hip-hop culture
Last year, the world paused to celebrate the 50th anniversary of hip-hop music and culture. From its humble beginnings, the genre has evolved from a rose that grew from concrete to a multi-billion dollar industry that continues to expand in its impact and influence. Few understand the scope of hip-hop’s reach like Dr. Todd Boyd.…
What Michiganders should know about the 2024 total eclipse
It’s been 70 years since Michigan has experienced a total solar eclipse, but we may get another chance to see it this year on Monday, April 8. The path of totality, or the shadow cast when the moon completely blocks out the sun, will fall across just a tiny sliver of southeast Michigan. Since it…
Detroit chef Max Hardy dies suddenly
Beloved Detroit chef Maxcel Hardy passed away unexpectedly Monday evening. David Rudolph, who worked as Hardy’s PR agent confirmed the death to Metro Times, though the cause is still unknown. Hardy passed away somewhere between 9 p.m. and 10:30 p.m., which came as a shock to Rudolph, as he appeared to be in good health.…
‘We can’t wait for our liberation,’ 2024 socialist presidential candidate Claudia De la Cruz says
Claudia De la Cruz and Karina Garcia, two working-class women running for President and Vice President as candidates of the Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL), launched their Detroit campaign on Sunday. The local event, which took place at Swords Into Plowshares Peace Center, included members of Detroit’s PSL branch speaking about the campaign, as…
How Summer Like The Season aggregates little musical moments
“I think an argument could be made that we’re at the early stages of the cyborg era,” says Summer Krinsky. The Detroit-based multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, composer, and producer is beginning to illustrate the uncanny qualities of her music under the moniker of Summer Like The Season, as it blends organic and acoustic elements like found sounds,…
Watchdog group demands accountability from Wayne State over botched animal experiment
A national watchdog group called on Wayne State University to take action Monday against a researcher responsible for a botched experiment last year that resulted in the euthanization of 63 mice that were likely in severe pain. In July, a research integrity official from Wayne State alerted the National Institutes of Health of the bungled…
Body of late Flint Councilman Eric Mays is being held ‘hostage’ by funeral home, lawsuit alleges
Even in death, Flint Councilman Eric Mays remains a flashpoint for controversy. The late councilman’s only son, Eric HaKeem Deontaye Mays, alleges in a lawsuit filed Monday that the Lawrence E. Moon Funeral Home in Flint is holding his father’s body “hostage.” The lawsuit, filed in Genesee County Circuit Court, also accuses Mays’s four siblings…
The 66th Annual Saint Patrick’s Day Parade is set to return to Corktown
It’s that time of the year again: Time to paint the town green at Corktown’s annual Saint Patrick’s Day Parade. A tradition since 1958, the event typically draws between 80,000-100,000 people to celebrate the Irish heritage of Corktown, which was named after Ireland’s County Cork and is Detroit’s oldest neighborhood. It’s one of the biggest…
McDonald’s is celebrating ‘313 Day’ with Vernors Boston Coolers, merch
March 13 is coming up, also known as “313 Day” around here, or another excuse to celebrate all things Detroit. Even multinational fast-food corporation McDonald’s is getting in on the 313 Day festivities this year. On Wednesday, March 13, the chain is offering a special at participating Detroit-area McDonald’s locations that includes a Filet-O-Fish sandwich,…
Sibling restaurants Lincoln Yard and Little Yard now open in Birmingham
Two new restaurants in one, Lincoln Yard and Little Yard, are opening in Birmingham on Monday. The eateries come from Curt Catallo and Ann Stevenson, the married co-owners behind local restaurant group Union Joints. The newest project, which the owners say has been in the works since 2017, is two ideas under one roof: one…
Highland Park councilman tells police mayor threatened him with physical violence
A Highland Park city councilman leveled serious allegations against Mayor Glenda McDonald, saying she threatened him with violence and ordered the city’s police chief to arrest him based on fabricated allegations. Councilman Khursheed Ash-Shafii filed a complaint with the Michigan State Police last week, saying the first-term mayor threatened him in an obscenity-laced phone call…
Detroit’s Pizza Cat Max closes: ‘It was never meant to be forever,’ owner says
Toledo-based pizza chain Pizza Cat came onto the Detroit food scene in 2022 with the opening of Pizza Cat Max in Greektown, known for its “weird” pizza toppings like Flamin’ Hot Cheetos, pickles, and chicken crust. But Pizza Cat Max, the only dine-in location for Pizza Cat complete with a bar, closed for good on…
Detroit Youth Poetry Con hosts free event with Michigan Poet Laureate Nandi Comer and author Ross Gay
InsideOut Literary Arts is hosting its second annual Detroit Youth Poetry Con on Saturday, March 9. Last year, InsideOut brought award-winning poet, essayist, and music writer Hanif Abdurraqib to the city for the day-long workshop series and this year it’s tapping one of Detroit’s own. Michigan Poet Laureate Nandi Comer is one of this year’s…
Lapointe: Sportscaster Ron Cameron was one of a kind
I first met Ron Cameron on Opening Day of the 1967 baseball season when I worked as a “badge boy” usher at Tiger Stadium. Unescorted, Cameron sat down in an empty, wooden, green-painted chair in my reserved section in the upper deck on the first-base side of the home-plate backstop. At age 15, I held…
Lapointe: Could Michigan’s ‘uncommitted’ vote tip the election to Trump?
In the United States, the Democratic President runs for re-election even though it is clear to both his friends and to his foes that he is not as sharp as he once was. In Eastern Europe, the wily dictator in Moscow goes on the muscle. Among other targets, Poland ranks high on his list. And…
Motor City Mimosa plots new brunch spot and ‘elevated community center’
A new Black women-owned spot is coming to Detroit, as TeQuion Brookins and Nina Love are putting together their talents to create an “elevated community center” and brunch space. Motor City Mimosa, set to open in Eastern Market in late summer, will serve up mimosas, of course, as well as a range of breakfast and…
Detroit artist Jon Harris gets studio visit from Second Deputy Prime Minister of Spain
Jonathan Harris is no stranger to high praise and international attention following his viral “Critical Race Theory” painting in 2021. But he wasn’t quite expecting to get a request from the Second Deputy Prime Minister of Spain for a tour of his studio. Yolanda Díaz Pérez, who is both the Second Deputy Prime Minister and…
‘Spaceman’ gives Adam Sandler another meaty role, but without a script to match
Nearly 30 years after Billy Madison, an early Adam Sandler vehicle that bravely explored the complicated relationship between man and gargantuan penguin, the comedian-turned-actor once again finds himself facing a colossal creature that just won’t leave him alone. Sure, Spaceman swaps the man-child sent back to K-12 schooling for a lonely astronaut journeying into deep…
After four long years, Ypsi’s Deja Vu Showgirls strip club is back in business
Following years of setbacks, Ypsilanti’s Deja Vu Showgirls is finally ready to reopen its doors to the public. The strip club says it will open for a soft launch on Friday, with a grand reopening celebration planned for Friday, April 12. Deja Vu Showgirls has been mired in misfortune in recent years. The forced closure…
DPD defends controversial ShotSpotter system after leak reveals Detroit locations
The Detroit Police Department is standing by its controversial ShotSpotter gunshot detection system following a leak revealing the locations of its sensors in cities across the U.S. Last month, WIRED magazine published a map showing the locations of 25,580 ShotSpotter sensors around the country, citing a leaked document. Activists have protested the technology due to…
Justin Amash returns to Republican Party to run for U.S. Senate seat
Former U.S. Rep. Justin Amash, the libertarian-leaning Republican who went independent and later joined the Libertarian Party and became a critic of Donald Trump, announced Thursday he’s running for an open U.S. Senate seat in Michigan. Amash is returning to the Republican Party to run in the GOP primary set for August. He joins an…
Sigur Rós announces Detroit date with full orchestra
Icelandic rock band Sigur Rós has announced a limited U.S. tour with a full 41-piece orchestra, including a stop at Detroit’s Masonic Temple. The acclaimed band is teaming up with the Wordless Music Orchestra for the eight-date trek, with the exception of the Motor City, where they’ll be joined by the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. The…
Detroit suspiciously quiet about contamination found at missile site-turned-park
A week after the city of Detroit alerted residents in a last-minute Zoom meeting that it was closing a waterfront park on the east side after finding contamination in the soil, Mayor Mike Duggan’s administration has refused to divulge any further details. Now residents in Jefferson Chalmers are left wondering if they’ve been exposed to…
Detroit Juneteenth concert with Commodores, Pointer Sisters, and Detroit Youth Choir announced
Entertainment company 313 Presents will host its first Juneteenth Celebration this year at the Fox Theatre. The evening includes performances by Grammy-winning Motown legends the Commodores and 1980s R&B group the Pointer Sisters. The Commodores are known for their hits like “Machine Gun,” “Sail On,” “Brick House,” “Easy,” “Three Times a Lady,” and “Night Shift,”…
Detroit Lions release short film recapping wild 2023 season
Determination, resilience, and love is on display throughout the 2023 Detroit Lions Mini Movie, released on Tuesday to highlight the team’s historic year. The video begins with the Lions’ first game of the season, where the team beat the Kansas City Chiefs, the previous year’s Super Bowl champions. The epic game kicked off a great…
Robin Michigiizhigookwe Clark brings Indigenous knowledge to Michigan National Resources Commission as first Anishinaabe woman appointee
Areas that have been continuously stewarded by Indigenous people are often biodiversity hotspots where wildlife, humans, and nature thrive in balance with one another. That’s according to Robin Michigiizhigookwe Clark, who has been newly appointed to the Michigan Natural Resources Commission. Clark is the first Anishinaabe woman to serve on the commission and was appointed…
Welcome to the new and improved metrotimes.com
Your local alt-weekly has a new online home. A new and improved metrotimes.com launched Wednesday, and we’re pleased to finally share it with Detroit. Our crack tech support team at Big Lou Holdings LLC has been hard at work over the past months improving the online Metro Times experience, whether you’re viewing from a desktop,…
Noori Pocha is an excellent Korean hangout in Clawson
It’s a sign the patrons really, really like the restaurant when management feels moved to post a sign limiting their stay to two-and-a-half hours. In an interview, Noori Pocha co-owner Andy Kwon explained that he and sister Nali wanted to recreate a true Korean experience, from the music to the details of the design. “Small…
Detroit Day of Fashion highlights local designers, models, and performers
Local fashion designers, models, performers, vendors, and community members will come together next weekend for Detroit Day of Fashion, hosted at Fantazma Market and Cafe in the Detroit Hispanic Development Corporation. The upcoming show is the fourth Detroit Day of Fashion since the inaugural event in September of 2022, which started in an effort to…
Afro Nation festival set to return to Detroit this summer
Tuesday’s record-high temperature had us in a summer mood and today’s Afro Nation announcement has us daydreaming about summer even harder. Organizers of the international music festival celebrating Afrobeats and other music from the African diaspora announced the dates for Afro Nation Detroit 2024 are Saturday, August 17 and Sunday, August 18. Just like last…
Marianne Williamson ‘unsuspends’ her presidential campaign as Americans watch ‘car crash in slow motion’
Marianne Williamson, the former Detroit-area spiritual guru and best-selling author, announced Wednesday that she is “unsuspending” her longshot campaign for president. In a video posted on X, Williamson said she was back in the race for the White House, saying American voters are “watching a car crash in slow motion.” Williamson, a progressive Democrat who…
After a near-death experience, jazz player Kasan Belgrave carries his father’s legacy
In July 2021, saxophonist Kasan Belgrave was in a near-fatal car accident, T-boned at a highway intersection en route to a gig in Ohio. When paramedics arrived on the scene, Belgrave was unconscious, having sustained a brain injury and neck fracture, which required surgery. The crash happened when so many things in his life were…
Leave the tipping system alone
Chowhound is a weekly column about what’s trending in Detroit food culture. Tips: eat@metrotimes.com. As of April 1 in California, minimum wage for the state’s fast-food workforce increases to $20 an hour. On the East Coast, meanwhile, Empire State legislators are pushing to raise compensation for tipped employees at work in New York City from…
Free Will Astrology (Feb. 28-March 5)
ARIES (March 21-April 19): In my astrological estimation, the coming weeks will be an ideal time for you to declare amnesty, negotiate truces, and shed long-simmering resentments. Other recommended activities: Find ways to joke about embarrassing memories, break a bad habit just because it’s fun to do so, and throw away outdated stuff you no…
