Cover Story
After almost 50 years behind bars, Ray Gray hopes his nightmare will soon come to an end
Prison cells and paintbrushes represent constants and contrasts for Ray Gray. Since a life-changing night almost 50 years ago, he has earned a dubious distinction as one of the longest-serving and most brilliantly talented inmates in Michigan, if not in the entire country. “I was at home. I was a boxer, and I was contemplating…
Late songwriting icon Allee Willis to be honored with tribute at Detroit’s Eastern Market
The death of Detroit native and award-winning songwriter Allee Willis last year was felt through the music world and beyond. Willis, who most famously penned Earth, Wind & Fire’s “September,” as well as the intoxicating Friends theme song, died in her home in Los Angeles in December at the age of 72. To honor the “Queen…
Dillatroit 5 returns to Marble Bar to celebrate the life and legacy of Detroit producer J Dilla
Just three days after the release of his highly influential record Donuts and his 32nd birthday, prolific producer J Dilla died of complications from lupus. Detroit has not forgotten Dilla or his massive contribution in shaping Detroit’s underground hip-hop scene, nor his work with an impressive list of A-list musicians and their music, including Common,…
Metronomy brings 2 decades of electro-pop to Detroit’s Majestic Theatre
Metronomy Forever finds the English electro-indie outfit led by Joe Mount grappling with legacy through 17 meandering songs that reveal a band not ready to grow up, but totally willing to settle down. The sixth installment in Metronomy’s discography homes in on domesticity (the record is bookended by songs about weddings and wedding bells) while…
Jax Anderson brings healing energy to Detroit’s El Club with Shortly and Who Boy
Flint who? Queer pop artist Jax Anderson dropped her stage name, Flint Eastwood, last summer, after what she refers to as an “intense burnout” following a whirlwind tour itinerary that occupied three years of her life. It wasn’t until she took a road trip with Detroit artist and climate change activist Ellen Rutt that she…
Detroit’s 15th annual Winter Blast keeps it chill with free weekend of family fun
Winter might be a pain in our Vitamin-D deprived asses, but it can also be a total blast — at least for one weekend in February when Winter Blast rolls through town. For 15 years, some version of Winter Blast has done its best to scare away the seasonal doldrums. This year, however, it’s enduring…
Rising rock star King Princess is our 2020 mood — and she’s coming to Royal Oak Music Theatre
Leather pants, guitar smash, and a tittie flash can mean only one thing: King Princess is coming to town. Mikaela Straus, the 21-year-old Brooklynite who makes personal and seductive genderqueer pop as King Princess, accomplished the following in 2019: She released her debut record, Cheap Queen, performed on Saturday Night Live, and appeared on mastermind…
Award-winning jazz vocalist Cécile McLorin Salvant to perform in Ann Arbor with pianist Aaron Diehl
Thirty-year-old Grammy Award-winning jazz vocalist Cécile McLorin Salvant has established herself as a modern-day torchbearer of the tradition. On 2018’s The Window, Salvant and pianist Sullivan Fortner took on great American standards (and songs that should enter the canon, like Stevie Wonder’s “Visions” and Aretha Franklin’s “One Step Ahead”) with a stripped-down, improvisational style that…
‘Princess Bride’ star Mandy Patinkin brings modern American standards to Detroit’s Fisher Theatre
He’s Inigo Montoya, and he’s ready to avenge his father’s death and… bust into some show tunes? Actor, singer, and storyteller Mandy Patinkin may be most recognizable as the mustachioed, sword-wielding babe from 1987’s The Princess Bride or, more recently, as Saul Berenson from the long-running Showtime series Homeland. But before Inigo Montoya, there was…
Squad up, ninjas — Astronomicon 3 celebrates pop culture with WWE stars, comic artists, and Anthony Michael Hall
Halloween might be 260-plus days away, but that won’t stop Detroit horrorcore rappers Twiztid from celebrating the weird, wacky, and wonderful world of pop culture their way. Entering its third year is Astronomicon, the weekend-long pop culture convention with a celebrity guest roster that has something to offer just about every fandom. This year will…
Safflower Street, an all-vegan bakery, is set to open in Ferndale
A new vegan bakery will bloom in Ferndale this spring. Safflower Street, southeast Michigan’s first all-vegan, gluten-free eatery, has plans to offer counter-service and dessert items at a new location north of Nine Mile Road at 23131 Woodward Ave. The bakery, which plans to open its brick-and-mortar spot within a couple of months, is headed…
Far-right Proud Boys member sits on city council of predominately Hispanic town in Michigan
A member of the Proud Boys, a far-right group known for racist, misogynistic and violent rhetoric, sits on a city commission representing the predominately Hispanic population of Fennville in western Michigan. Morgan Bolles, who has an extensive criminal record, was appointed to fill a vacant commission seat on Dec. 2. Soon after the appointment, city…
Goo Goo Dolls, Incubus, 311, and Slipknot announce summer tour plans with metro Detroit performances
Goo Goo Dolls, Incubus, 311, and Slipknot. That’s it. That’s the tweet. Sex may sell, but so does nostalgia — which is why this latest batch of concert announcements may be exploiting our love of early-aughts VH1. It was announced Tuesday that Goo Goo Dolls, Incubus, and Slipknot would be embarking on individual summer tours,…
Detroit doughnut shop Dilla’s Delights surpasses fundraising goal to move to bigger location
Things are looking up for Dilla’s Delights, Detroit’s hip-hop-themed doughnut shop. Last year, the shop closed for a month as Herman Hayes revealed in an Instagram post that he had been diagnosed with cancer. Soon, the company launched a crowdfunding campaign to catch up on past bills, upgrade its equipment, and move to a larger…
Founders Brewing Co.’s Detroit taproom reopens after racial discrimination controversy
Founders Brewing Co.’s Detroit taproom is set to reopen this week after a contentious racial discrimination lawsuit caused it to close its doors last year. The taproom is slated to open its doors at 11 a.m. on Thursday, Feb. 6. The brewery entered the national spotlight when Metro Times published a transcription from the case’s…
Former WXYZ reporter settles $100M sexual harassment lawsuit
Former WXYZ-TV reporter Tara Edwards has settled a $100 million lawsuit that claims she was subjected to almost daily sexual harassment and the station failed to adequately respond. Details of the settlement, which was first reported by Deadline Detroit, have not been disclosed. Edwards filed the suit in March 2018, alleging WXYZ anchor Malcolm Maddox…
Detroit River shoreline collapse was an illegal operation that could have been prevented
The companies responsible for a collapsed dock that spilled contaminated soil into the Detroit River in November have operated outside of the law, and no government agencies appeared to be aware of it until it was too late. Even now, more than two months after Detroit Bulk Storage caused the collapse by illegally storing an…
Michigan Democrats unveil legislation to hold polluters accountable
Tired of corporations putting profit ahead of a clean environment, Democratic lawmakers in Michigan unveiled legislation Monday that would hold polluters accountable. The eight-bill package would stiffen civil and criminal penalties for companies and their leaders who contaminate the air, water, or land with harmful pollutants. “There are more than three dozen corporate polluters in…
Bernie Sanders says he would legalize marijuana on his first day as president
In case you were wondering how big a role marijuana will play in the upcoming political season, take a look at Democratic 2020 candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders. Two days before the Iowa caucus, Sanders pledged to legalize marijuana by executive order on his first day in office if elected president. “We will end the destructive…
Patience, Detroit — Guns N’ Roses will perform at Comerica Park this summer
Be it Paradise City, a jungle, or an unseasonably rainy November, Axl Rose, Slash, and Duff McKagan are here to restore rock ‘n’ roll across the globe, because, you know, Imagine Dragons are considered rock now. It was announced Monday that rock icons Guns N’ Roses would return to Detroit, this time in support of their…
Scorecard suggests Michigan families need more to thrive
Michigan’s economy has seen steady growth in recent years, but a new report shows many people are still vulnerable to financial hardship. The 2020 Scorecard from the group Prosperity Now is a snapshot of financial security among states, and ranks Michigan 26th overall. Holden Weisman, an associate director of policy for Prosperity Now, says Michigan’s…
MSU apologizes over display of Black dolls hanging from a tree in gift shop
Michigan State University has apologized after its gift shop kicked off Black History month by hanging Black dolls from a wooden tree display. A photo of the offensive display began circulating on social media over the weekend. Paula-Equality Jackson and her friends were outraged when they spotted miniature dolls depicting prominent African Americans hanging by…
My dog survived nearly four years after a vet said he would die. I believe cannabis kept him alive.
The story of my dog Kai has come to an end, almost four years after a doctor told me he would die in two or three months from cancer. When I heard that Rick Simpson Oil, a medication derived from cannabis, could work wonders for cancer treatment, I started giving it to Kai daily. I…
Expansion of hazardous waste plant in Detroit smacks of ‘environmental racism,’ Rep. Robinson says
The expansion of a hazardous waste processing plant with a history of serious violations on Detroit’s east side smacks of “environmental racism,” Rep. Isaac Robinson wrote in scathing letters to state officials. Approving US Ecology’s expansion “would demonstrate a complete contempt for the working families of southeastern Michigan,” Robinson, whose district includes the plant on…
Hazardous waste plant in Detroit with history of serious violations gets state approval to expand almost ninefold
A hazardous waste processing plant with a history of serious violations on Detroit’s east side has received state approval to drastically expand its toxic waste storage facilities. The state Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy (EGLE) issued the 10-year permit Wednesday to US Ecology over the strong opposition of residents. Since September 2010, the…
Due to technical difficulties, 911 was disabled in Michigan for a few hours
For a few hours Friday morning, a massive statewide crime spree a la The Purge was theoretically possible as Michigan’s 911 emergency system crashed. “An update to the 911 system was attempted and there was a technical issue,” a press release tweeted by Michigan State Police read, calling to mind the Keystone Cops. There is…
Michigan teen who needed double lung transplant finally admits he vaped marijuana — but the media is still clouding the issue
Last year, doctors at Henry Ford Hospital performed a rare double lung transplant — the first in the U.S. — on a Michigan boy who officials said damaged his lungs by vaping. Confusingly, they would not say what exactly he vaped, which would, you know, be helpful information for a frightened public. It’s part of…
The Blitzers’ release ‘Noble Rot’ EP at Ferndale’s Loving Touch with SpaceSkull and the Savage Seven
Detroit is home to several notable genres, Motown and rock ’n’ roll topping the list. But in recent years, Detroit appears to be a breeding ground for a rock subgenre of the extraterrestrial variety. Diabolical space rock sludge is a thing now (because we said so) and Detroit’s premier blood cult SpaceSkull is absolutely doing…
Friends of Dennis Wilson will release ‘Space Maintainer’ on vinyl at Detroit’s Outer Limits Lounge
Beach Boys co-founder (and the band’s only actual surfer) Dennis Wilson made a lot of friends during his life, which was cut short by an accident in which he drowned at the age of 39. Suffice it to say, Detroit five-piece Friends of Dennis Wilson sound nothing like Wilson or his all-American beach-loving brothers. As…
Rapper Berner’s Detroit Cookies weed dispensary, his first outside of California, is now open
California rapper Berner’s popular Cookies chain of marijuana dispensaries is set to open the doors of its new Detroit location on Friday. The store is located at 6030 E. Eight Mile Rd., Detroit. It’s the rapper’s first location outside of his home state of California. “I, myself and the company, feels that Michigan is probably…
Here’s what authorities seized at Michigan-Canada border crossings in 2019
Body armor and replica grenades. Counterfeit Rolex watches and Apple AirPods. Six hundred pounds of cocaine and enough fentanyl to kill 1.5 million people. Those are among the items intercepted at Michigan border crossings in 2019. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials said they had a banner year, leading the nation in interceptions of unreported…
Marijuana is disproportionately expensive at Michigan dispensaries, study finds
Cannabis dispensaries are convenient because they’re legal and offer a wide selection, but they’re often more expensive than your illicit drug dealer. A new study by LeafLink, a wholesale marketplace for the cannabis industry, sheds some light on the costs of marijuana at legal dispensaries. Of the 10 states in the Wholesale Cannabis Pricing Guide,…
7 things to know before trying CBD oil
CBD oil has been a hot topic for the last few years. Even if you haven’t tried any yourself, you’ve probably heard someone sing its praises. It tends to provoke curiosity among the unfamiliar, who want to see what all the fuss is about. If you’re a newcomer to CBD, the sheer amount of information…
We’re not okay — My Chemical Romance will kick off reunion tour in Detroit
Lace your Converse, Detroit. We’ve been summoned. In a video titled “A summoning…” posted by My Chemical Romance on Wednesday, details of the New Jersey band’s massively anticipated forthcoming reunion tour were revealed, including a performance at Detroit’s Little Caesars Arena on Sep. 9. The Detroit date will mark the launch of the North American…
Detroit-style pizzeria Michigan & Trumbull opens in Corktown
Detroit-style pizza and its square, deep-dish charm continues to rise in popularity across the country. As part of that movement, a new Detroit-style pizzeria opened in Corktown on Wednesday. The new eatery, Michigan & Trumbull, is located in a refurbished garage at 1441 W. Elizabeth St., next to McShane’s. It’s named after a major intersection…
Movement Festival 2020 announces full lineup, including Underworld, Testpilot, Kash Doll, Jamie xx, and more
Detroit’s Movement Festival announced its full 2020 lineup on Wednesday, and it’s looking like this year’s fest, set once again for Memorial Day weekend at Hart Plaza, will be a doozy. Recently announced acts include British techno group Underworld, a veteran act formed in 1980, which is playing its first live show in Detroit in…
Black students at Saline High School targeted by racial slurs on social media
Several Saline High School students are under fire for posting racial slurs about their Black classmates on social media. In a letter posted online, Superintendent Scot Graden said teachers and administrators learned Monday about “inappropriate racist comments using derogatory terms about African Americans” in a social media chat group. Students posted the n-word several times…
Developers pull plug on apartment, condo projects in Detroit
In recent years, politicians and deep-pocketed developers sticking shovels into the ground and smiling for the cameras — breaking ground for thousands of apartments and luxury condos in a city that only recently emerged from bankruptcy and a crippling recession — had become a common sight. Greater downtown Detroit, they proclaimed, was fertile ground for…
You can catch Academy Award-nominated shorts at the DFT this week
The relative lack of space for short films on the viewing public’s radar stands as one of the media industry’s odder truths. At a moment in which YouTube, Vimeo, the Criterion Channel, and other platforms ought to make their distribution simpler — and one in which viewers put up with undercooked material that runs longer,…
‘No Safety Net 2.0’ performance art festival is fringe with an edge
Masculinity and internet radicalization, feminism, race, privilege, patriotism, and the refugee crisis — audiences in southeastern Michigan will have an opportunity to engage and explore these edgy topics in live theater for the next three weeks at the University Musical Society’s latest series of performances, provocatively titled No Safety Net 2.0. The UMS’s three-week long…
Savage Love: Rain checks
I’m a 33-year-old woman in a relationship with a 43-year-old man. My boyfriend’s fantasy is to have a threesome with another man. He enjoys watching me have sex with other men and then intermittently fucking me. But he mostly likes to watch me get fucked. For a long time, my boyfriend would send nudes or…
Horoscopes (Jan. 29-Feb. 4)
ARIES | March 21 – April 20: Some things are easier said than done. With more than your share of obstacles on tap, you know that you’ve got to buck up and deal with them, but the energy isn’t there for it. In some cases, you’re totally devastated. Getting around the hard stuff is tricky.…
Michigan’s sunshine laws still leave citizens in the dark
As we count down to our 40th anniversary in October, we’ve been revisiting our archives to highlight Metro Times stories that resonate in 2020. 30 years ago in Metro Times: Amy Harmon, a researcher at the Los Angeles Times’ Detroit bureau, reports on the “sad state of Michigan’s sunshine laws” nearly 15 years after the…
Detroit’s Frita Batidos serves up burgers, fries, and milkshakes — with a fabulous twist
It’s easy to get confused by the name. It’s nothing to do with Frito Bandito, the cartoon mascot for Fritos corn chips, much less Frida Kahlo. Frita Batidos is “Cuban-influenced,” not Mexican. “Frita” means “fried” and is, says owner Eve Aronoff, what the Cubans call a burger made of chorizo, with shoestring fries. Aronoff opened…
One of the Cass Corridor’s most beloved dives, the Old Miami turns 40
Dan Overstreet returned to Detroit after a tour in Vietnam with the 101st Infantry that gave him malaria three times and killed 19 of his unit’s 21 soldiers. He tried to keep a steady job as a union railroad worker, but got into enough scuffles with management that they offered him money to get lost.…
Sam Beam on 20 years of Iron and Wine, and finding a musical soulmate in Calexico
This is not Sam Beam’s first rodeo. When we speak with Beam, who has performed as Iron and Wine for close to two decades, he’s preparing for the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards. The bearded stalwart of weepy, dreamy folk is up for a pair of awards for his 2019 reunion with attitude-heavy, Arizona-bred folk shredders…
Sat Nam from Kundalini Yoga in Detroit, LLC
Are you stressed out — feeling like you’re both ungrounded and stuck in the same place? Kundalini Yoga in Detroit has the solutions for you. This amazing home studio owned by KRI certified Kundalini Yoga instructors Mike Hendrian and Andrea Fiondo, is in the University District of Detroit, near U of D/Mercy. Once you try…
