Tag: Detroit

Detroit LIVE to Showcase Local Music, Art at The Heidelberg Project on Aug. 26

A new block party will spotlight established and emerging local music at The Heidelberg Project in Detroit’s McDougall-Hunt community on Aug 26.

The inaugural Detroit LIVE will feature performances by hip-hop artist Clear Soul Forces; DJ, producer and historian John Collins (Underground Resistance); rapper, DJ and visual artist Sheefy McFly; hip-hop artist Rah the Son and six other local acts.

Sound will be provided by the Audio Rescue Team. Detroit LIVE also will feature open mic sessions for other interested artists to showcase their talent.

Donna Kassab, POWER Entertainment owner and Detroit LIVE creator, has joined forces with Jenenne Whitfield, CEO of The Heidelberg Project, to host the free event near the city’s iconic outdoor art installation from noon to 8 p.m. at 3600 Heidelberg Street.

“The Heidelberg Project is one of the most visited cultural destinations in Detroit, so we wanted to bring a lot of people together around art to build a sense of community,” Kassab said. “Detroit LIVE is all about the spirit of collaboration through arts and entertainment.”

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Mo Pop Delivers Tasty Second Helping of Music for Day 2

Middle Kids perform at Detroit’s Mo Pop Festival on July 30.

Mo Pop festivalgoers received a delicious second helping of emerging alternative music at Detroit’s West Riverfront Park on July 30.

They sank their musical teeth into the sounds of Michigan-based acts Heaters and Stef Chura. Hailing from Grand Rapids, Mich., Heaters divvied up their psychedelic sound for Mo Pop’s early arrivals and played tracks from their latest release, “Baptistina.”

Detroit’s Chura grabbed the Michigan musical torch from Heaters and shared her ‘90s-inspired lo-fi sounds from her debut album, “Messes.” Her signature garage rock resonated with Mo Poppers as they snacked on the best local musical cuisine.

Over on the Grande Stage, Louisville, Ky.’s White Reaper played garage punk and power pop from “The World’s Best American Band,” including “Judy French” and “Little Silver Cross.” Bassist Sam Wilkerson recognized his brother, drummer Nick Wilkerson, during the band’s Mo Pop set.

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Mo Pop Festival Day 1 Serves Up Delectable Alt Rock, Hip-hop

Mondo Cozmo performs Saturday at Detroit’s Mo Pop Festival.

Saturday served up the perfect dish of music, weather and crowds for day one at Detroit’s Mo Pop Festival.

The festival included a delectable sampling of 11 emerging alt rock, indie pop and hip-hop acts at West Riverfront Park on a dry, bright summer day.

To kickoff day one, Michigan-based acts Humons and Michigander provided tasty summer electronic and pop entrees to early arrivals.

As Humons, Detroit producer Ardalan Sedghi performed dream house tracks from “Spectra,” his five-song EP, and briefly transformed the park into a mini outdoor daytime dance hall for festivalgoers – the ideal way to start any Motor City music festival.

Humons’ dance club was quickly transformed into an intimate rock club when Kalamazoo’s Michigander took the Captain Pabst Stage for his set. Led by Kalamazoo-based Jason Singer, Michigander eagerly welcomed fans with several musical indie pop gems, including “5 a.m.” and “Nineties.”

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Foster the People, Run the Jewels Headline This Weekend’s Mo Pop Festival in Detroit

Bishop Briggs performs at the Mo Pop Festival in July 2016.

The hottest alt rock and hip-hop acts will perform at Detroit’s West Riverfront Park July 29-30 for the fifth annual Mo Pop Festival.

Other notable artists will include a few Michigan-based acts – Heaters, Stef Chura, Humons and Michigander – along with emerging artists Jay Som, Mondo Cozmo, Waaves, Middle Kids, Vance Joy and Arkells. The full lineup is listed below.

With the Detroit skyline, Windsor, Ontario cityscape and local riverfront serving the festival’s premier backdrop, this is the third year Mo Pop has called the Motor City home.

In 2013 and 2014, the former one-day festival took place at Freedom Hill Amphitheatre (now the Michigan Lottery Amphitheatre) in Sterling Heights, Mich. Mo Pop expanded to a two-day event in 2015 when festival organizers decided to move it to downtown Detroit.

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Lindsey Buckingham, Christine McVie Prove Musical Bonds Never Break at Detroit’s Fox Theatre

Christine McVie, left, and Lindsey Buckingham perform at Detroit’s Fox Theatre on July 2.

It was time to leave, but something kept me there.

I turned around to catch a final glimpse of Mick Fleetwood. He saw me, smiled and blurted out, “Lindsey and Christine are going to tour this year. You should go see them!”

“I will!” I said. My emphatic response was my way of promising Fleetwood.

Fleetwood shared the perfect parting words as Brian and I left the reception room at the Hilton Austin Hotel on March 15. We had traveled to Austin to see Fleetwood discuss his upcoming book, “Love That Burns – A Chronicle of Fleetwood Mac,” at SXSW.

After the session, we attended a private reception hosted by Genesis Publications to meet Fleetwood and receive his autograph. It was a true honor to meet one of my five musical heroes.

Fleetwood’s comments were in reference to a recent announcement about Lindsey Buckingham and Christine McVie teaming up for a new album and tour as a duo.

I left the room smiling because my musical hero had ended the conversation on the right note — encouraging me to see the other members of Fleetwood Mac in concert was utterly perfect. For years, it felt like I had known Fleetwood. In that final moment, it felt like he knew me.

Four months later, I was ready to attend not one, but two Buckingham McVie shows – July 2 at Detroit’s Fox Theatre and July 6 at Soaring Eagle Casino and Resort in Mount Pleasant, Mich.

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Crystalized – The xx’s ‘I See You’ Tour Sparkles at Detroit’s Masonic Temple

Romy Madley Croft performs with The xx at Detroit’s Masonic Temple Tuesday night.

Seven mirrored panels rhythmically twisted and turned along to the shimmering sounds of The xx Tuesday night at Detroit’s Masonic Temple.

The pillars served as the reflective backdrop for the London-based indie pop trio’s brilliant 17-song set before nearly 4,000 fans.

Fans enthusiastically welcomed The xx back to Detroit after nearly a four-year absence and grooved to the illuminating, electronic tunes from the band’s current album, “I See You.”

The xx kicked off their 80-minute set with “Say Something Loving,” the latest single from “I See You,” and morphed into “Crystalized” from their 2009 debut, “xx.”

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POWER Surge — Motor City Talent Agency Hosts Launch Party, Prepares for Detroit LIVE Music Festival

POWER co-owners Kelly Adolph, far left, and Donna Kassab, fourth from right, gather with members of SIAS and Quantum Split during the April 20 launch party at CLUBHAUS Detroit. Photo by Brian Stratton

A new talent and events agency is powering up Detroit’s arts and entertainment scene.

Known as POWER Events | Entertainment, the Detroit-based agency hosted a launch party April 20 at CLUBHAUS Detroit to showcase emerging music, modeling, acting and athletic talent in the Motor City.

About 200 guests attended the launch party hosted by POWER co-owners Donna Kassab and Kelly Adolph and watched a fashion show featuring models wearing casual, modern styles with a bohemian flair from UnitedFront. Draped in hues of gold, cream and light blue, models sashayed down the runway to dance and hip-hop tunes spun by Detroit-based DJ Kobra Kinney.

Attendees also munched on appetizers by Detroit Catering Company and JusNCredible Eats and drank Hawthorne Vineyards wine served Brut Detroit and signature cocktails by Top Shelf Bartini.

“We received positive feedback about our plans to bring more events and entertainment to the city,” Kassab said. “I kept hearing, ‘thank you, this is so fun.’ There was a lot of excitement in the room.”

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Staying POWER — New Events, Entertainment Agency Showcases Detroit Talent at Tonight’s Launch Party

SIAS will perform at tonight’s POWER Events | Entertainment launch party in Detroit.

Detroit-based entrepreneurs are ready to shine a spotlight on the Motor City arts and entertainment scene.

Donna Kassab and Kelly Adolph are celebrating the official launch of POWER Events | Entertainment, a new Detroit-based talent and event agency, tonight at CLUBHAUS Detroit, 6540 Antoine St., in the city’s New Center district.

Kassab and Adolph started POWER in October to showcase emerging music, modeling, acting and athletic talent in Detroit and introduce that talent to local entertainment professionals and businesses.

The two entrepreneurs met at another company in metro Detroit and have spent nearly two decades working in the entertainment industry.

“There really isn’t anyone doing this in the city of Detroit,” said Kassab, POWER co-owner. “We love Detroit, and we want to help people get started. We look for undiscovered talent and provide a platform so they can be on stage.”

That stage will be set for tonight’s free launch party and include a fashion show featuring models wearing designs by Detroit-based clothing store UnitedFront aand music by Detroit artists SIAS and DJ Kobra Kinney as well as New York City-based rock, soul and hip-hop infused band Quantum Split.

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Tennis Revives 1970s Dream Pop at March 10 Ferndale Magic Bag Show

Tennis’ Alaina Moore performs at The Magic Bag in Ferndale.

This past Friday, I returned to the 1970s.

My visit was brief – about four and a half hours – but I traveled through the shimmering, dreamy soft rock tunes of Denver-based indie pop band Tennis.

Tennis created a 1970s sonic feel by featuring pre-show music from Hall & Oates, Minnie Riperton, Bob Welch and other artists from my favorite decade.

Led by wife and husband duo Alaina Moore and Patrick Riley, Tennis played a sold-out show to an energetic crowd of 400 at Ferndale, Mich.’s The Magic Bag, one of my favorite music venues in southeast Michigan.

In a sense, Friday’s show also served as an informal release party for Tennis’ fourth album, “Yours Unconditionally,” which dropped that day and features a 1970s-inspired pop sound. The album’s cover includes a faded close-up shot of the duo that’s reminiscent of 1970s era vinyl album covers.

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‘Sainthood’ – Tegan and Sara Indie Pop Gem Still Sparkles 7 Years Later

Tegan and Sara perform on Oct. 26 at the Royal Oak Music Theater in Royal Oak, Mich. during the “Love You to Death” tour.

Editor’s Note: Brian Stratton writes about one of his favorite Tegan and Sara albums from the Canadian sisters’ catalog.

We all have a certain song or album that we associate with a band. It might not be the artist’s biggest hit or a critically acclaimed release, but nonetheless it strongly resonates with you.

That is the joy of music, finding a way to personally connect with the art and discovering your own meaning behind it.

For me, I can’t think about Canadian sister duo Tegan and Sara without their 2009 album “Sainthood” crossing my mind.

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