In the mid-2000s when he was a student at Cass Technical High School, Big Sean would often drive by the Michigan Central train station, which was vacant and deteriorating.
“It was just an eyesore, it wasn’t nothing,” the Detroit rapper said. “And I couldn’t believe it when I performed at the groundbreaking in 2018. I was like, ‘Well, this is gonna take 25 years.’ It didn’t. People put their money where their mouth is and took the time. It’s amazing to see this day come to fruition.”
As Michigan Central continues its second act after a blowout grand opening in 2024, operators are focusing on partnerships, including one with the Boys and Girls Club of Greater Detroit. The two organizations celebrated the opening of a new facility Tuesday inside the former train station. Located on the fifth floor of Michigan Central, the 13,000-square-foot space includes a $1 million investment in an entertainment innovation incubator from Big Sean’s Sean Anderson Foundation and R&B singer Usher and his organization Usher’s New Look.
The incubator consists of a virtual production studio, special effects lab and creators’ lounge. The innovation incubator will deliver a full suite of advanced programming with a focus on young people ages 14–24 for careers like film, television, music production, immersive technologies and special effects, according to a news release.
The facility also features an autonomous training center and an innovation lab
designed to directly connect youth to emerging industries in fields like mobility, advanced manufacturing and artificial intelligence.
Michigan Central and the Boys and Girls Club commemorated the grand opening with a media event featuring a roundtable discussion with Big Sean, Usher, Boys and Girls Club of Southeastern Michigan CEO Shawn Wilson, Michigan Central COO Carolina Pluszczynski and Ilitch Sports + Entertainment CEO Ryan Gustafson. Ilitch Sports + Entertainment, which serves as the combined business operations arm of the Detroit Red Wings and the Detroit Tigers, has partnered with BGCSM for several years.
The Southeastern Michigan chapter of the Boys and Girls Club serves around 7,500 young people ages 6 to 18 in its clubs and school-based sites across metro Detroit.
Pluszczynski told Big Sean at the event that his commitment to the Boys and Girls Club provides access and opportunity for the youth of Detroit and helps to build a pipeline for the jobs of the future.
“Not only are these kids getting early access to the technologies being created, but they’re doing it in an ecosystem where they have pathways to jobs, and that’s something that’s super different about what we’re doing,” she said. “His commitment is incredible.”
Wilson said the new facility is all about investing in the future of Detroit, and that starts with the youth. He wanted the club’s children and teens to learn from the workers and creatives inside Michigan Central.
“We’re doing amazing work in the neighborhood, and we’ve been building our neighborhood clubs for the last seven years, revitalizing our clubs, refreshing and updating our programs,” he said. “But in order to truly help them reach their full potential, we knew that we had to help them get to a much bigger ecosystem, and that’s what Michigan Central represents.”
‘The magic of the city’
Usher said he was excited to collaborate with Big Sean because he sees a connection between Detroit and Atlanta, which is where he grew up as a teenager and where his foundation is based.
“This entire connection between Detroit and Atlanta predates this moment,” he said. “So I saw an opportunity to connect there. But more than that, we have a common interest, and it is engaging and also preparing our youth. That’s what absolutely ties us together in the city, outside of the fact that we both were two courageous Boys and Girls Club kids who had ideas, but we just happened to be in two different places.”
Big Sean added that it was an honor to work with someone he grew up listening to.
“I’m gonna shoot some videos in there myself and definitely have some of these young adults help me out in there because it’s state-of-the-art technology,” Big Sean said. “You walk down that hall and you feel a transformation. Walking from the beginning of the hall to the end, you got every aspect you need that goes into a creative project.”
Big Sean said keeping opportunities in the city is inspiring, which is something that wasn’t always possible when he was an up-and-coming rapper.
“I’m happy about this being here and people coming to Detroit and realizing the magic of the city,” he said. “It’s been that way since Henry Ford, it’s been that way since techno music, it’s been that way since Motown, since J Dilla.”
One of the young people enjoying the new facility was Shawn W., whose full name was withheld by the BGCSM to protect his privacy. The 21-year-old Detroiter is an artist who likes to draw, paint and design clothes. One of the pieces he had on display was a black jacket featuring various graphics on the sleeves and ripped black jeans. Shawn designed the outfit for New York Fashion Week in 2023.
Shawn is looking forward to utilizing the new Boys and Girls Club space for his projects. He hopes to eventually have an art show at one of the galleries in Detroit.
“It’s more people to connect with, more opportunities, more room,” he said. “I work out of my room, so there’s more space to be able to get bigger projects done.