One Detroit – Karriem Riggins, Climate change damages housing, ‘Fountain of Tears,’ One Detroit Weekend

This Week on One Detroit:

Detroit Jazz Festival announces 2023 lineup, featuring artist-in-residence Karriem Riggins

The Detroit Jazz Festival Foundation has announced its lineup for the annual Labor Day weekend festival in downtown Detroit. Headlining the festival will be three Detroit jazz legends, violinist Regina Carter, saxophonist Kenny Garrett and drummer Louis Hayes, all of whom recently received a National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Master Award.  

The festival also introduced the Detroit-native jazz drummer and hip-hop producer Karriem Riggins as this year’s artist-in-residence. The renowned drummer will spend the summer participating in educational and community activities as part of his residency, leading up to his performance at the 2023 Detroit Jazz Festival.  

Riggins sat down with 90.9 WRCJ’s John Penney, the host of JazzFest Detroit, after hosting a master class for Wayne State University music students to talk about what it means to be introduced as the artist-in-residence for his hometown jazz festival and what he’s preparing for the Labor Day weekend performance.  

Plus, they talk about jazz gatekeepers and how Riggins has blended his love for multiple genres into a unique sound of his own; how today’s jazz students are evolving the genre; the mentor that pushed him to find his voice in the music; and what he hopes to achieve as a prolific musician. Riggin’s performance from the Detroit Jazz Festival Preview event can be seen here.

Climate change could spell catastrophe for Detroit’s older homes

Climate change continues to have an impact on some residents in Southeast Michigan. For the average homeowner, when it rains, one may grab a good book, kick their feet up and relax under the gloomy skies. For Detroit resident Semone Alexander, every time it rains, it’s anything but relaxing.  

As heavy rains have become more frequent in the last half-decade, so has the flooding of Alexander and other residents’ homes— so much so that many of the homes have fallen into disrepair. For Earth Month, One Detroit Senior Producer Bill Kubota took a visit to Alexander’s home and talked with the United Community Housing Coalition about the damage Detroit’s harsher weather conditions is causing to the city’s older homes.  

Kubota talks with Coalition Executive Director Ted Phillips, who’s served as the director since 1986, about the increasing pace of record-setting rainfall we’ve been seeing in the region, as well as the issues around affordable housing and low-income tax credit housing in the city. Plus, he talks with Tim Bishop, who works in Repair Services for the Coalition, about the impact deferred maintenance has on older homes and how climate change may start to impact residents’ wallets too. 

A fiery blend of opera and flamenco ignite the Detroit Opera’s performance of ‘Fountain of Tears’

Opera meets flamenco in the Detroit Opera’s high-energy performance of Osvaldo Golijov’s “Ainadamar,” which translates to “Fountain of Tears.” The production, which runs through April 16, blends flamenco, rumba rhythms and classical operatic singing to tell the revolutionary life story of Spanish poet and playwright Federico Garcia Lorca, whose political outlook and sexual orientation as a gay man led to his tragic death during the Spanish Civil War.

“Detroit Performs: Live from Marygrove” host and One Detroit contributor Satori Shakoor sat down with mezzo-soprano Daniela Mack, who plays Lorca, to talk about the production and its relevance today.

They talk about how Mack prepares to step into the shoes of the world-famous author, poet and playwright Federico Lorca, which songs excite and inspire her most while performing, and how the story continues to resonate with issues in society today. Plus, stick around until the end to see a preview of the performance.

One Detroit Weekend: April 14, 2023

Are you looking for some arts, culture, music and family-friendly fun to experience in Southeast Michigan this weekend? From celebrations for Jazz Appreciation Month and National Poetry Month to the Detroit Opera’s production of “Fountain of Tears,” Detroit has so much to offer this weekend. 

One Detroit contributors Cecelia Sharpe and Dave Wagner of 90.9 WRCJ shares what’s happening around metro Detroit during the April 14 weekend and into next week on “One Detroit Weekend.” 

List of Upcoming Events:  

For National Poetry Month, check out a live poetry open mic night Friday, April 14 at 8 p.m. at Navi O’s Hobby Lounge in Livonia. Poets, spoken word performers, and musicians welcome. 
Reimagine the life of revolutionary Spanish poet Federico Garcia Lorca in the Detroit Opera’s production of Osvaldo Golijov’s “Fountain of Tears.” Performances run April 14 and 16.  
How far will a mother go to protect her own kin? Find out in the play “Gotta Make it Last,” showing at the Marygrove Theater at 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. Saturday, April 15.  
Join The Piano Guys for a performance of their latest project “Limitless” at 6:30 p.m. Friday, April 14 at the Masonic Temple Theatre.  
The Demetrius Nabors Band, led by globally renowned pianist, composer, producer and arranger Demetrius “Krayon” Nabors, performs at the Blue Llama Jazz Club at 6:30 p.m. and 9 p.m. Friday, April 14.  
Learn from some of the best composers in America at the Detroit Chamber Winds & Strings’ Resonate Symposium April 14-15 at The Carr Center. Student admission is free with a student ID.  
Kick-off WRCJ’s pledge drive with hosts Peter Whorf and Dave Wagner at 8 a.m. Saturday, April 15 for a chance to win the recordings of the complete music of Beethoven.