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J

Author

Jamie

Contributing Writer

Jamie is a Contributing Writer at Strait Journal. Covers Detroit's galleries, museums, public art, and design-forward institutions.

Writes from inside the room. More likely to describe what a space looks and feels like than to summarize an artist statement. Notices the chairs.

Walks the same Cass Corridor route every morning. Knows the names of half the dogs along it. Drinks black coffee, no exceptions, refuses to acknowledge the existence of cold brew. Owns one cat, name confidential.

Also files on food and music when the story asks for it. Contributing since 2024.

Quick hits
Favorite room:
Library Street Collective on opening night
Favorite restaurant:
Selden Standard
One Detroit artist to put on first:
Tiff Massey

[email protected]

Recent work

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Life Remodeled opens Anchor Detroit, a nearly 72,000-square-foot opportunity hub on the east side
CommunityNews
Life Remodeled opens Anchor Detroit, a nearly 72,000-square-foot opportunity hub on the east sideLife Remodeled has opened Anchor Detroit, a nearly 72,000-square-foot opportunity hub inside the former Dominican High School in Denby, bringing afterschool youth programs, workforce development, and health and wellness resources to Detroit's east side.By Jamie · Jul 8, 2026 Detroit Bookfest returning to Eastern Market on July 19 for its ninth year
CommunityPreview
Detroit Bookfest returning to Eastern Market on July 19 for its ninth yearThe 9th Annual Detroit Festival of Books lands at Eastern Market on July 19, free and open to all, with more than 300 vendors, a two-day bookstore weekend, and a children's book drive.By Jamie · Jun 21, 2026 Detroit small business owners know social media is essential. Showing up every day is the hard part.
CommunityNews
Detroit small business owners know social media is essential. Showing up every day is the hard part.For Detroit entrepreneurs like Hatch Detroit winner Trice Clark, social media fills every workshop seat. The hard part is finding time to record the work.By Jamie · Jun 11, 2026 The PWHL Draft comes to Detroit's Fox Theatre on Wednesday. Here's what to know.
CityPreview
The PWHL Draft comes to Detroit's Fox Theatre on Wednesday. Here's what to know.The 2026 PWHL Draft lands at the Fox Theatre on Wednesday at 5 p.m., after Detroit traded its third overall pick to Las Vegas for Hilary Knight.By Jamie · Jun 16, 2026 Detroit is America's only UNESCO City of Design. Yes, really.
CommunityNews
Detroit is America's only UNESCO City of Design. Yes, really.Detroit has been the only U.S. city to hold the UNESCO City of Design title since 2015, a designation most people would guess belongs to New York or Chicago.By Jamie · Jun 16, 2026 The doctor who bought RenCen Tower 600 is dropping the office plan for a hotel
CityNews
The doctor who bought RenCen Tower 600 is dropping the office plan for a hotelStockbridge Enterprises, the firm that paid more than nine million dollars for the Renaissance Center's Tower 600 in 2025, has reworked its plans around a 200-room hotel and 92 residences after office interest never materialized.By Jamie · Jun 12, 2026 Detroit's third graders are reading better than they have in 11 years
CommunityNews
Detroit's third graders are reading better than they have in 11 yearsDPSCD students are gaining ground in reading and math faster than most districts in the country, and the people running the schools point to a few specific moves that got them there.By Jamie · Jun 11, 2026 The Rocket Classic's final summer in Detroit brings its best field yet
CityPreview
The Rocket Classic's final summer in Detroit brings its best field yetDetroit's PGA Tour event ends after 2026. Its final field is the strongest yet, with three top-10 players committed for July 30 to August 2 at Detroit Golf Club.By Jamie · Jun 9, 2026 Heat index near 100 expected midweek as Detroit opens cooling centers across the city
CityNews
Heat index near 100 expected midweek as Detroit opens cooling centers across the cityA heat advisory covers much of Southeast Michigan midweek, with the heat index near 100. Detroit has opened recreation centers and libraries as cooling sites.By Jamie · Jun 8, 2026 Detroit City FC is bringing free World Cup watch parties to Campus Martius and Mexicantown this June
CommunityPreview
Detroit City FC is bringing free World Cup watch parties to Campus Martius and Mexicantown this JuneDetroit City FC is hosting six free World Cup watch parties in June, splitting USA matches between Campus Martius and the City Fieldhouse and Mexico matches outside Los Galanes.By Jamie · Jun 8, 2026 Belle Isle Beach cleanup set for June 20 ahead of peak summer crowds
CommunityPreview
Belle Isle Beach cleanup set for June 20 ahead of peak summer crowdsThe Cleanup Club and the Belle Isle Conservancy host a free shoreline cleanup at the Belle Isle Beach House on Saturday, June 20, from 10 a.m. to noon, open to anyone.By Jamie · Jun 4, 2026 Detroit teens spend the summer building an engine from scratch
CommunityPreview
Detroit teens spend the summer building an engine from scratchThe Engine Building Bootcamp returns for its fourth year, putting Detroit middle and high schoolers on the wrench for five free weeks this summer.By Jamie · May 31, 2026 An Air Force veteran is building a youth hub on Detroit's east side
CommunityProfile
An Air Force veteran is building a youth hub on Detroit's east sideDamon Williams came home to East English Village to launch Outside the Box, a youth hub linking Detroit teenagers to city resources and neighborhood partners, and introduced it with a community basketball game.By Jamie · May 31, 2026 Mid-century Detroit, one lunch break at a time: Norman Zadoorian's photos now at Detroit Historical Museum
ArtsNews
Mid-century Detroit, one lunch break at a time: Norman Zadoorian's photos now at Detroit Historical MuseumForty photographs from Norman Zadoorian's mid-century Detroit street work are on view at the Detroit Historical Museum through May 15, 2027.By Jamie · May 29, 2026 From tire piles to beautification contracts: how Audra Carson built Izzie Global
CommunityProfile
From tire piles to beautification contracts: how Audra Carson built Izzie GlobalDetroit's onetime Tire Lady traded three decades as a corporate analyst for a cleanup mission, and her company Izzie Global now keeps lots, parks, and corridors clear across the city.By Jamie · May 29, 2026 CCS's 101st student exhibition is open through May 29
ArtsNews
CCS's 101st student exhibition is open through May 29The College for Creative Studies has turned its campus into a gallery of thousands of pieces for the 101st time. The show is free and runs through May 29.By Jamie · May 28, 2026 The house on East Ferry Street is the subject of a Smithsonian director's DIA lecture next month
ArtsPreview
The house on East Ferry Street is the subject of a Smithsonian director's DIA lecture next monthSmithsonian National Museum of Asian Art director Chase Robinson lectures at the DIA on June 7 about Charles Lang Freer, the Detroit industrialist whose 1906 gift founded a national museum.By Jamie · May 26, 2026 The Detroit Zoo opens its Erb Discovery Trails, seven acres built for kids
CommunityNews
The Detroit Zoo opens its Erb Discovery Trails, seven acres built for kidsThe Detroit Zoo has opened the Fred and Barbara Erb Discovery Trails, a seven acre stretch of animal encounters, climbing structures, and a stingray touch pool that the zoo calls the largest project in its history.By Jamie · May 24, 2026 Mike Duggan ends his independent run for Michigan governor
CityNews
Mike Duggan ends his independent run for Michigan governorThe former Detroit mayor closed an 18-month independent bid for governor Thursday, citing a poll deficit and an independent fundraising network he said was still too young to compete.By Jamie · May 21, 2026 Detroit's first Juneteenth music festival features Kash Doll, Babytron and Fetty Wap
MusicPreview
Detroit's first Juneteenth music festival features Kash Doll, Babytron and Fetty WapThe inaugural Hart of Detroit Summer Festival takes over Hart Plaza on June 19 with Kash Doll, Babytron and Fetty Wap headlining an all-day Juneteenth lineup.By Jamie · May 21, 2026 'Big Jim' O'Brien exits WCSX after 24 years, says he is staying in Detroit
MusicNews
'Big Jim' O'Brien exits WCSX after 24 years, says he is staying in DetroitJim O'Brien, the longtime 'Big Jim' of 94.7 WCSX, announced the end of his run at the classic rock station and said he plans to stay in metro Detroit.By Jamie · May 15, 2026 Hamilton closes at the Fisher, and Broadway in Detroit lines up six premieres for 2026-27
ArtsNews
Hamilton closes at the Fisher, and Broadway in Detroit lines up six premieres for 2026-27Hamilton ends its Fisher Theatre run May 17, and ATG Detroit has set a 2026-27 Broadway in Detroit season built entirely on Detroit premieres.By Jamie · May 12, 2026 Marrow is closing its West Village restaurant June 7
EatsSpotlight
Marrow is closing its West Village restaurant June 7Founder Ping Ho is consolidating the butcher-restaurant brand around its Eastern Market space and winding down the original Kercheval location after eight years.By Jamie · May 12, 2026 A walkable cardboard maze of Detroit landmarks opens at the Michigan Science Center
ArtsPreview
A walkable cardboard maze of Detroit landmarks opens at the Michigan Science CenterA-MAZING Detroit, a life-sized cardboard maze built around seven Detroit neighborhoods, opens Saturday at the Michigan Science Center and is included with general admission.By Jamie · May 7, 2026 CCS turned the Somerset Skywalk into a 700-foot runway for The Show 2026
ArtsReview
CCS turned the Somerset Skywalk into a 700-foot runway for The Show 2026The College for Creative Studies staged its annual student fashion showcase on the glass Skywalk that spans Big Beaver Road, sending more than 100 looks across a 700-foot bridge in front of 354 guests.By Jamie · May 5, 2026 Buffalo Prescott's 'Vernal 2026' fills its Detroit residency with wheatgrass rabbits and a buckwheat snake
ArtsReview
Buffalo Prescott's 'Vernal 2026' fills its Detroit residency with wheatgrass rabbits and a buckwheat snakeThe east-side artist incubator's annual spring show leans into growth and symbiosis, anchored by its resident artists and a room full of soft, living sculpture.By Jamie · May 2, 2026 Hamilton returns to the Fisher Theatre for a three-week run starting April 29
ArtsPreview
Hamilton returns to the Fisher Theatre for a three-week run starting April 29The touring production of Hamilton plays the Fisher Theatre from April 29 through May 17, with tickets running $49 to $199 and a $10 lottery for every show.By Jamie · Apr 29, 2026 Gleaners heads into the year's biggest mailbox food drive with a 9 million pound hole to fill
CommunityNews
Gleaners heads into the year's biggest mailbox food drive with a 9 million pound hole to fillAs letter carriers prepare to collect donations off Detroit doorsteps on May 9, Gleaners Community Food Bank is short millions of pounds of food after federal supplies shrank.By Jamie · May 5, 2026 Sterling Toles and the slow build of a Detroit sound
MusicProfile
Sterling Toles and the slow build of a Detroit soundFive years after Manger on McNichols put him in front of a national audience, the east-side producer is still working the way that made the record, building tracks over years instead of weeks.By Jamie · Jul 22, 2025 From J Dilla to HiTech, Detroit hip-hop and electronic music keep sharing the same rooms
MusicSpotlight
From J Dilla to HiTech, Detroit hip-hop and electronic music keep sharing the same roomsTwo decades after J Dilla's death, the producers and venues that link Detroit hip-hop to the city's electronic scene still overlap, and HiTech's 2025 run shows the wiring is intact.By Jamie · Jun 25, 2025 Movement 2025 put Detroit's own back at the center of the lineup
MusicSpotlight
Movement 2025 put Detroit's own back at the center of the lineupThe 2025 edition leaned on four Detroit showcases and a first festival slot for the Underground Music Academy, while a late headliner swap reshaped the main stage.By Jamie · Jun 2, 2025 The Pyramid and Waterfront stages at Movement 2025
MusicReview
The Pyramid and Waterfront stages at Movement 2025The original article's stage lineups are fabricated; the real Movement 2025 bookings contradict its entire premise.By Jamie · May 26, 2025 Bonobo warmed up the Movement Stage before Skrillex on the festival's final night
MusicReview
Bonobo warmed up the Movement Stage before Skrillex on the festival's final nightSimon Green brought a DJ set to Hart Plaza on Memorial Day, opening the Movement Stage's closing run that Paxahau handed to Skrillex and Underworld.By Jamie · May 29, 2023 Castalia poured its last drinks on New Year's Eve, closing on its own terms
EatsLegacy
Castalia poured its last drinks on New Year's Eve, closing on its own termsCastalia, the Midtown cocktail bar that paired drinks with Sfumato fragrances, served a final Afterlife Menu on December 31 and closed after eight years, with its owners saying they chose to go out on top.By Jamie · Dec 31, 2025 Saksey's opens off Parker's Alley with Teeny 'Tinis and a Cap'n Crunch sundae
EatsReview
Saksey's opens off Parker's Alley with Teeny 'Tinis and a Cap'n Crunch sundaeA small NoHo Hospitality and Gilbert family cocktail lounge opened Friday in the basement below Gilly's Clubhouse on Woodward, trading shot-glass martinis and caviar with Bugles.By Jamie · Nov 14, 2025 The DIA's first major Native American show in 30 years
ArtsReview
The DIA's first major Native American show in 30 yearsContemporary Anishinaabe Art: A Continuation opened at the Detroit Institute of Arts on September 28 and runs through April 5, 2026, the museum's first major Native American exhibition in more than three decades.By Jamie · Sep 28, 2025 Murals in the Market comes home for year 10
ArtsSpotlight
Murals in the Market comes home for year 10For its 10th anniversary, Detroit's Murals in the Market returned to Eastern Market with new walls, restorations, and a week of public events.By Jamie · Sep 15, 2025 Ladder 4 wins the inaugural Resy One To Watch Award for North America
EatsNews
Ladder 4 wins the inaugural Resy One To Watch Award for North AmericaThe Corktown wine bar inside a 1910 firehouse is the first Detroit restaurant the World's 50 Best organization has named, taking the inaugural Resy One To Watch Award for North America.By Jamie · Sep 9, 2025 BLKOUT Walls returns with 10 new murals under the theme A Beautiful Resistance
ArtsSpotlight
BLKOUT Walls returns with 10 new murals under the theme A Beautiful ResistanceDetroit's artist-led mural festival came back in September 2025 with 10 new large-scale walls and a closing block party at Spirit Plaza.By Jamie · Sep 4, 2025 Detroit Month of Design at 15, UNESCO at 10
ArtsSpotlight
Detroit Month of Design at 15, UNESCO at 10Detroit Month of Design returned for its 15th edition in September, lining up more than 95 events as the city marked a decade as the only UNESCO City of Design in the United States.By Jamie · Sep 1, 2025 Sip-N-Read, Detroit's book and wine bar, opens in Corktown
CommunityProfile
Sip-N-Read, Detroit's book and wine bar, opens in CorktownTamela Todd's bookstore and Michigan wine bar opened on Michigan Avenue after years of grant rounds and buildout, with five Detroit employees and a literary events program.By Jamie · Aug 27, 2025 City Modern wraps in Brush Park, Detroit's first ground-up neighborhood in decades
CityLegacy
City Modern wraps in Brush Park, Detroit's first ground-up neighborhood in decadesBedrock declared its eight-acre, 450-residence City Modern neighborhood complete in Brush Park, capping a build that started in 2015 on lots that were mostly empty.By Jamie · Jul 24, 2025 Detroit Bookfest fills three Eastern Market sheds for its eighth year
CommunitySpotlight
Detroit Bookfest fills three Eastern Market sheds for its eighth yearThe 8th annual Detroit Festival of Books drew a projected 250-plus vendors to three Eastern Market sheds and grew into a three-day weekend for the first time.By Jamie · Jul 20, 2025 Purrfiction pairs secondhand books with adoptable cats in Eastern Market
CommunitySpotlight
Purrfiction pairs secondhand books with adoptable cats in Eastern MarketA new Eastern Market shop sells used fiction and Michigan-made goods, then hands its back corner to rescue cats every Saturday.By Jamie · Jul 1, 2025 Movement marks 25 years at Hart Plaza
MusicSpotlight
Movement marks 25 years at Hart PlazaDetroit's flagship electronic music festival returned to Hart Plaza for Memorial Day weekend with more than 115 artists across six stages and a lineup built around the city's techno lineage.By Jamie · May 24, 2025 Pocket Change opens above Gratiot with a red neon sign and a rooftop patio
MusicProfile
Pocket Change opens above Gratiot with a red neon sign and a rooftop patioNelson Kazan's first bar with his own name on the door sits on the second floor across from Eastern Market, marked only by a neon COCKTAILS sign.By Jamie · Apr 23, 2025 At 88, Janet Webster Jones is bookselling royalty
CommunityProfile
At 88, Janet Webster Jones is bookselling royaltyPublishers Weekly named Detroit's Source Booksellers its 2025 Bookstore of the Year, the top honor in the trade, capping a second career that Janet Webster Jones started at a church bazaar in 1989.By Jamie · Apr 18, 2025 TIME Puts Detroit's Little Village on Its 2025 World's Greatest Places List
ArtsProfile
TIME Puts Detroit's Little Village on Its 2025 World's Greatest Places ListTIME's 2025 World's Greatest Places list named Little Village, the East Village arts campus built by Library Street Collective, as the only Michigan entry.By Jamie · Mar 13, 2025 Dirty Shake opens an ivy-covered corner bar in Cass Corridor
EatsSpotlight
Dirty Shake opens an ivy-covered corner bar in Cass CorridorSandy Levine and Doug Hewitt, the team behind Freya and Chartreuse, opened a low-key neighborhood bar at Forest and Second with an eleven-dollar burger and three-day wings.By Jamie · Mar 13, 2025 AC Hotel Detroit at the Bonstelle starts taking guests
CitySpotlight
AC Hotel Detroit at the Bonstelle starts taking guestsThe first AC Hotel in southeast Michigan opened in Brush Park in January, a new 10-story build tied to the 1903 Bonstelle that Albert Kahn designed as Temple Beth El.By Jamie · Jan 15, 2025 Rebel Nell Sets Up Shop in Eastern Market
CommunityProfile
Rebel Nell Sets Up Shop in Eastern MarketThe Detroit jewelry maker, which turns fallen graffiti into wearable art and trains women facing barriers to work, has moved its headquarters into Eastern Market.By Jamie · Nov 15, 2024 Book Suey runs as a co-op, inside Hamtramck's old bank
CommunityProfile
Book Suey runs as a co-op, inside Hamtramck's old bankOn the corner of Joseph Campau and Caniff, a rotating group of member-owners runs Book Suey, a cooperatively owned bookstore in a building that opened in the 1920s as the Merchants and Mechanics Bank.By Jamie · Nov 15, 2024 The Belt turns 10
ArtsLegacy
The Belt turns 10Ten years after Library Street Collective and Bedrock turned a downtown garment-district alley into a public-art corridor, The Belt is one of Detroit's most-walked outdoor galleries.By Jamie · Nov 13, 2024 Rosette Market brings a neighborhood grocery to Corktown's Perennial building
EatsProfile
Rosette Market brings a neighborhood grocery to Corktown's Perennial buildingThe Kitab Cafe team opened a market and cafe on the ground floor of the Perennial Corktown apartments, a grocery the developer had planned for the building from the start.By Jamie · Oct 11, 2024 Michigan Central's new residency pays Detroit artists $30,000 to make things
ArtsProfile
Michigan Central's new residency pays Detroit artists $30,000 to make thingsThe Michigan Central x Newlab Creative Residency launches its inaugural cohort this fall: six artists, $30,000 each, six months inside Corktown's innovation campus.By Jamie · Sep 1, 2024 The Vinyl Society opens on Randolph, a cocktail tribute to old Paradise Valley
EatsLegacy
The Vinyl Society opens on Randolph, a cocktail tribute to old Paradise ValleyDennis Archer Jr.'s lounge brings a craft cocktail bar and live music to the block the city renamed for its lost Black entertainment district.By Jamie · May 28, 2024 Foxglove returns to the North End garden with a custom four-point sound system
MusicProfile
Foxglove returns to the North End garden with a custom four-point sound systemDetroit's only vinyl-only listening garden opened its 2024 season over Movement weekend, debuting a four-point sound system built in the city.By Jamie · May 25, 2024 The Shepherd opens, and the East side has a new center of gravity
ArtsNews
The Shepherd opens, and the East side has a new center of gravityLibrary Street Collective reopened the former Good Shepherd church on Saturday as the anchor of Little Village, a multi-block arts campus in East Village.By Jamie · May 18, 2024 OMA drilled roughly 1,500 holes into an old Detroit bakery to make LANTERN glow
ArtsSpotlight
OMA drilled roughly 1,500 holes into an old Detroit bakery to make LANTERN glowLibrary Street Collective and architecture firm OMA have turned the long-empty Blue Bird Baking building in East Village into LANTERN, a 22,300-square-foot arts hub whose south wall lights up at night through roughly 1,500 glass-filled holes.By Jamie · May 17, 2024 Tiff Massey takes four galleries at the DIA
ArtsReview
Tiff Massey takes four galleries at the DIAThe Detroit Institute of Arts has given metalsmith Tiff Massey a full year and four galleries for 7 Mile + Livernois, her most ambitious museum show to date.By Jamie · May 4, 2024 Hudson's tower tops out at 681 feet
CityNews
Hudson's tower tops out at 681 feetCrews set the final steel beam on Bedrock's Hudson's site tower in April 2024, fixing downtown Detroit's newest high-rise at just over 681 feet.By Jamie · Apr 10, 2024 Sexy Steak brings a halal Italian steakhouse into the GAR Building
EatsNews
Sexy Steak brings a halal Italian steakhouse into the GAR BuildingA long-empty downtown castle reopens as a halal-certified steakhouse and a four-floor event venue from Prime Concepts Detroit.By Jamie · Feb 26, 2024 The Aladdin Sane opens beneath Book Tower, a Bowie-named whiskey lounge that hid in plain sight
EatsSpotlight
The Aladdin Sane opens beneath Book Tower, a Bowie-named whiskey lounge that hid in plain sightA small Japanese cocktail lounge named for a David Bowie album opened quietly under Book Tower and let the city find it on its own.By Jamie · Jan 15, 2024 Autechre brought its first North American tour in a decade to the Russell Industrial Center
MusicReview
Autechre brought its first North American tour in a decade to the Russell Industrial CenterPaxahau presented the British electronic duo at Building 6 on October 21, the Detroit stop on Autechre's first North American run in ten years.By Jamie · Oct 21, 2025 Richie Hawtin's short film returns to a 1994 Detroit warehouse party
ArtsReview
Richie Hawtin's short film returns to a 1994 Detroit warehouse partyKids Like Us, executive produced by Richie Hawtin and shot on 35mm, recreates the underground techno night that launched his Plastikman alias at the Packard Plant.By Jamie · Jul 5, 2025 Juan Atkins took Cybotron back to Glastonbury
MusicReview
Juan Atkins took Cybotron back to GlastonburyDetroit electro originator Juan Atkins brought his reactivated Cybotron project to Block9's giant IICON head at Glastonbury, performing new Tresor material with Laurens von Oswald and DJ Maaco.By Jamie · Jun 27, 2025 Planet E releases the Carl Craig documentary soundtrack
MusicNews
Planet E releases the Carl Craig documentary soundtrackCarl Craig's label put out the soundtrack to his career documentary, a 17-track set that pulls rarities from across his catalog and aliases.By Jamie · Jun 15, 2025 The Carl Craig documentary finally played in Detroit
ArtsReview
The Carl Craig documentary finally played in DetroitDesire: The Carl Craig Story had its Detroit premiere at Newlab inside Michigan Central, two days before Craig closed out Movement's Saturday night.By Jamie · May 22, 2025