With so much talk of farm-to-table, it might be nice to consider pulling up a chair at a table… just maybe not at your favorite local restaurant, since it might be tough getting a seat during the first weekend of Restaurant Week. Instead, consider pulling up a seat at the table being prepared to benefit our local chapter of the international Slow Food at Creswick Farms, a tiny farm that has been making big waves in our region over the years. This first-time informal celebration of Slow Food of West Michigan will be unlike other fundraisers in that your meal and music of the string ...

Over the last couple decades of electronic music’s development, one of the parts I have enjoyed the most is that lack of sentimentality that often plagues other forms of music. Sure, this genre has seen it share of throwback acts come and go, often borrowing a hook or two to get the crowd going, but the advances being made in the tools used to create this music have resulted in a broadening of the genre to include many styles. On the eve of the 4th annual City Lights Music Festival (formerly known as Electronic Dance Music Festival, or, EDMF) in Grand Rapids, the expansion of Grand ...

“I moved here in 1980 from the East side of the state and thought, ‘Oh my, what have I done?'” said GRandJazzFest creator Audrey Sundstrom, whose thoughts are not unlike those that many of us were thinking as well when we reflect now on what Grand Rapids looked like in that period of time. Grand Rapids was a blank canvas in so many ways. To some, it was maybe even a slightly damaged one, as many would choose to avoid our downtown, leaving it for other urban centers where vibrant festivals happened on a regular basis. And now, how the times have changed since. Our events ...

A lot of work goes into making West Michigan a more welcoming place. And while some folks are still struggling to effectively make that connection, our local Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce’s advancement in this area is definitely growing in exciting ways. One area where they are experiencing growth is their third annual Minority Business Expo, sponsored by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan. Here, minority-owned businesses representing the landscaping, finance, floral, language, technology, art, restaurant, hotels & hospitality, health insurance and education industries will be ...

It is a rare occasion when one can get in their workout while getting their drinking on at the very same time. Need proof? Just try cracking a Founders’ Kentucky Breakfast Stout while attending a spin class and see how far you will get with the staff. But when the Grand Rapids Roller Girls’ fourth annual Running of the Bulls hits the streets of downtown, you can get big fun and big drink specials while getting fit. Over the years, there have been changes to this much-beloved event, including the addition of a handheld, program-driven SCVNGR Hunt where players can use the mobile ...

Grand Rapids has no shortage of events to consider attending these days. One that is starting at the top (literally) is the debut of an appropriately series, Rooftop Couture, held on the seventh and top floor of the Ellis Parking garage structure in the heart of the city. When this locally-focused, fashion runway show debuts, it will be a departure, as well as a much welcome relief on the scene. After all, we are all a bit burned out on the same venues who have hosted fashion shows over the years, and Rooftop Couture allows West Michigan to re-imagine a downtown work space as a new event ...

If you can make the mental leap and take the gardener's perspective when it comes to the cowpie, then the pie is becomes a vital building block. That means the Cowpie Music Festival is truly the most vital live music event in our state, as it seeks to highlight not only what we have, but nurture -- through careful planning on the organizer’s part -- how we cultivate our area’s talent. We even are seeing their program including more national acts, too, at a ticket price of about one dollar a band! Situated on160 acres of rolling farmland in Caledonia and just minutes from ...

The city is has a plethora of runs and charity walks, but the one event that all runners and sports fans have been talking about all season is the debut of the nationally popular Color Run, which comes to Grand Rapids on Sunday, August 5. Billed by the organizers of the event as an event less about the need for speed, but one devoted to enjoyment and unexpected visual pleasures, the color run is "surprisingly high in calories and leaves a chalky aftertaste" for those who will be dusted at each 1k mark during the 5k run. The rules are pretty simple for those looking to participate. ...

Electro--pop band Alexis continues to heat up the landscape in a run of record-breaking temps as they pack venues with their on-stage antics and desire to create pop music with soul. Unlike other venues the band has been performing in over the past two years, the choice of the Avenue for the Arts' Pub 43 is a fitting one for the two-person band as they are often found at this watering hole after any one of the many concerts they have performed in our city. And this year has been a great one for the band as they have not only once again been deemed as a Festival for the Arts favorite (and ...

It might be easy to write off East Hills Council of Neighbors’ new event, playfully named Gay Day, as just another trendy element of this growing community. And you would be correct, if it weren’t for the fact that this neighborhood, rich in activity, is an area that owes much of its successes to the many diverse groups who settled it while others were fleeing to the ‘burbs and banks were redlining entire neighborhoods deemed unacceptable. In a fitting tribute to their history and the influence of the LGBT, who helped not settle so much as stabilize this area by advocating ...

Over the last two decades, our options for healthy living have increased at such a fast pace that it is almost impossible to catalog all the changes. One East Grand Rapids business, Seva Yoga, has made huge strides in this area. Not only does Seva offer offer a full spectrum of yoga classes with a team of local and guest instructors, but in the last few years, founder Michele Fife has advanced a series of health-focused programming, aggressively advocating for healthy patterns in our region. On Saturday, Fife and a with a team of volunteers will host the third All4One festival, celebrating our ...

Something remarkable has happened as I look over the brand spanking new Battle of the Bands, a part of the audition phase of the Grand Rapids' Got Talent competition to be held at the historic Civic Theatre on August 18. This kind of event has been a part of our culture before in places like the Intersection Lounge, where the emphasis has been on metal and high school-aged acts. This one-night event, not related to the Intersection event, debuting at The Pyramid Scheme on Saturday is actually is full of names the average person may not even recognize. And this is a good thing for sure. ...

When a bouncer yells at you to take it outside, you have two choices. One is to shape up. The other is really to take it outside. But for two bars, Mulligan’s and Stella’s, not only have they been shaping up for the fight, but they are taking it to the streets of downtown Grand Rapids for the very first Grand Rapids Bar Brawl at Rosa Parks Circle. If you have never attended a boxing match, I am sure you will have a hard time keeping your beer down as fighters from the two drinking establishments don giant inflatable boxing gloves to battle under the summer sun. It is really quite ...

What happens when a performance group sets out to be one thing, but up ends everything, and in the process of putting their act on the road, actually discovers they are truly unique in this world? Well, for members of the Super Happy Funtime Burlesque, one of the country's only live burlesque touring acts, you throw together a party to celebrate before you begins your eighth year of being a groundbreaking act in your field. If you were scratching your head saying,“ I thought burlesque was everywhere these days," you would be partially correct. “Every city has a burlesque ...

It is easy these days to attend any one of the many food events in West Michigan and begin to see an all-too-familiar roster of vendors. But for the annual Taste of Grand Rapids and the state-sanctioned barbecue competition, variety is the spice. In addition to the food served, local Clear Channel station 101.3 FM The Fox has produced a rock and blues lineup on Friday and on Saturday, sister stations Star 105.7 FM and 93.7 FM B-93 invite you to get your country kicking with special guest and emerging star, Kristen Kelly. Kelly has been opening for Brad Paisley on his Virtual Reality World ...

A G-SYNC FEATURED BEST BET EVENT The success of any city is built upon an engaged citizenry. One community organizer who hails from Israel but calls Detroit her home is coming to West Michigan and will unleash a plethora of stories of her community. But before taking the stage at The Pyramid Scheme, Invincible will be at the intimate Heartside Gallery to present an insightful and exciting lecture about her work and life in Detroit. This is a great event for anyone who is seeking to find a way to connect their creativity with their community, but also for anyone who has ever been interested in ...

We can't all be winners, but we can be great hosts to those who come and visit our city. On Saturday, this is exactly what our Grand Rapids rugby team, the Grand Rapids Gazelles, will do as they welcome the Midwest leagues to compete in Riverside Park for this one day 7s tournament. This new and increasingly popular version of rugby is played with 7-member teams and in 7.5 minute-halves. In fact, this downsized and fast version of the sport is growing in such popularity it is being added to the 2016 Olympic events. What makes this Midwest tournament great (apart from its 23rd time being ...

It is hard for anyone who was not in diapers during the '80s to not feel a sense of Déjà vu as we look around and listen at our current cultural landscape. No, I'm not talking about world politics or even the environmental state we are in. I'm talking about the pop culture and fashion of '80s and they are definitely back. And with a vengeance. The Grand Rapids Public Library is getting totally tubular (and creative) with their programming as they marry Ernest Cline's popular novel, Ready Player One, with totally hot downtown venue Stella’s as they host ...

What if I told you there was a place in Grand Rapids that used to not only be a place for the neighbors to have a drink, but also where art almost magically appeared. And while this business is no longer here as new owners have moved in and the jazz that used to flow on Sunday afternoons has been replaced with a dynamite jukebox, the art appearing on a regular basis over the past year has, in many ways, recreated some of that energy at the watering hole that is now The Meanwhile Bar. The Meanwhile recently launched a new art program under the curation of 1111 Godfrey artist Reuben Garcia to ...

Locally, we spend a lot of time talking about what the future looks like for those around us and typically, that radius is within a few minutes' drive from our front steps. But public radio’s Marketplace and PBS’ NOW commentator, David Branscaccio invites cities all over the country to come together for a special night of programming that is sure to not only inspire, but also change the way we look at our future. Sponsored locally by the Oakdale Neighbors and Local First and in partnership with Fixing The Future, this brand new film will screen all across America in the hopes ...

Say goodbye to cheap beer and God-awful, boring burgundy as the Grand Rapids Symphony Orchestra’s Picnic Pops rolls out the green grass carpet for violist Ade Williams, the Junior Division First Place Laureate of the 2012 Annual Sphinx Competition. They're also putting out the welcome sign for the debut of another first: the Music and Microbrews event at Cannonsburg Ski Area in Belmont. For a low cost of $35 per person, you can enjoy a pre-concert musical program alongside the featured GRSO/Williams performance, but do so from your reserved seat where you can enjoy a picnic dinner ...

Look at those kids with their affected hairstyles and funny mustaches as they listen to their wild poly-rhythmic music, willing to engage in wild sex as they ingest substances, all the while inking each other up with the symbols form their chosen tribe. Sound familiar? You might be quick to say this is how some people talk about the kids today who hang out on the streets of Grand Rapids. But in reality, these comments are more than likely about your parent’s generation. Yep, before dear ol’ mom and dad traded in their love beads and butt-revealing jeans for Nike running shoes and ...

In our region we speak of collaboration, but rarely do we have a chance to see it unfold on many levels and in such a celebrated manner. What began as a theatrical workshop piece (local actors), the Greek tragedy "Medea" by Euripides was propelled through the leadership and artistic input of GVSU professors and staff alongside our community’s Heritage Theatre Group (volunteers), resulting in capturing the attention of academic publisher Cambridge University Press, who will be releasing this new and most faithful translation to the world. And don’t make the mistake of ...

If I have learned anything over my life, it is that the material that connects the most is often when you dip in the well of experience you know. And speaking of wells, local comic Sarah Jean Anderson, whose ex-husband fell down a well, will return to Dog Story Theater in a brand new show that will sans the extras many have come to enjoy. (It’s a good thing.) If you were one of those attending her last sold out show at this venue, then you know it was quite frankly an exhausting journey of endless openers and a never-ending bit upon bit performance clocking in almost three hours with ...

It used to be that before the transformation of the downtown Grand Rapids’ Monroe Center Park into the Maya Lin design park we have today, not a lot happened in this part of the city. Lucky for us, in 2009, a staff member at the Grand Rapids Art Museum had an idea for a weekly concert series in this park and GRAM on the GREEN was born. Starting on July 6 and over the next seven Friday nights, music lovers are encouraged to come sample under the evening sky the diverse bands that make up their 2012 season. Kicking off the series is the energetic Celtic World beat act An Dro with Jim ...

The mantra for most local bands is that when starting out, any place that will host you is a chance to be seen and heard. Sometimes, this carefree method works but in some cases, the venue is just simply the wrong place. This will not be the case when the Kent Country String Band leaps to the stage at Tip Top Deluxe Bar & Grille around 10 p.m. to play two tight and strong sets in probably one of the most perfect venue pairings I have witnessed in a very long time. In fact, band member Chris Eddy could not contain his excitement over the phone as he shared how pumped up KCSB was to have the ...

Over the past few months, Rapid Growth has devoted more than one article to the topic of the exciting local outdoor music venue at our very local, but internationally significant Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park.   We have looked at the diversity of this new season (I See No Clouds Ahead…) and also heard from our local music critic extraordinaire, John Sinkevics, as to why this destination is THE PLACE for making music memories in the 616. (The Gardens Effect...) But when I look over the calendar, I notice something quite extraordinary. Over the next two weeks, there will be ...

It is easy to take Founders Brewing Company for granted when you live here, but if you have ever traveled and said, "I live in Grand Rapids," there are only two responses at this point. Amway or Founders Brewery -- and the latter is only getting bigger. So it is not surprising that this year, when Founders Fest opens on the brick streets of Grandville Ave where they live as the Mecca beer hall of all micro beers the world over, we have more than a few reasons to celebrate our very hoppy and local heroes. And while I was quickly reminded when I inquired early this week if we were in ...

One of the very best parts of living in the city of Grand Rapids is constant stream of street fairs and festivals that seem to pop up on nearly every corner in our neighborhoods. They range from the short-term debut like the Creston Neighborhood Association’s embracing of their jewel of a city park for a romantic outdoor cinema event, to legacy events like the annual Eastown Bizarre Bazaar. Held on the streets of one of our most vibrant neighborhoods, Bizarre Bazaar is devoted to the artists and the creations of their hands. Unlike the Eastown Street Fair, which takes place in the Fall, ...

Cabin Time 1 came and went without much fanfare in Grand Rapids, but USA Today and Huffington Post took notice. Now on the eve of Cabin Time 2, this artist residency program devoted to roaming to remote places (and off the grid) is producing national buzz again and all because local GVSU BFA graduate (and current Plenty employee) Geoffrey Holstad believed that artists venturing off the grid cannot only survive without the stereotypical air of exhaust and espresso machines, but that they can create noteworthy works in this experimental environmental. For the second version of Cabin Time, over ...

A few weeks ago, the Grand Rapids Art Museum opened a new and exciting new exhibition, Cities In Transition, a multidisciplinary exhibition complete with a summer’s worth of fresh programming involving film, archival imagery, factory plans and even a special field trip to Detroit to visit some of the most exciting art spaces, all the while doing so with an eager eye on how we learn to understand and approach urban environments within our state. At our publication, we've spent a lot of time examining the changing urban landscape from Grand Rapids to Detroit, Michigan's largest ...

It is rare these days in the music industry that a person is able to enjoy a career that spans many decades without having to sell one’s soul to make a mortgage payment. For those who do sell themselves, usually a casino reunion show is in their near future, but rarely do they get to maintain the street cred they once easily commanded with the flick of their (usually hand-rolled) cigarette. This is not the path for Alice Bag, founding member of the group The Bags and an integral piece of the Los Angeles punk rock movement. After all these years since punk's 1970s birth, she is ...

When you get to the gate outside of the Pyramid Scheme this Saturday for the launch of the T-REX FEST, you might be shocked TWICE. The first shock will be that you may not be able to get in since tickets are limited and are selling at a fast clip. The second shock will be the sea of faces of people you do not recognize hailing from Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and of course, other cities in Michigan. The reason for this, according to PS co-owner Tami VandenBerg, is because a lot of tickets to this inaugural event are being snatched up by outsiders who are totally geeked at the impressive and ...

If the thought of going to another SiTE:LAB event after the long lines and head-scratching theatrics from Art.Downtown seem to put you off, please consider the Blandford Nature Center’s olive ...er, well, this branch among the many present as a way back in to experience the excitement of nature at the intersection of art, music, dance and performance. When SiTE:LAB returns for their second outing in partnership with Kendall College of Art & Design at this popular northwest nature center in the city of Grand Rapids, you can expect to see a plethora of site specific temporary art ...

As one who has attended many film festivals over the years -- from the big to the small -- I can say with most confidence and without the validation of others that the Waterfront Film Festival is truly one of the world’s greatest movie events in the universe. Where else can one relive that college student high of racing from cinema to cinema in an attempt to see as many films as possible? And while I might have traded my big gulp soda for an oversized coffee, the thrill of seeing so many great films in a compressed period of time is why many flock to the lakeshore for this ...

For 2012, West Michigan Pride will present a brand new community enriching Run as One 5k -- a healthy run/walk to celebrate unity and acceptance in our region. The event will be held in the beautiful Richmond Park. Pride’s first big party is truly Pride at Eve. This event features a host of entertainment starting with The Princess from RuPaul’s "Drag Race" (season 4) followed by a fantastic superhero-inspired runway show complete with underwear fashions for him and her worn by the yummy models from The Matthew Agency. There are also many fantastic drag performances ...

This Saturday, more than 60 art studios and vendors (including names like Paschka Studio, Dinderbeck, Picardo Colors, Nikki Mac, The DAAC, Think in Ink and Funamals) will participate in this day-long event with an expanded footprint and extended hours. The event’s footprint spans south of Fulton down Division Ave. to Cherry Street. Even the music lineup has expanded, with nearly 15 acts and DJs gracing the stage at 106 S. Division. Acts include DJ Colin Clive, Karisa Wilson, Wazobia, Atomic Hoop Troupe, Pistolbrides, Redwood and one of my favorite newer local acts, Bearcat. For event ...

Local First’s 9th Annual Street Party is like Christmas for adults whose wish list includes a chance to dance under a blue sky on the open city street to the music of a local band while hoisting a tasty homemade goodie in one hand, washing it back with a micro brew in the other.. For nine years, the Summer Santa never fails to deliver on our wish. Now in its ninth year, the street party that keeps on bringing good vibrations to our community is growing again as the acts they have programmed for this year are all stellar when you consider their individual accolades. It's worth ...

Not only did music begin to change in the early '90s, but city-driven rock from places far away, but not so different from Grand Rapids began to explode, with acts literally rising up form the streets. By 1993, the grunge takeover had worked its spell and our live music band culture really began to blossom in the acts that hits the stages and warehouses around town as well as in the basements of kids then too young to play out. It was an inspiring time. On Friday, three all-star bands made up of various West Michigan band members from acts like Ozenza, Moto, Onn, Afro Zuma, HTAFM, ...

Last weekend, as Karisa Wilson kicked off the Active Commute Week LIVE event on The Rapid’s bus main platform, I closed my eyes to enjoy the music that drifted softly through the undulating overhead canopy structure. I could not help but wonder that at any moment as the buses pulled up and departed, if Karisa would be asked to hop a ride to her next gig in some far off place. It is easy to imagine when you hear her voice that she deserves to be shared all over the country. Karisa’s distinctly rich Americana vocals are matched to her guitar playing. What stirred my daydreaming ...

Up until the last couple centuries, the art world (and the rest of the world for that matter), has been predominantly run by men. That means men brokered the sales, commissioned which artists were hired and in almost all cases, they just so happened to be men. Women, apart from being the subject, were better seen and not heard or in this case, not working in the art world. Visibility is tricky thing. When you have no role models, it is hard to imagine where one should set one’s sights. But a lot have changed for women artists over time, and the Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture ...

Over the years, Rapid Growth has shared an important statistic about the future of cities. While it is good news for some, it is not so good for others. This realization is often illuminated against the United Nations’ finding on population growth, revealing that more than half of the world's population now lives in an urban center and that by 2050, that number will jump to 75 percent. And what makes for a happy (or unhappy) ending for a city is how prepared they will be in the years ahead. Along comes the film Urbanized, the third in the design documentary trilogy by Gary Hustwit, ...

In a city known for bold debuts, many arrive with golden parachutes to catch those who fall. But once in a while, a bold launch arrives with little fanfare, while still representing the same risks, causing even the most cynical to secretly hope for a win. This in a nutshell explains my fears, but also my deepest hope for the ambitious launch of a new music event, HERR GR, in the city of Grand Rapids. While a ladies night hip hop event focused also on attracting the LGBTQ community might not be your bag, it is a place where all should feel welcome. That is the point of this new monthly event to ...

We look forward to a lot of annual events each spring, but when it comes to choral celebrations, the Grand Rapids Women’s Chorus always steps up and welcomes the season in song. Each winter (and more recently in the spring), this local choir made of a diverse group of women invites the community to join them in a celebration of song just as they have for more than 25 year now. And with each program, they present a collection of contemporary or world choral works that keep this program just as fresh as the one before. For the spring 2012 concert at East Grand Rapids Performance Hall, the ...

Hip Hop seems to me to always be about timing and not just about the subject, but also hitting that perfect beat in driving the message home The third installment of the Grand Rapids Hip Hop Revue lands back at the Pyramid Scheme, and everything appears to have lined up from the stars to the weather to create the perfect music tsunami. (I mean this in a good way, like it will wash over and bathe you in its power.) Host The Token Blaq Poet and Flint native Azizi Jasper will lead the night’s attendees through a diverse night of Hip Hop entertainment in a tight revue style. This night of ...

"This is a saga of a family that covers generations. It ranks right up there with the great family dramas like Death of a Salesman and Long Days Journey Into Night,” says Fred Sebulske, director and founder of Actors’ Theatre on the Grand Rapids premier of the Chicago Steppenwolf Theater and 2008 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, August: Osage County. “People say those plays are dark, but when they are done well, they have humor and beauty." A dark look at a contemporary Midwestern American family, August: Osage County is a revelation both on stage with the actors and the ...

Community organizing takes many forms and over the next two Thursday evenings, two very unique and vital events organized to uniquely focus on the women and their needs will be held in the city. On Thursday, May 17, WISE (Women In Successful Enterprises), a quarterly networking/social giving group of women devoted to fostering an environment for women to share personal stories of growth and support, will host at the recently opened Interphase Interiors/Haworth downtown MoDiv space a lecture by John Berry of Design West Michigan on building design in business planning for all industries. The, ...

How amazing would it be if the Greater Grand Rapids Bicycle Coalition (GGRBC), a local group of concerned citizens who advocate for people who ride, were able to create the kind of transformation in our region we all know has to begin to happen if we wish to reduce our dependence on oil while improving health within our community through exercise and the reduction of harmful exhaust? It would be awesome to say the least. Debuting Monday is the start of what will be an annual event, Active Commute Week (ACW), presented by an inspiring coalition of corporations, colleges and nonprofits including ...

Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad is out on the road promoting their first electric studio album in six years and lucky for us, we will have a chance to see them live and for free at Founders on Sunday night.   This album’s release, according to band members, has always been about timing. The April 2012 release of In These Times is a big leap for Giant Panda from their last release, Country, which was a pure roots album. But for fans of Giant Panda’s earlier sound that made them popular, this is the album that they have been waiting for -- an electric Panda reggae release. While ...

Trip The Light is an annual stage performance that focuses on dance, music and sometimes film and theatre to showcase the talents of our region. This year, instead of having a central theme to create around as they did last year with Ephemera, Trip’s 2012 version is free form but with a surprising thread that has emerged only as the eight local bands and eight choreographers assembled to begin their tech rehearsals earlier this week. Rather than ruin it, I will let you be the judge if this thread continues to emerge in their works. In addition to a solid eight works from area ...