Happy 4/20! Are you a marijuana enthusiast celebrating today? For 420 Day, I’m going to visit a local dispensary for the launch of the High Times Cannabis Cup Michigan: People’s Choice judge kits. I’ll share more about the festivities from 420 in a separate post but click here if you’d like to learn more about …
artist interview
INTERVIEW: Five Questions with Detroit Blogger Jess McKenzie
One of the many things I enjoy about blogging is meeting other creatives. I’m a strong believer in the popular phrase “community over competition” because it has helped me grow as a writer and form new friendships. Last year, before the COVID-19 pandemic hit the U.S., I connected with Jess McKenzie, a graphic designer who …
Five Questions with Hip Hop Artist Mahogany Jones
When I first met hip hop artist Mahogany Jones, it was July 2017 at a hip hop celebration event in Southwest Detroit. I remember it well because I was super pregnant with Zephaniah (baby #5). She probably doesn’t remember this, but I had passed by her while walking into the Southwest Detroit Welcome Center and …
Detroit T.V. Personality Jenifer Young is Stepping Out on Faith
When you’re an entrepreneur in the media industry, rebranding yourself can get a little tricky. First, there’s the risk of losing your readers/viewers, and second, rebranding can be a very long (and sometimes costly) process. Yet, sometimes, a new career shift can be a refreshing start to a new business endeavor. Meet Detroit entrepreneur Jenifer …
Singer Sheléa Discusses Her New Projects: A Quincy Jones PBS Special and The Clark Sisters Biopic
SPECIAL NOTE: This piece was updated on 4/7/20 to reflect the date change of the new Clark Sisters movie, The Clark Sisters: First Ladies of Gospel, which will premiere on Lifetime on April 11, 2020. If you haven’t heard of break out star Sheléa, then you don’t know what you’re missing! She’s a beautiful person …
Unapologetically Errin: Interview with Detroit Artist Errin “Lightheart” Whitaker
On a late summer night sometime in August, I met with Detroit artist Errin “Lightheart” Whitaker at his Black Door art studio in the Fisher Building. Located in Downtown Detroit, the Fisher Building has become home base for many Detroit creatives. Errin shares an office space-turned-art-studio with a few other Detroit artists, and occasionally the …
Artist Spotlight: Black Quill Studio, Modern Vintage Art Shop
Hi, friends! Check out today’s Artist Spotlight interview with Kimberly Hunley, co-founder of Black Quill Studio! Kimberly and her sister Melissa both own the modernized vintage art shop and feature their art pieces at Black Quill Studio. Good Life Detroit’s “Artist Spotlight” will feature an interview with a Detroit or Metro Detroit-based artist, highlighting his/her …
Detroit Behind the Lens: Interview with @thisaintjason
I had just wrapped up a maternity photoshoot at the Z Lot in Downtown Detroit. This was a unique experience for me because this time I wasn’t the one behind the camera. I was the subject and the photographer was Jason Walker, a Metro Detroit-based photographer who specializes in portrait photography. I had never had …
Artist Rua Francis’ Experiential Interpretation of ‘What is Versus What is Seen’
Rua Francis’ art is shaped and influenced by her Mesopotamian and Assyrian heritage. This is evident in her artwork, as she infuses forms of Aramaic and Arabic arabesque and calligraphy art by combining the “elegant complexity of ink on paper”. Francis’ art style creates “an experiential interpretation of what ‘is’ versus what is ‘seen’ while …