Kim Tandy is the District 2 manager for the city of Detroit. A lifelong Detroiters groomed and raised on Detroit’s Westside her roots run deep. In life, she followed in her father’s footsteps as an architect. A family business in architecture is the background she brings to all she does today. Managing district 2 Tandy is on the pulse of community meetings, neighborhood groups, and developing block clubs throughout Detroit. Renter’s association and youth city council are two of the blossoming projects she’s shaping. She joined me for a full discussion which is layered in thought, idea, and heart.Visit www.detroitisdifferent.com to watch the videos and of the Kim Tandy interview and to get more of Detroit’s culture.

The Shakur Sisters are beautiful, full of life, and kindred spirits. I met both through my friendship with my late mentor and friend Chokwe Lumumba. Itari Shakur & Shushanna Shakur are Attorney Chokwe Lumumba’s younger sisters. Itari’s work in music, fashion, and social justice all provide the essence of an African-centered and culturally aware spirit. Shushanna Shakur has worked as a teacher, poet, attorney, and social justice warrior as well. Both were impacted and influenced by their brother Chokwe Lumumba, but even more so from their parents. In this interview, we explore their family’s relationship to Boxing Legend and Detroit treasure Joe Louis (Barrow). We also explore the impact of community and kinship with a neighborhood that is beyond proximity. This is a fun and colorful interview about the role we play for justice, community, and righteousness. Click here to check out the Shakur Sisters Detroit is Different Podcast.

Shelia Cockrel is a 1^st generation Detroiter to parents of French Canadian & Irish backgrounds who respectively attended the University of Detroit Mercy (Dad) & Marygrove College (Mom). Shelia’s parents were advocates for human rights in a WWII era. Cockrel’s father’s stance against carrying a weapon in WWII moved him to front-line medical service during his tour of duty in WWII. Equity and fairness were ethics believed in and fought for by her parents impacting Shelia to take up fights on her own. Shelia’s work with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s Poor People’s Campaign and witnessing of the vicious police brutality has impacted her life’s work since. This is a great peek into how the work and mission of parents impact the life of a child. Click here to check out the Shelia Cockrel Detroit is Different Podcast.

Karima Sorel’s life is as interesting as Benjamin Button or Forrest Gump. She’s the daughter of Charles & Teresa Kelly who ran and owned the Michigan Citizen Newspaper for over 30 years. A Parson’s Art School Fashion Design graduate from the 90’s. Her relationships with NYC during the boom in Hip-hop fashion introduced her to the guardians of NYC hip-hop culture that influences the world today (Mos Def is the Father of her second oldest Daughter). Today many people in Detroit connect with Karima because she’s the owner of LePetit Zinc Restaurant which re-opened in Midtown Detroit. The authentic French cuisine embraced most by a collection of crepes was made by her ex-husband Charles Sorel whose experience has led restaurants in Paris, Rio De Janeiro, New York City, and Munich. Karima joins me and discusses her healing through Cancer, owning a restaurant, and high fashion. This is a fun conversation and only a peek into the thoughts of Karima Sorel.

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Michele Oberholtzer is passionate and driven to apply her skills/ talents to advocate for people who don’t & won’t walk in the circles she does. Michele’s experience in engineering has refined her skills at analyzing problems technically & functionally. Closing 2017 Vice News on HBO ran a story (Vice has been doing a lot of Detroit coverage over the past 2 years) about how the Wayne County Tax Foreclosure Sale has transitioned many homeowners to renters. The systems in place where buyers purchase homes (in bulk often) and charge rent to people who owned their homes has become a reality. Michele has been advocating for residents to keep their homes by providing monies to help pay taxes, the $250 & 2% late fees, water bills, and more. We discuss Michele’s campaign for Michigan State Representative (District 4), Race in Detroit, Detroit’s Home Foreclosure Crisis, and more. This was an informational discussion.

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Roderick Miller has lived a life that reads like a Hollywood script. Born in small-town South Carolina the son of a military engineer & Baptist Pastor who traveled the world at a time America feared the danger of the USSR. Miller’s education placed him in Historically Black Colleges and Harvard for a Master’s degree in Urban Development. Work in Phoenix developing the Economic Growth & Community Development, and work in New Orleans in post-Katrina revitalization while starting a family. Recently he left a post leading Detroit’s Economic Growth Corporation. Today he’s working in Puerto Rico and fighting for the resources needed there for Americans being treated unfairly. This podcast is unique in exploring race, poverty, accessibility, and resources. Click here to visit and listen to the Detroit is Different podcast interview with Roderick Miller.

Kwame Kenyatta’s journey connecting him to the discrimination of Black people in America began early as he was one of the original Black students in the state of Alabama to attend a formerly ‘White Only’ elementary school. There Kenyatta dealt with daily fist fights, rocks being tossed at him, and more. As he journey led him to Detroit he soon joined school walk-outs and rebellions throughout the 1970’s. Soon after Kenyatta was permanently expelled from all DPS schools for challenging the administration of Cooley HS for lacking African Centered education. His GED instruction was led by Mama Imani Humphrey (founder of Aisha Shule) and other teachers independently teaching students African Centered education (visit the Dan Aldridge & Njia Kai Detroit is Different interviews) and fundamental learning. Kenyatta later became a member of the Detroit Public School Board with the support of the Malcolm X Grassroots organizations and many others. In office Kenyatta led an initia [...]

Stretch Money’s a rap star. For over a decade his music has been played at Family Reunions, Roller Rinks, and even every strip club throughout Detroit. Eastside’s own son has embraced working with all rappers throughout Detroit regardless of style, age, and background. His voice and pattern in speaking arms him naturally to stand out in conversation and on the song he does as well. Charting the Billboard 100 throughout the 2000’s & 2010’s his time in jail changed his ethics in work and decision making. We explore creativity, free-styling, and leadership. Currently, Stretch Money is working with Fearless Rebels teaming with Crane Novacane producing music, clothing, and content. Opportunities and platforms for a team of young hungry Detroiters is his vision and through creativity, he’s doing it. We both go in depth about the lyricism of Tupac Shakur and examine the talent and skill displayed by Tupac on his song ‘(Shed) So Many Tears,’ (featured on Tupac Shakur’s [...]

Lumumba Reynolds is a creative consultant specializing in sound reinforcement, light design, audio engineering, videography, video editing, photography, and event production. Work with Mosaic Youth Theatre, Detroit’s Fellowship Chapel, the Detroit Windsor Dance Academy, Detroit High School of Fine and Performing Arts, and dozens of organizations and people all have benefited from the services of Studio Lumumba. In this podcast interview we explore his start into production, performing, and love for music. He opens up about starting off a career as a DJ and blossoming into a creative institution. Starting a technical career working at Specs Howards School of Broadcast Journalism, the New Dance Show with Henry Tyler & RJ Watkins, and music video shoots with World One Records. Lumumba tells the story of meeting his wife on the set of a hip-hop music video and how that led to 25 years of marriage with Mayowa Reynolds. The podcast is full of thought-provoking, comedic, and Detroit [...]

Detroit is a place that intersects arts and advocacy often. Dr. Martin Luther King’s ‘I have a Dream’ speech was originally recorded by Milton Henry and released on Motown records. Dudley Randall of Broadside Press provided laureates of the Black community a platform to explore stories of police brutality, racial discrimination, and human rights as a premise and platform for a voice. The talents of Gwendolyn Brooks, Nikki Giovanni, and Haki Madhubuti all were given a national stage from the streets of Detroit’s Broadside Press.

The friendship and love between Amp Fiddler & Lauren Hood carries the tradition on. Amp Fiddler is the musical genius that’s always the coolest person in the room. Born and still residing in the Pershing HS neighborhood Amp travels the world and comes home to Detroit’s Eastside. His unique blend of Funk, Soul, and R & B was crafted through his work with George Clinton and late great brother Bubs Fiddler. His welcoming spirit to enc [...]