CIAA Guide 2018
CIAA Guide 2018
Cover Story
CIAA Party Guide 2018
It’s that time of year again: three days of parties, shows, takeovers — whatever you want to call them, just make sure you call out of work. Thursday, March 1 Morehead Tavern Kick-off Party: Hosted by the women of Zeta Phi Beta, Morehead Tavern is serving lunch and drink specials with live performances by Jemini…
A$AP Ferg buzzes the Fillmore
Late start doesn’t dampen the evening for A$AP Mob rapper.
Missio rocks The Underground
Band offers relentless energy during Music Factory venue performance.
EXCLUSIVE: NoDa Brewing Showcases Local Artists with New Tap Room Paintings
When your namesake neighborhood is known as Charlotte’s arts district, there’s a certain expectation you have to live up to, and NoDa Brewing Company co-founder Suzie Ford is happy to do so. It was Ford, co-founder and co-owner of NoDa Brewing, who recently decided to create an homage to the countless great artists in the…
GRAPHIC VIDEO: CMPD Releases Body Cam Footage of February Police Shooting
This afternoon, CMPD officials released body cam footage related to the February 2 shooting of 27-year-old Charlie Shoupe by a CMPD officer in west Charlotte. The videos, which have been posted to the city of Charlotte’s website and YouTube, include footage from the officer who fired on Shoupe and three other officers on the scene…
Red Sparrow: Take These Broken Wings
RED SPARROW *1/2 (out of four) DIRECTED BY Francis Lawrence STARS Jennifer Lawrence, Joel Edgerton Eventually, a movie will emerge that will exemplify the #MeToo movement in all its righteous fury and cathartic representation, but that moment hasn’t arrived yet. The ability of Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri to capture a slice of this zeitgeist…
Listen Up: Chócala’s Ortiz Siblings Get To Know Each Other on ‘Local Vibes’
Liza and Claudio Ortiz of Chócala, the band that’s taken over Snug Harbor for a March residency, have rarely been apart throughout their lives. They’ve went from being home-schooled and starring in comedic home video performances together to playing shows together with Patabamba and now Chócala. So you’d think they know each other pretty well,…
The Blotter: Own Worst Enemy
Look At Yourself It’s been a time of reflection for gun owners as of late, but one man in the Starmount area wasn’t having that last week, as he decided a long look in the mirror wasn’t worth his time. Police responded to a Bojangles’ on South Boulevard after a man allegedly shattered the mirror…
Lady and the Tramp, Murder on the Orient Express, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri among new home entertainment titles
(View From The Couch is a weekly column that reviews what’s new on Blu-ray, DVD and Streaming. Ratings are on a four-star scale.) BIRDMAN OF ALCATRAZ (1962). As real-life convict Robert Stroud, a man serving a life sentence for murder, Burt Lancaster goes from coiled tension in the first half of this exemplary motion picture…
Police Address CMS Threats Following Florida School Shooting
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department officials held a press conference this morning to address a string of incidents involving threats of violence in Charlotte-Mecklenburg schools in the aftermath of a shooting that took 17 lives a high school in Parkland, Florida, on February 18. Assistant Chief Vicki Foster hosted the press conference the day after four incidents…
News of the Weird: Consider the Birds
The Continuing Crisis Birds nesting near natural gas compressors have been found to suffer symptoms similar to PTSD in humans, according to researchers at the Florida Museum of Natural History, and noise pollution has been named the culprit. The Washington Post reported the team studied birds in the Rattlesnake Canyon Habitat Management Area in New…
Judy and Patrick Diamond’s Art Collection Captures the African-American Experience
Judy Diamond credits her early love for art with the public school education she received as a child in Brooklyn, New York. As a student, she was constantly going on field trips to museums and other art institutions around the city. In contrast, about 700 miles to the south, in Columbia, South Carolina, Patrick Diamond,…
You Can Do Whatever You Want to Do
My mom proffered a simple, eight-word mantra when I was growing up: “You can do whatever you want to do.” She said it to my dad back when he wore a tool belt and fixed machinery on a dusty factory floor in my hometown of Asheboro. He wanted to be in management. When he retired…
Jay Robert Watson Brings Urban Landscapes to Life
At first glance, it’s a city at dusk on a Mediterranean coast. Boats dot the bay, lights reflecting off water, and the city responds with its own light show. It’s another beautiful evening on the Sorrentine Peninsula. But look closer. The boats are actually miniature cities. Buildings and rooftops house an unknown population of people…
Part 2: Ronnie Long Has Spent Four Decades Behind Bars for a Rape Many Say He Didn’t Commit
The following is Part 2 of a two-part story. It is the result of a partnership with the Indy Week in Raleigh. When we left off with Part 1, Ronnie Long had been charged with a brutal rape that occurred in Concord on April 25, 1976, after being identified as a suspect through questionable means.…
Former Members of Patabamba Stretch out to Become Chócala
When Claudio Ortiz first heard his sister Liza belt out her song “Reina de Mi” during rehearsals for his Charlotte band Chócala, he was taken aback. After all, he still thought of Liza, who at 28 is two years younger than Claudio, as his kid sister. He watched as she wailed the words “Soy la…
Asha Sims Turned her Life Around by Putting in the Energy Work
About 10 years ago, Asha Sims’ life took a turn for the worse. Her relationship with her husband and business partner was falling apart. As a licensed professional counselor, she was familiar with the signs, but she didn’t want to recognize them in her own case: She was in a denial about her abusive relationship.…
The CIAA Conundrum
It never fails. The conversation is usually the same during the last couple weeks leading up to the end of February. “Well, you know CIAA is next weekend…” *insert awkward pause* as the speaker scans the closest black person’s expression or the table for someone (anyone) who will cosign. Why, you may ask? The CIAA…
Try This Bangkok Variation on a Familiar Theme
The Thai dessert sangkaya is a steamed squash filled with coconut custard. It may not sound like pie, but anyone who likes a good slice of pumpkin pie should be very interested in this dish. I first came across sangkaya at a night market in Bangkok. Taking in the tapioca balls, syrups, fried goodies and…
