Detroit Jazz Legend Wendell Harrison Wants You To “Get Up Off Your Knees” On New Album
Wendell Harrison is more than “just a Detroit guy” as he describes himself. Courtesy of Wendell Harrison The tenor saxophonist,...
Ryan Patrick Hooper is the award-winning host of "In the Groove" on 101.9 WDET-FM Detroit’s NPR station. Hooper has covered stories for the New York Times, NPR, Detroit Free Press, Hour Detroit, SPIN and Paste magazine.
Hooper grew up reading the Sunday paper with his dad. That’s where he learned the basics of writing while dreaming of one day writing the stories himself. At 16, he knocked on the door of his hometown paper and asked for a job as a reporter. Since then, he's written extensively for the Detroit Free Press -- the same paper he grew up reading.
Since joining WDET in 2017, Hooper has expanded the station’s arts and culture coverage and received numerous awards from the Michigan Association of Broadcasting along the way. Nationally, Hooper was awarded a 2020 RTDNA Regional Edward R. Murrow award for feature reporting for his story “Would You Rent a Stray Dog From the City of Detroit?“ In 2018, Hooper was named the Associated Press Michigan Editors Broadcast Rising Star in broadcast journalism. He received the prestigious Crain’s Detroit Business “20 In Their 20s” award in 2014. His commitment to volunteerism was recognized by the State of Michigan in 2007.
His juggalo-inspired I.C.Pizza costume was selected by the Huffington Post as one of the best Halloween costumes of 2014.
Actor Wendell Pierce Secretly Filmed a Play in Detroit. This Is The Music That Got Him Here.
An experiment in how to bring live theatre back during the pandemic is taking place in Ann Arbor. The University of...
Television Shows May Appear More Diverse, But Representation Still Lacks Quality
Hollywood and the entertainment industry still have work to do when it comes to cultivating a more diverse and inclusive...
What Could An Artist Do With $25,000? Kresge Arts in Detroit Wants To Know
Another year, another round of Kresge Artist Fellowships. This year's cycle of $25,000 awards are given to a total of...
Can Parents Influence What Music Their Kids Like? A Musicologist Explains
When it comes to musical taste, why do we love some things and can’t stand the sound of others? Is...
The Detroit Institute of Arts Added 463 Works of Art To Its Collection in 2020
DIA The Detroit Institute of Arts acquired 463 works of art this year. While the vast majority of those acquisitions...
Embrace Michigan Winter With A Uniquely Scandinavian Approach
The days get dark at 5 p.m. The wind chills your bones when you run outside to grab that thing...
Who Is Ike White? New Documentary Captures Incredible Story of Incarcerated Musician
One of the great untold stories of American music history finds a new audience in the documentary “The Changin’ Times...
COVID-19 Reshaped Sports In 2020, But Women Continued To Make Their Mark
Women athletes found ways to make their mark in a year when COVID-19 completely rewrote our relationship with sports and...
Comedian Michael Kosta Left the Midwest, But Michigan Never Left Him
In his debut one-hour stand-up special for Comedy Central “Detroit. NY. LA.,” Michael Kosta wanted to trace his journey in...
With No Support From Government, Detroit Restaurants Step Up To Support Service Industry Workers
The owner of Batch Brewing Company didn’t set out to raise nearly $50,000 for service industry workers in Detroit, but...
Detroit’s Hardcore Punk Scene Comes Alive in “Dope, Hookers and Pavement” Documentary
The Motor City has provided many soundtracks to the rest of the world from gospel to Motown and electronic genres...