Rezwan Kohistani’s family continues to fight for answers to the 14-year-old’s death. // Courtesy KC Muslim Civic Initiative After fleeing Afghanistan in August 2021, the Kohistani family was resettled in Webb City, Missouri by the U.S. government. Less than a year later, their eldest son 14-year-old Rezwan, was found hanged at Webb City High School May 5, 2022. Tonight, the…
Behind the scenes from “West Bottoms.” // Courtesy of Gregory Sheffer It can be easy to lose a dream after you think you have moved on, but Greg Sheffer decided that he didn’t have to leave his passions behind as an adult. Sheffer started his career in video production but had hoped he would eventually make a feature-length film. Now…
Nicole Springer. // photo credit Scott Bosworth Singer-songwriter Nicole Springer has been riding the crest of a new resurgence of live music venues, new material, a new band, and a newly recorded five-song EP. She’s, to this point, lived a life of momentous personal defeats and pivotal triumphs. In the fall of 2021, Springer was invited to play on the…
U.S. Senate candidate Trudy Busch Valentine joined hundreds of demonstrators at the Planned Parenthood clinic in St. Louis on June 24, 2022, in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade. // Photo by Rebecca Rivas/The Missouri Independent For 12 days, Trudy Busch Valentine never left her sister’s side as nurses and doctors did everything they could…
The most… patriotic? // Courtesy Melissa’s Second Chances and Scott Poore This week’s “Creature Feature” is thanks to the help of Scott Poore from Mission Driven. Let’s be real. Archie doesn’t need much of a description. He’s just damn cute. We have good feelings about Archie. If you are interested in meeting him, please contact Melissa’s Second Chances—sooner than later….
Comedian Joey Rinaldi. // Courtesy Joey Rinaldi The Kansas City Fringe Festival returns to the metro, bringing artists of theatre, dance, film, music, visual arts, and more, during its stint July 15-31. As an uncensored tap into the entertainment industry, Fringe aims to bring laughs to all ages. While theatre, dance, film, music, and visual arts are being covered, another…
The #22. //Courtesy Pilsen Co-op The #22 is official The #22. You read about it. You dreamed about it. You went to order it… and it was gone. This was the tale of many who read about the sandwich collaboration between Italian Sausage Co. and Chef James Chang. The sandwich shop and Taiwan-born chef came together to create a deli…
The Departed. // photo courtesy the artist For 15 years, musician Cody Canada fronted the popular red dirt country act Cross Canadian Ragweed, whose 2010 breakup led to the formation of his current band, The Departed. The sound of The Departed is familiar to fans of Cross Canadian Ragweed, but leans harder to the rock side of things. Over the…
Romance authors Cathy Maxwell and Sherry Thomas speak to attendees at the 2019 Romance GenreCon. // Courtesy Mid-Continent Public Library Mid-Continent Public Library’s annual Romance GenreCon will be hosted at Woodneath Library Center Aug. 4-6. The Romance Writers Conference kicks off GenreCon Aug. 4 and 5. Bestselling and award-winning romance authors will lead workshops on topics like indie publishing, customer…
DJ Lucas. // Photo by Aaron Rhodes DJ Lucas / Papo2oo4 / Subjxct 5 With Midwestern and Laae Uzumak! The Toilet Bowl Wednesday, July 6 DJ Lucas sure knows how to command a room (or should we say a basement). The Massachusetts rapper headlined the Shuttlecock show alongside Papo2oo4 and DJ Subjxct 5 at local DIY venue The Toilet Bowl…
Bad Bad Hats. // Courtesy Zoe Prinds-Flash Being a “bad hat” means you’re a bit mischievous. That term, pulled from the Madeline book series, stuck with Kerry Alexander and became the name for Minnesota rock trio Bad Bad Hats. So, one could say they’re double the mischief—or double the fun, depending on how you look at it. Over Zoom we…
Bright Eyes. // Photo by Emily Cox If you measure art by whether it makes you feel something, Bright Eyes’ performance Friday night at Uptown Theater was exceptional. Bright Eyes is led by Conor Oberst, who offered a barely-hinged performance. The show opened with the stellar Hurray for the Riff Raff, who reminded me of velvet, of marigolds, of shimmering…
Eric Greitens addresses the media after filing to run in the Missouri Senate primary on Feb. 22, 2022, at the James C Kirkpatrick State Information Center in Jefferson City. // Courtesy Madeline Carter/Missouri Independent To hear Eric Greitens tell it, his political ascent was sabotaged by a vast conspiracy. The woman who accused him under oath of violent sexual misconduct…
The Pitch’s Infinite Playlist. // Illustration by Enrique Zabala Welcome to The Pitch’s Infinite Playlist, a forever-growing playlist of songs picked by people in KC. View/follow the full playlist on Spotify and you can always go back and check out the full run of articles. Throw the playlist on shuffle and enjoy away! Playlist Guest #15: Travis Young Who are…
Creators and pop culture enthusiasts gather at the expo. // Courtesy Fountain City Con Fountain City Con returns July 30 and 31 at the New Horizon Fieldhouse in New Century, Kansas. From 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, attendees can browse through rows of pop culture content including comics, artwork, anime, and collectibles. …
Memphis May Fire. // Photo by Barry Meitler Memphis May Fire with From Ashes to New, Rain City Drive, and Wolves At The Gate The Truman Saturday, July 9 Denton metalcore outfit Memphis May Fire brought the heat to the Truman on Saturday night. Our photographer, Barry Meitler (who you can find on Instagram and Facebook), was there to capture it all….
Jeff poses for a photo on the couch, making sure that the camera gets his good side. // Courtesy Eric Fain Jeff is only five years old, but he already has over 40,000 followers on TikTok. The English Mastiff is beloved across the city for being a gentle giant—especially with his three feline siblings: Teddy, Milly, and Foot-Foot. While his…
Halestorm. // photo credit Chris Ortiz Halestorm with Lilith Czar and The Warning Starlight Theatre Sunday, July 10 Touring in support of their latest album, Back from the Dead, rockers Halestorm hit Starlight on Sunday night along with Lilith Czar and The Warning. Originally scheduled was co-headliner the Pretty Reckless, who were forced to cancel due to Covid in the…
Third Eye Blind takes a bow at Starlight. // Photo courtesy facebook.com/ThirdEyeBlind Third Eye Blind with Taking Back Sunday and Hockey Dad at Starlight Theater Thursday, June 30, 2022 Third Eye Blind hit the stage to some unexpected walk-on music: Vivaldi. The band was immersed in fog and almost exclusively lit from behind, their faces largely lost in shadow, turning…
Sweet EMOtion limited Stranger Things ice cream release. // Photo by Anna Perry-Rushton Things got a little cattywampus (but oh, so delicious) in North Kansas City over the weekend with the limited release of a Stranger Things-inspired menu at the Sweet EMOtion vegan ice cream parlor founded by Seth Kean. Kean was working in the music industry when the pandemic…
Blanch is a good ol’ gal. // Courtesy Scott Poore Today’s “Creature Feature” is thanks to the help of Scott Poore from Mission Driven. Meet Blanche, a Jack Russel terrier mix. She is a good ol’ pup and is currently the oldest dog at the shelter. She may be 12 years old, but she is very young at heart. Blanche…
Roe v. Wade reproductive rights protesters at the Plaza on Friday, June 24, 2022. // Photo by Jim Nimmo The omnipotent shitshow that is America, once again, welcomes uterus owners to the foreground of its target practice. On June 24, the United States Supreme Court (SCOTUS) dismayed and devastated citizens with the overturn of the precedential court case, Roe v….
Jay Ferries. // Photo by RW2 The odds are that Jay Ferries doesn’t know your mom or grandma personally. But the food may cause you to think again. Ferries is the chef at Nighthawk, the basement bar and live music venue inside Hotel Kansas City. It’s one of the culinary endeavors overseen by Executive Chef Johnny Leach, and it’s focused…
On Dec. 9, the city council for Kansas City unanimously passed one of the most aggressive “right to counsel” ordinances in the country to ensure any Kansas City resident facing an eviction has the right to an attorney, similar to public defenders in criminal cases. // Courtesy of Missouri Workers Center April Shabbaz lives in a Kansas City apartment with…
