Archives: July 2024

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Politics

U.S. House panels review ‘startling’ allegations at Bureau of Indian Education university

Shauneen Miranda,

The entrance to Haskell Indian Nations University at Lawrence, Kansas, pictured in April 2024. A recently released investigative report has described the campus as “dysfunctional.” (Max McCoy/Kansas Reflector) WASHINGTON — Members of two U.S. House panels examined allegations of sexual assault, bullying and retaliation at the U.S. Bureau of Indian Education-operated Haskell Indian Nations University during a hearing this week….

Vcmn
Music

Premiere: VCMN’s “F.A.B.” is the hot summer jam we’ve all been waiting for

Nick Spacek,

Photo Courtesy of VCMN Victoria and Manny Cable are VCMN—a Lawrence R&B duo whom we’ve been obsessed with ever since they released their debut album, The VCMN Project, back in 2022. After a lengthy hiatus from new music, the couple drop their new single, “F.A.B.,” this week, and it is an unparalleled banger. Unapologetically black, queer, and body-positive, it will…

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Politics

Missouri cannabis leader accused of using ‘predatory’ contracts to win social-equity licenses

State cannabis regulators said they’ve opened an investigation into three licenses awarded last year to verify whether they ‘continue to be majority owned and operated by eligible individuals.'
Rebecca Rivas,

John Payne, managing partner at Amendment 2 Consultants, discusses legislation at an industry summit in downtown St. Louis on March 28 with Amy Moore (middle), director of the Division of Cannabis Regulation, and Mitch Meyers, partner at BeLeaf Medical (Rebecca Rivas/Missouri Independent) When John Payne was leading the campaign to legalize recreational cannabis in 2022, he faced a major hurdle….

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Music

A Presidential candidate cult of personality briefly surfaced at Jeff Rosenstock’s raucous Bottleneck return

Nick Spacek, Andrew Dodderidge,

Jeff Rosenstock. // photo by Nick Spacek Jeff Rosenstock with Chris Farren The Bottleneck Sunday, July 21 When the first crowd surfer at Jeff Rosenstock’s Sunday night return to The Bottleneck jumped up on the stage before sifting their way through the packed house, I was into it. By the 20th to 30th time, not so much. It’s 2024. We…

gulag girls
Theater

KC Fringe Fest: Shea Ketchum’s Gulag Girls is an emotionally impactful history lesson

Kaylynn Mullins,

Photo by Taylor Zimmerman Set in a Soviet Union prison, Gulag Girls delivers the harrowing stories of real women’s experiences. The subject matter is gruesome and reminiscent of the real horrors people, especially women, face during times of political turmoil and tyranny. Despite the hardships endured, Shea Ketchum and the cast also display how the women banded together, laughed, rebelled,…

Nadene
Culture

Creature Feature: Meet sweet Nadene

Scott Poore,

Photo Courtesy of Scott Poore Unfortunately, this sweet pup, Nadene, has been with Saline Animal League since December 2022—over 600 days. Hard to believe because she’s about the sweetest girl around! She loves kids and wants nothing more than to be a couch potato with you. She’s amazing on a leash and takes correction extremely well! Nadene previously had no…

KC Sipps neon sign logo
Food & Drink

KC Sipps: Hot Dog Festival, free croissants, and more restaurant news

Your Kansas City dining guide
Sarah Sipple, Aleah Gollier,

Art by Cassondra Jones Looking for delicious plans? Whether you want to impress a date, show your fam the best of KC, or just get out of the house, we’ve got you covered… all while supporting (mostly) local.  Here is your weekly roundup of the best food and drink offerings around Kansas City. Cheers! Something New Hank’s Garage and Grill:…
Culture, Food & Drink

Queer Dinner Club fosters community at some of KC’s best restaurants

Raymart Dinglas,

Queer Dinner Club // Photo by Raymart Dinglas What happens when you gather a group of LGBTQIA+ individuals to share a meal, drinks, and intimate conversations? You get the Queer Dinner Club. Organized by Queer Connect, the Queer Dinner Club offers a welcoming space for the LGBTQIA+ community to connect over food and conversation. Meeting monthly at various local restaurants,…

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Art

A Self Reunited: Melissa Shook’s ‘To Prove that I Exist’ at Nelson-Atkins tears apart warring vacuums of time

Chandler Rawson,

December, 1972: while New York City teeters towards financial ruin, one of its Lower East Side inhabitants, Melissa Shook (1939–2020), is torn asunder by warring vacuums on her time. She is both a newly minted mother and artist– endlessly needed and endlessly searching for more time. Beneath the roiling shadows of the city’s unrest and her own personal maelstrom of anxieties,…

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Politics

Jackson County Prosecutor election features four divergent views for the future of justice, safety

Kaylynn Mullins,

Photo Courtesy of Candidates’ Campaigns As signs go up in yards and campaign texts blow up your phone, it is clear that election season has returned yet again. Though the country’s eyes remain on the deja vu-inducing presidential race, major positions are up for grabs locally. The Jackson County Prosecutor is a sneakily powerful gig, essentially representing the entire county…
Theater

Playwright Grace Piper Fields discusses her debut musical Lorene’s Reverie

Austin Woods,

Grace Piper Fields performing in Lorene’s Reverie. Courtesy of Fields. Throughout her junior and senior years at Shawnee Mission East High School, Grace Piper Fields wrote the script, music, and lyrics for Lorene’s Reverie, a musical based on her great-grandmother’s diaries. A condensed version of the show premiered at the high school in 2023. From July 25 to July 27,…

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Music

Photos: Warren Haynes Band at The Midland

Allison Scavo,

Warren Haynes Band. // photo by Allison Scavo Warren Haynes Band The Midland Theatre Thursday, July 18 Warren Haynes (guitar, vocals), Matt Slocum (keys), Kevin Scott (bass), Greg Osby (sax), and Terence Higgins (drums) make up the Warren Haynes Band, who came to Kansas City on Thursday. Their soulful blues rock version of “Fire in the Kitchen” had bouts of…

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Politics

Blind Loyalty: Why Missouri AG Andrew Bailey’s obsession with fighting Trump’s NY conviction is stupider than you think

MO taxpayer money is tied up in performative politics from a man angling to use Trump's hush money conviction to leverage his own personal election bid.
Michael McGrady Jr.,

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey speaks in January 2023 to the Missouri chapter of the Federalist Society in the Missouri House chamber. (Annelise Hanshaw/Missouri Independent) Donald Trump is a lurking specter, haunting the Missouri Attorney General primary race. The incumbent, Andrew Bailey, is buying into all of this to prove his “MAGA chops” against his rival: an attorney who currently works…

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Music

Four Inane Questions with local rapper Lopan Banks

Michael Mackie,

Photo Courtesy of Lopan Banks Lopan Banks, AKA David Fairbanks, has your standard garden-variety rapper trajectory. In 2009, he helped found KC’s premiere party band Lost Wax, started law school at UMKC, and began writing original material. Fifteen years later, he’s now the owner of a law firm and is poised to debut his debut mixtape Pretty Good Rapper on July…

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Theater

The Cardboard Knight brings KC Fringe the essential found family drama

Kaylynn Mullins,

Photo by Kaylynn Mullins I am such a sucker for the found family trope. Whether it be The Bear or The Last Of Us, nothing tugs on my heartstrings more than vastly different people bonding in distressing times. Local playwright Cory Busch created The Cardboard Knight after learning about the Syrian Civil War in college. “I just felt myself getting…

Planned Parenthood Volunteers
News

Planned Parenthood detail volunteer opportunities for the region and how you can get involved

Kaylynn Mullins,

Photo courtesy of Planned Parenthood Volunteers After the reversal of Roe v. Wade in the summer of 2022, reproductive care has become excessively difficult for plenty of Americans. Many red states immediately jumped to restrict and ban abortion altogether, which left those who continued to provide care highly sought after. Surrounded by hostile states, Kansas has become a significant destination…
Music

Photos: Bowling For Soup rickroll The Truman

Meredith Schneider,

Bowling for Soup. // Photo by Meredith Schneider On Thursday, July 18th, Bowling For Soup headlined an energetic, nostalgic show at The Truman. The four-piece—currently made up of Jaret Reddick, Chris Burney, Gary Wiseman, and Rob Felicetti (who you might recognize from The Ataris)—brought their quintessential aughts pop-punk flare to a sold-out crowd in Kansas City on one of the…