Detroit is a city with many musical connections. But one musical connection might be helping pay for your retirement. 

Between 2010 and 2019, Michigan's treasury pension fund invested $1.1 billion into music royalties. It significantly invested in Concord, an entertainment company that holds the copyrights to over 300,000 songs. 

Its catalog includes timeless acts like Billie Holiday, Phil Collins, Cyndi Lauper, and more modern artists like Brent Faiyaz and Tyla. Every time their songs are streamed, Michigan pensions grow. 

These investments are becoming more popular thanks to streaming platforms like Spotify, YouTube and Apple Music. 

It raises questions about how an influx of financiers could impact the music industry. And considering so few artists own their catalog, what does it mean for the earnings disparity between the musicians who make the music and the investors who profit from it?

Helping us sift through this is the founder of CAD Management, Clayton Durant. He is also an adjunct professor of music business at New York University.  

The city has started enforcing new truck routes in Southwest Detroit this week. 

For many years, residents have been blowing the horn on trucks clogging up residential streets, shaking homes, and emitting pollution in Southwest Detroit. 

Detroit’s Chief of Infrastructure Sam Krassenstein said on The Metro, community input has led to these changes in one corner of the city.

This is a step in the right direction, but community groups like The Trucks Off Our Street Coalition are calling for a citywide ordinance to address truck troubles in more neighborhoods. 

Changes in Southwest Detroit were previewed at The Trucks Off Our Street Coalition meeting last week. Producer Jack Filbrandt got into these changes and community concerns with Detroit Documenters Katerli Bounds and Noah Kincade. 

Dance is typically understood as a physical artform. A non-verbal expression of creativity, emotions and narratives. Dance is a cultural pillar that brings communities together under shared goals: to create and perform. 

Ajara Alghali is a cultural organizer who believes that dance can also be a tool for transformation and equity, and a connection between ritual and our shared environment. With these principles in mind, she co-founded the TéMaTé Institute for Black Dance and Culture in 2018. 

The organization hosts an annual dance convening that demonstrates that vision through workshops and performances from experts who span the African diaspora. This year, it takes place October 18 and 19 at the Andy Art Center and Detroit School of Arts.  Ajara joined The Metro to discuss the upcoming event.

Ferndale officials say automatic license plate readers from Flock Safety make the city safer. Residents are urging a ‘no’ vote on the technology, saying is poses significant risks to civil liberties. Ferndale City Council is expected to vote on a contract renewal in coming weeks.

Prasad Venugopal and Kathleen LaTosch are members of the Ferndale Inclusion Network. They joined Robyn Vincent on The Metro to discuss why they are urging the city council to vote no on the contract.

“Don't tell me what you value. Show me your budget, and I'll tell you what you value,” former President Joe Biden used to say. 

What he meant was that budgets aren’t just numbers on a page. They represent the things that we prioritize, the stuff we want expanded, and the work we want to shrink. 

The 2026 Michigan state budget took some time to sort out, but late last week a $75.9 billion budget was finally passed. 

Robyn Vincent spoke with Zach Gorchow, the president of Gongwer News Service Michigan to learn more about what the state budget reveals.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

William Shakespeare is regarded as one of the greatest drama writers in recorded English language history. His work has lived on through the centuries, and today's writers and directors have found ways to keep his works alive. 

Shakespeare in Detroit is one group that has made a name for themselves being the premiere space for classical performances.

Beginning as an initiative in 2012 called Shakespeare Against Cancer, the group traveled across Michigan hospitals, healing through classical performances.  A year later, Shakespeare in Detroit hosted the cities first ever public show, a Shakespeare in the park experience.

Since then, the grassroots organization has expanded its offerings, working with kids and teens, helping the next generation of theater folks find their niche. 

Next week as part of the company’s intimate 2025 fall limited run series, "Jane Anger" will make its Michigan debut. The dark comedy takes place in the 1600s during the plague.

Samatha White the founding artistic and executive director of Shakspeare in Detroit. She is also the director of Michigan’s premiere of "Jane Anger". 

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

Since 1928, The Redford Theatre has been a fixture in the heart of the Detroit community. Standing just off of Lahser and Grand River in Detroit, the theater prides itself on showing unique films. 

Recently, the theater received a grant from the state historic preservation office to restore its iconic steel windows, helping maintain the historic space and keep the charm that makes it a special place to view a film. 

As one of the busiest times of the year for the theater, Halloween season has become a favorite among movie lovers. The line-up ranges from horror and gore to family favorites. 

Directly next door to the theater is the Motor City Cinema Society. Its main goal is to curate, preserve and showcase movies on film and provide an engaging and inclusive experience for our patrons. 

Redford Theatre programmer and volunteer John Monaghan joined the show to talk more about the importance of preserving and showing films of the past. 

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

A few years out of the pandemic, overdose deaths continue to drop. 

A new report found that overdose deaths declined by 37 percent from 2023 to 2024. Local EMS calls related to drug overdoses dropped as well.

What are Southeast Michigan government officials doing to try to continue lowering addiction and overdose rates since the numbers hit all-time highs?

Narcan availability is a big reason for this drop. But local governments are making more investments in physical and mental health care too. Oakland County just opened its 360 Care Center, which offers same-day services for non-emergency medical needs. 

Why is addiction a big problem for so many people in the first place? And what can health professionals and everyday folks do to try to stop it from ruining peoples’ lives? Producer Sam Corey spoke with Deputy County Executive for Oakland County Madiha Tariq to learn more.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

In Michigan, some people coming home from prison face another kind of sentence — silence at the end of every rental application. State law does not prohibit landlords from denying housing because of a person’s criminal record. 

Lawmakers tried to change that last year with the Fair Chance Access to Housing Act. It would have asked landlords to look deeper and weigh time served, work history, and rehabilitation before they said no. But the bill never reached the floor.

Advocates want it revived, saying the need is even more urgent now. 

Michigan is short roughly 185,000 affordable homes for its lowest-income renters, and when housing is this scarce, those with records are quick to get shut out.

Landlord groups have resisted. They say they should exercise discretion over whom they rent to and that safety must come first.

So, the question before lawmakers — and all of us — is a simple one with hard edges: When does a person’s past stop defining where they’re allowed to live?

Tony Gant, an advocate for people affected by the criminal justice system, spent 20 years in prison. 

Gant joined Robyn Vincent on The Metro to discuss living in a gray area between rehabilitation and acceptance, and how he’s trying to make change in Michigan.

Nabeela Najjar is the creative force behind Seamstress Bee, where she works as a costume and fashion designer.

A graduate of the College for Creative Studies, Nabeela uses her vision to create mystical costumes and designs inspired by the dreamworld and nature. She hand-dyes flowy fabrics like silk and chiffon to form one-of-a-kind, ethereal garments.

Nabeela was named a Gucci Changemaker Scholar, and her work has been displayed at the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit. Her designs range from everyday wear to conceptual pieces you’d see on the runway.