DOWNTOWN RVA

‘Support Local, Vote Local’ RVA Magazine’s 2025 Readers’ Poll Is Now Closed!

‘Support Local, Vote Local’ RVA Magazine’s 2025 Readers’ Poll Is Now Closed!

Editor’s note: The results are in and can be found HERE! Let the groans begin, Richmond, it’s that time again: our semi annual Support Local, Vote Local Poll. We’ve all been through it lately. Another election, another pile of headlines designed to grind your...




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Writer’s Block | Two Poems by Cameron Ritter

Writer’s Block is RVA Magazine’s series highlighting contemporary writers working in Richmond and across the Commonwealth. Each week, we feature original poems, short stories, or essays. Just real voices writing right now. This week, we’re featuring two poems by...

Key Gun Control Bills Advance in Virginia as Firearm Sales Surge

Early indicators suggest Virginians responded to a slate of proposed gun control legislation with a noticeable increase in firearm background checks. The bills mark one the most significant shifts in the state’s firearm laws in recent years, and build on previously...

Richmond Gets a Night with David Sedaris. Don’t Miss It.

Beloved humorist and New York Times bestselling author, David Sedaris, will land feet first on April 17th during a stop at the Altria Theater as part of his “An Evening with David Sedaris” 43-show US tour, featuring all-new readings and recollections. Maybe you have...

Writer’s Block | Student Poets from PodiumRVA Speak Their Truth

A Sunday series from RVA Magazine featuring writers from Richmond and Virginia Writer’s Block is RVA Magazine’s Sunday series highlighting contemporary writers working in Richmond and across the Commonwealth. Each week, we feature original poems, short stories, or...

The Byrd Theatre Is Still Richmond’s Palace of Dreams

Christmas Eve, 1928. Richmond is cold and the city is dressed for the holiday. On West Cary Street, a crowd gathers outside a building that wasn't there six months ago; a French Empire facade rising up in the middle of a neighborhood that had no idea it was about to...

Fighting Cancer with Music | Richmond Musicians Rally for Justin Golden

Some musicians don’t just play—they shape a city’s sound, quietly stitching themselves into the cultural fabric with every note. Justin Golden has been doing that in Richmond for years, sliding his bluesy riffs into our collective consciousness. You might’ve caught him live, lost in a groove, or maybe you’ve just soaked in the atmosphere he...

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Sound Check! Wes Parker, Rubblebucket, Sweet Bahs

In a dancing mood this week. We got some bouncers, some swayers, some goth sporadic twitching. Got a show coming up? New single? Simply want someone to talk music? I am your guy at griffin@rvamag.com.  Gallery5 Friday January 31st, 2025Wes Parker, Opin, Sun V Set https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atD1wST7U6c Splinter is Wes Parker’s newest EP, a...

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Wes-Parker_Splinter-video_RVA-Magazine-2025

Sound Check! Bone Machine, Benjamin Shepherd, Nicotine Dolls

Sometimes the world feels bleak. Right now, in my eyes, the world looks bleak. I went to think about it, take stock of what puts gas in my tank, and did my pondering at The Camel, at Gallery 5, at Bandito’s. After all that, I didn’t feel so bad. Got a show coming up? New single? Simply want someone to talk music? I am your guy at...

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Bone Machine_RVA Magazine 2025

Meet the Man Bringing Shuffle Dance and FlingGolf to Richmond

Richmond’s own Garry Callis Jr. has a lot going on right now. Whether he’s lighting up the dance floor or making his mark on the golf course, he’s forging his own path and inspiring others to join him along the way. Photo courtesy of Garry Callis Jr. RVA Hard Dance Collective: A Shot of Energy for Richmond’s Dance Scene It started with an idea as...

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Garry Callis Jr_RVA Hard Dance Collective_FlingGolf_iver City Rogues_RVA Magazine 2025

Venue Turns 30 | The Richmond Skate Shop Keeps Rolling

For 30 years, Venue Skateboards has been part of the Richmond story—a skate shop that’s never been just a skate shop. Since 1994, it’s been a meeting place, a community hub, and a home for skaters from all over the city. Kim and Maury Blankenship didn’t set out to change the world; they just wanted to create a space for skaters in a town that...

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Venue 30 Year Anniversary_by R. Anthony Harris_photo by Cristian Espinoza_RVA Magazine 2024