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Review | Little Bear Ridge Road is an Artistic Gut Punch

Little Bear Ridge Road, does something you rarely see in popular media these days. It reminisces on the period during and just after Covid. Somehow, collectively, we’ve silently agreed to just not talk about it anymore. We don’t want to relive it on TV, in books, or...

Be Kind, Rewind! Welcome to Monster Video

On a hot day in June, while visiting The Veiled Mirror and talking with them about collecting old books and DVDs, I was told that next door would be opening as a VHS video store soon. All throughout July, several of my friends who knew of my movie library habit...

Cosmic Jazz Legend Lonnie Liston Smith is Returning to Richmond

Just announced: Cosmic Echo Live, taking place at the historic Hippodrome Theatre on September 13, will celebrate the life, music, and legacy of Richmond-born cosmic jazz icon Lonnie Liston Smith. The event will feature live performances, stories from across his...

Skip the Chains! A VCU Student Guide to Cheap-ish Local Eats

It’s that time of year when the U-Hauls come rolling in, parents are circling the block looking for parking, and thousands of new VCU students are about to move in and get their first real taste of Richmond. There are about 4,500 new students and 1,500 transfer...

Seeing Richmond Through Their Eyes

Editor's Note: Writers Block is an occasional series featuring personal essays, reflections, and creative nonfiction from Richmond-area writers. In Seeing Richmond Through Their Eyes, Gabriella Ryan shares how a month spent showing her Italian cousins around Richmond...

Can Firehouse Put Richmond on the National Theatre Map?

In the electric and perpetually sincere terrain of Richmond’s theatre culture, there are institutions that do more than merely reside, they lead. They serve as a measure of our city's potential beyond its natural aspirations. I've witnessed Firehouse Theatre inhabit...

Photos | Warriors in Bloom at Agecroft Hall

For one weekend, Agecroft Hall stopped being a museum and became a kingdom.  What began as a fundraiser to help launch Richmond's first Renaissance Faire has grown into a destination of its own. Warriors in Bloom, created by the folks at Virago Alley, returned with...

In Plan 9 We Trust

This weekend, Plan 9 Music marks 45 years in Richmond with a party at Hardywood Park Craft Brewery. Over the past four and a half decades, the Richmond institution weathered some of the most turbulent periods in music history. It closed stores, sold its warehouse and...

Broke Student’s Survival Guide: Cheap Eats in Richmond 2025

If you’re a broke student back in Richmond and already sick of the dining hall’s gray meatloaf, relax, this city won’t let you starve. The food here has always been a patchwork of dives, diners, and half-chaotic kitchens that somehow keep the student body alive. You don’t need a trust fund, just a few crumpled bills and a willingness to follow...

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Photos | the Flaming Lips & Modest Mouse on Brown’s island

Sunday night’s show on Brown’s Island felt like a ritual, maybe even a communion, as a field full of strangers came together under clear skies and perfect weather. Modest Mouse, The Flaming Lips, and opener Friko gave the crowd exactly what we came for. Modest Mouse took the stage as the sun slipped behind the James River. Isaac Brock, still...

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The Lost Cause Boys’ Club

“The rebel yell, reinforced by a glorification of the lost cause was everywhere manifest,” reported John Mitchell Jr., editor of the Richmond Planet, an African American weekly newspaper, at the time of the Robert E. Lee monument’s unveiling.  It was the spring of 1890. Boxes adorned with Confederate flags held the 12-ton bust, as a faithful...

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Sound Check | Spooky Cool, Weedeater, The Be-Sides & More!

Sun’s up, we ain’t dead yet. Plenty of good stuff on the bills -- your favorites, my favorites, maybe even your next favorite. Got a show coming up? New single? Simply want someone to talk music? I am your guy at griffin@rvamag.com. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NtZ8kwWtUfI Spooky Cool, Fight Cloud, Raavi, Ducctape JesusFriday July 25th,...

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