According to the Virginia Department of Health, there were 1,548 drug overdose deaths among Virginia residents in 2024, a 37% decrease from 2023. Emergency department visits for overdoses also declined, with 18,292 reported, down 16% year over year. While those...
Let’s get down to business: This film is fucking bananas. Not your average store-bought bananas, not even your farm-to-table free range bananas, this is 160 metric tonnes of high-explosive, slow-motion, dual pistol, Hong Kong bullet spraying bananas; shipped directly to you from the inner recesses of Director John Woo’s unfathomable id. Whatever...
Richmond has a way of letting history slip through the cracks. Some stories get enshrined, others get forgotten, and too often, the ones that matter most fall into the latter category. Sister Rosetta Tharpe is one of those names that any one who loves music history should know, yet somehow, she’s often missing from the city’s narrative. That’s...
David Bowie said it best: “Let’s dance.” I tried to get something fun, something chill, and something maniacal—because sometimes a man has got to skank, and sometimes a man has got to get a concussion in the pit. If you’ve got any tips, send them my way. Got a show coming up? New single? Simply want someone to talk music? I am your guy at...
"Destructo Disk, an alternative punk band originally from Winchester, VA, has quickly become a Richmond staple. It’s wild to think they’ve only been tearing it up here for a few years—they’ve covered serious ground in no time. If you haven’t checked them out yet, do yourself a favor. Their live shows are pure energy, and they know how to bring...
Sixty-five years ago, a group of brave young Black Richmonders walked into a department store, sat down at a lunch counter, and refused to leave. That’s what they did. That’s what got them arrested. They just sat in a segregated space where their presence alone was considered a crime. https://vimeo.com/9827740?share=copy That moment—the...
I’ve given up on trying to write reviews of plays I see at the Firehouse Theatre immediately after leaving the show. Maybe I’m slow, but there is always so much to process that “sleeping on it” is the only way I’m going to unpack the turmoil they’ve left me with as I walk out the door.Detroit '67, currently showing, is no exception. The Firehouse...
If English is your first language and you own at least 100 books, I’d lay even odds that one of them is the Complete Works of William Shakespeare. Even if you’ve never read it. Shakespeare’s kung fu grip on the GOAT trophy is impressive for its 400-year title retention and his distant-as-all-hell competition in the rearview. When someone gets to...
Music is the lifeblood of our city. The late-night sets, the sweat-soaked venues, the dusty record bins filled with sonic treasures and hidden frequencies. Richmond gets this— more than any other city in Virginia. So here’s Weekend Frequency—a weekly, reader-curated playlist built for the city, by the city. Part revival, part continuation of...
These shows got me amped. Join me and catch the wind in the sails and take off into a musical tomorrow across a sea of uncertainty. If you’ve got any tips, send them my way. Got a show coming up? New single? Simply want someone to talk music? I am your guy at griffin@rvamag.com. The CamelFriday, March 14th, 2025Golden Fest | A Benefit For Justin...
