In an update to a story we linked to a few weeks ago from The Grio, a 9-year-old Detroit boy who raised $1,200 for his struggling city has now raised nearly $4,000.

The Grio reporter Jay Scott Smith has continued following the story of 9-year-old Joshua Smith who has raised close to $3,000 more for the city through his lemonade stand and donations.

“It’s close to $3,600,” Flynn Smith, Joshua’s father, said to The Grio.

“People handed us another $70 at church on Sunday,” Smith told The Grio. “Cards still came in the mail with money in them. I think yesterday was the first time that at the end of the day, there was no money coming in on PayPal, so that’s tapering off. But that’s cool, because I’m starting to wonder, when does it end.”

Recently, Mayor Dave Bing thanked the young child in a video. Smith also received a $2,000 scholarship from the Rosa Parks Scholarship Foundation contingent on him having a GPA over 2.5 when he graduates high school.

Read the rest of this story at The Grio

New York Fashion Week has officially launched and African American designers like Tracy Reese are already making a splash.  The Detroit native got lots of press during the Democratic National Convention when Michelle Obama gave her rousing speech while wearing a pink  dress custom made by Reese.  The dress will soon be available to the masses.

While that piece is in production, Reese debuted her Fall 2012 collection at New York Fashion Week and The Root has a slideshow of all the critically acclaimed designs filled with shimmer, texture and color.  What’s your favorite piece?

From CBS News

Detroit Mayor Dave Bing suspended the city’s police chief Tuesday amid allegations of a sexual relationship with another officer. This is the second time in two years that a Detroit police chief has been embroiled in a sex scandal, CBS Detroit reports.

“After learning of the allegations regarding Chief Ralph Godbee, I have placed him on a 30-day suspension pending a full and thorough investigation of this matter,” Bing said in a released statement.

Godbee, 44, was allegedly involved in an affair with 37-year-old Angelica Robinson, an internal affairs officer for the Detroit Police Department. Her attorney stated that his client was trying to cut off the relationship and that Godbee “didn’t like that.”

Read more at CBS News

Detroit rapper Big Sean showed his more fashionable side in a spread with GQ.

Usually pictured in a t-shirt and jeans, Big Sean layered up for the magazine latest issue’s photoshoot, looking quite ready for those cold fall and winter nights in Detroit.  His button ups, blazers, scarves and quilted vests add a little heft to his frame.

Head over to GQ to see more looks from the spread.

What’s your favorite look on Big Sean? What male rapper do you think has great style?

44 contemporary African-American artists like Philemona Williamson, whose work is pictured, employ various styles and mediums to create colorful busts of President Barack Obama for the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History ‘s new exhibit: Visions of Our 44th President.

Some of the artists include Cory Saint Clair, Louis Delsarte, and Matthew Gonzales.

Allie McGhee, another artist in the exhibit told the Grio, “My piece is a symbol of the clear vision and intellectual dignity with which President Obama ceaselessy confronts a myriad of issues for the benefit of mankind.”

Read more and view a slideshow of all 44 busts at The Grio.

Donyale Luna is not a household name outside of the fashion world, but her contributions to the industry paved the way for those brown faces you do know. The leggy, owl-eyed beauty was discovered on the streets of Detroit, her hometown, in the early 1960s.

Luna’s early career was the stuff of dreams. She moved to New York at 18, became the first black model to grace the cover of Harper’s Bazaar and British Vogue, rubbed elbows with celebrities and just generally led a fabulous life. But then, back home, her mother shot and killed her father in self defense and her world became one big swirl of drugs and alcohol.  She died of an accidental drug overdose in Rome in 1979 at the age of 32.

Head to the Telegraph to read more about Luna, her story and her legacy.

G.O.O.D. Music rapper, Big Sean, has announced that he has launched the Sean Anderson Foundation, which is aimed at assisting school-aged children in Detroit.

“The mission of the Sean Anderson Foundation is to assist in the education, health, safety and well-being of Detroit area school-aged youth,” Big Sean told AllHipHop.com

The Sean Anderson Foundation will have its headquarters in Detroit and will be run by Big Sean’s mother, Myra Anderson. Anderson will also be president, and a Board of Directors will be appointed by her and her son, Big Sean.

Read about it on AllHipHop

It pretty much goes without saying, but Big Sean had a monster year in 2012. Sean released the critically-acclaimed Detroit mixtape, featuring hits like the Key Wane-produced “Higher,” and “24 Karats of Gold” with J. Cole. He headlined a homecoming show at the Palace of Auburn Hills, earlier this month.

Guap, the first single from the forthcoming album “Hall of Fame, Memoirs of a Detroit Player,” debuted at No. 31 on the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.

If you listened to Detroit, you know that Sean, “made a mil’ before 25,” and that, for all of his apparent success, Sean’s devoted himself to creating opportunities for others around him. He also formed the Sean Anderson Foundation, a non-profit dedicated to encouraging and empowering Detroit’s young people.

Let’s decode his latest single, Guap, which, for the uninitiated, is parlance for money. The song’s produced by fellow Detroit native and wunderkind Key Wane. Check out our profile of him here.

Onto the mula.

Pay yourself first. With all of the giddiness of a schoolboy who just found a bag of money, Sean squeals: “I’ve been working all … year, I just got my check. I’m ’bout to spend it all on me, I’m worth it!” Rappers get a bad rep for spending ungodly amounts of money on bottle service, luxury amenities and the like. That stigma is a bit dated, however; I imagine there are far more artists who are careful spenders, savers with a team looking out for their best financial interests. (Sean has repeatedly said that he bought his mom a house this year.) If you put in the work, it only stands to reason that you should benefit first — especially if you don’t have any dependents.

No days off. “I ain’t even got no time for no time off, and I’m on!” Sean’s declaration that he spends the majority of his time working despite having already made it is a lesson for young entrepreneurs out there: If someone who is at the top of their game works incessantly at their craft, what does that say about hard work? There is no replacement for a strong work ethic.

Let resistance motivate you. “They like, ‘Boy, won’t you get your rest on? … ‘Cause I’m up for every hour I was slept on!’” You are going to meet up with resistance when you are trying to do anything worthwhile or of consequence. If “haters” is your preferred term for meeting up with resistance, fine. The point is that you’ve got to learn how to negotiate people’s expectations, and leverage your relationships to finish what you want to accomplish.

Do the hard work, and don’t rely on mysticism, luck, or wishing. This is my favorite line in the entire song: “Never had a palm reading, always had my palms itching time to get it.” I seriously don’t have a problem with anyone that plays the lottery, or anyone who prays for financial success. All that simply won’t fulfill you in the way that straight up, honest hard work will. Earning potential is a hypothetical measurement that’s ultimately really based on an individual’s capacity for hard work and sustainable behaviors that will lead to profit in the future. You don’t get there by, as Sean says facetiously in this rap, by going to Miss Cleo, or something, trying to figure out the future. Your financial destiny is there, waiting in the balance. And you are the master of your domain. Time to get it!

Take care of home, and then enjoy the fruits of your labor — however you see fit. “I done paid taxes, paid dues, paid bills my whole life, so I’mma throw money in the air, like I’m tryin’ to pay the sky.” The image of a rapper ‘making it rain’ will forever make some people cringe, and that is a good thing. The glorification of wasteful, irresponsible spending should bother people, no matter the state of the economy. Sean’s statement here is a bit tongue-and-cheek, but it sheds light on a basic truth. When you take care of the financial demands of life and the people around you, you really do deserve to enjoy yourself. If throwing money in the air is your thing, knock yourself out.

Just make sure I’m somewhere close. I need a spa day.

Photo Credit: Doug Combe

Michigan native and current St. Louis resident Vaughan Taylor is bringing something brand new to hip hop with Air Playd. Instead of creating a traditional video for a new song, the web-based venture (which is moving to mobile very soon) creates custom video games for songs. Players have the opportunity to not only listen to, but download new and exclusive music from their favorite artists all while playing the game.

Dope idea, right?

BlackEnteprise.com had a chat with Taylor so he could tell us about his life as a dad, husband and of course the ins and outs of being an entrepreneur in hip hop’s digitalscape.

Tell me about Air Playd. What is it and when did you start it?

I came up with it last April. In the beginning of 2012, I started teaching myself how to code. I had ideas, but it’s hard to manifest ideas if you can’t code yourself. I’m definitely going to teach my daughter how to code.

Time out. I just have to acknowledge the adorableness of you saying you’re going to teach your daughter how to code. You didn’t say ride a bike or drive, but code. Too cute.

*Laughs* Yes, It’s an important skill to have right now, so I think it’s something that would just help her have more options in general by the time she’s old enough to do it.

Love. Ok, back to Air Playd…

So basically, we make custom video games for songs. The artist essentially creates a soundscape. If the song is about Detroit for example, the game might feature Detroit landmarks and streets.  You start with the music and let your brain go.  But we go beyond that.

How is Air Playd different than other games out there?

When you look at mobile games that are out and poppin’ right now, they lack a certain edge or cool, but people eat them up. So my thought process was how do I add something new, but also something of value? Wouldn’t it be cool if you could play a game and win music from your favorite artist? So that’s what we did. With mobile apps now you pay a dollar and you win a virtual pig or something useless like that. Who wants a virtual pig? Much better to get something of value like music downloads.

So what exactly is your role in Air Playd and what’s your typical day like?

I do the coding and I have two people who do design. First thing is being a dad full-time during the day while my wife is at work. She’s a professor. So from 10 am to about 6 pm I’m watching the baby. She’s five months old. Then from 6 pm until like 2 am, I’m working on Air Playd.

Was it scary at first being at home alone with the baby?

No, it’s not scary at all. Coming from the music industry and having to depend on yourself to do things, I just jumped right into this and embraced it. I’m used to drastic changes. Plus, I love spending time with her.

Speaking of being a baby, you started out as a rapper in the group “Athletic Mic League” when you were still a teenager. How has your relationship with hip hop changed over the years?

When I was about 19/20 years old, I thought I was going to make all of my money by being a performing artist. But it stopped being fun to me. All the regular things that happen in the music industry with issues with the label, not getting paid and things like that. Plus, you have the whole basic change in music where people consume more music, but they don’t necessarily buy it. It was less enjoyable when I was depending on performance money for my income. As I got older I was thinking about how I could still leverage music but separate myself from all of those things. I don’t depend on my music anymore in that way to make me happy.

It’s nice that you have your wife as a support system. Sometimes people who have 9 to 5 jobs find it difficult to relate to or help balance out a creative type with a non-traditional schedule. How do you manage that?

It can be difficult, but when we got together, she was still doing her PhD. She had a very open schedule and so did I. We helped each other stay focused. We were in a similar place. We pushed each other. If she had a 9 to 5 back then, it probably would not have worked. But now, we have a solid foundation and a schedule that works for our daughter.

That’s awesome. What has been the response to Air Playd so far?

The response has been dope. After the first game, there were a few blogs that were saying Air Playd is a game changer. From looking at our analytics, about 50 percent of the people playing our games are in the U.S. and the other half come from abroad. We split the revenue from the sales with the artists.

How do you select the artists?

We are only two games in, so I reached out to The Black Opera and Burn Rubber. Everybody has been really happy with the response. With Burn Rubber, that game was in conjunction with the release of Reebok’s “Night Storm” shoe. The game for Burn Rubber’s “ Fly MC” is all about shoes. I wanted to show that Air Playd is capable of working with advertisers and sponsors. I try to be strategic in every aspect of building Air Playd.

What’s next for Air Playd?

Getting out there in the app world. It’s web based now, but we have to go mobile. Right now, I’m working on setting up a beat battle app. For the first one, we’re partnering with 14 KT, producer and Red Bull National Champion. The basic idea is you have to battle a producer to make the best beat. It’s something like Guitar Hero, but times 1000. In our app, you trigger drums and different sound effects to create your beat and advance to the next level. I’m really looking forward to this one and we have an artist we’re about to work with for another video game, but I can’t talk about it yet. Working things out with the label.

How do you get funding for something like this?

I’ve been applying to a few start-up accelerators. It’s mostly a timing issue. The main thing I need to do is get the games out. We’re doing this in a space that is kind of sexy to funding right now, which is the mobile world. I have a few that I’m focused on and like I said, we’re just working on getting our product polished and out there.

What’s your life’s theme song?

It would have to be Kendrick Lamar’s “Black Boy Fly.” That’s definitely my theme song right now.

After two years of research and community input, Mayor Dave Bing unveiled a 50-year plan for revitalizing Detroit Wednesday that includes relaxing rules for startup companies, the Associated Press reports.

The 349-page strategic blueprint focuses on job growth, land use, improving neighborhoods and rebuilding infrastructure.

$150 million in initial funding will come over the next five years from the Kresge Foundation, a private organization, based in nearby Troy.

“As mayor of Detroit and a long-time member of th is community, I’ve witnessed the steady decline of a city with so much promise,” said Bing, a former NBA star and businessman in Detroit. “I’m convinced Detroit can be a world-class city again.”

Read more at Politico.

Former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick spent the weekend in jail for violating his parole. He left the Michigan Corrections Department facility in Detroit Monday morning as he was locked up since Friday afternoon.

Kilpatrick was convicted in 2008 of obstruction of justice in a scandal that involved text messages and an affair with a top aide. He’s been on trial for corruption charges since September.

The Michigan Corrections Department says Kilpatrick violated parole for failing to disclose all his financial transactions last fall. He still owes Detroit $855,000 in restitution and must report details about his income and expenses.

Read more at The Grio

Louisiana Hines, born in April 1899, died at the age of 113 late last week.

The Detroit resident died last Friday and had the distinction of being one of the oldest people in the world.

“She would talk about being an obedient child, and her mother telling her an obedient child would live a long life. She always tried to be an obedient child to her mother and God,” says her granddaughter, Darlene House.

Hines worked as a riveter during World War II, raised three children and owned a beauty shop.

Read more at AOL Black Voices

Legendary trumpet player, Donald Byrd, is dead at 80 years old.

Renown musician, Alex Bugnon, who is also Byrd’s nephew, confirmed the death.

“Let’s remember Donald as a one of a kind pioneer of the trumpet, of the many styles of music he took on, of music education. In sum, Donald was an avid, eternal student of music, until his death. That’s what I try to be, everyday!! Rest in peace, uncle!”, said Bugnon.

Donaldson Toussaint L’Ouverture Byrd II was born in Detroit in 1932 and began his career with Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers in the 1950s.

Read more at The Urban Daily

Zeola “Sweetsie” Gaye, sister of legendary singer Marvin Gaye, gets the chance to tell the story of her brother in the play, “My Brother Marvin,” which will debut in Detroit, Michigan this week.

The production is directed by Clifton Powell who also plays Marvin’s father. The story focuses on Gaye’s relationship with his family as told by Zeola and star actors Tony Grant (As Marvin during his younger years), Keith Washington (As Marvin during his latter years) and Emmy Award-winning actress Lynn Whitfield (As Marvin’s mother).

“Through the years, I became taken aback and disappointed with everything that had been written, said and published about my family, especially my brother Marvin that wasn’t accurate,” Zeola Gaye said in a press release.

Read more on Black Voices

A Detroit woman’s body was found in an abandoned house in the city last week.

The 23-year-old went missing on New Year’s Day in Detroit after dropping off her son at her father and stepmother’s house in Southfield, Detroit. That was the last time her family saw her alive. Myles was shot in the back of the head at point blank range.

“It’s horrible the feeling, the hurt, the pain, the loss,” said Myles’ stepmother, Tara Paymon. “It’s unexplainable. You can’t explain it.”

“To me, you only see stuff like this in TV shows, she added. “You would never think it would be close to home.”

Read more at NewsOne

Former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick was found guilty today of multiple counts of racketeering and extortion in a federal court, the Huffington Post reports.

A jury took 15 days to decide that Kilpatrick and his friend contractor Bobby Ferguson were guilty of governmental malfeasance . Kilpatrick’s 71-year-old father, Bernard Kilpatrick, was  found guilty of one tax count. They won’t be sentenced for several months

Mayor Dave Bing told the Huffington Post, “I am pleased that this long trial has ended and we can finally put this negative chapter in Detroit’s history behind us. It is time for all of us to move forward with a renewed commitment to transparency and high ethical standards in our City government.”

Kilpatrick stepped down as mayor of Detroit in 2008 after pleading guilty to two counts of obstruction of justice related to a text message sex scandal with a former employee. He served about a year in jail for the crime and agreed to pay the city of Detroit $1 million in restitution.

Mayor Dave Bing (at head of the table) delivered his first budget address to City Council April 13 outlining his plan for the 2010-2011 fiscal year.

Detroit’s financial problems have become so great that it looks like the city is very close to having to submit to an emergency financial manager. And according to statements made to the Associated Press last week, Mayor David Bing, a former NBA player and steel supply company owner, is warming to the idea.

But, an article on MSNBC says that “if Detroit receives an Emergency Manager, more than half of the state’s black population, living in primarily urban centers, will be governed by un-elected leaders. More than 5,000 unionized city employees in Detroit—all of whom have already been working without a collective bargaining agreement since last spring—will totally lose control of contract bargaining.”

The article goes on to say that all across Michigan, emergency financial managers are “using sweeping powers to privatize public services, lay off city employees, and weaken public sector unions with little standing in their way.”

Read the entire article at MSNBC

Governor Rick Snyder appointed Kevyn Orr to the position of emergency financial manager of Detroit on Thursday, but many residents of the predominantly black city feel the appointment of an EFM will  disenfranchise them and are protesting in an effort to stop the action from going forward, the Huffington Post reports.

During Snyder’s press conference at the Cadillac Place Building, picketers from Good Jobs Now and the National Action Network voiced their opposition to the State takeover. Also, a series of traffic jam protests began last week that backed up traffic on I-75 southbound in Detroit.

Activist Stephen Boyle told the Huffington Post  that the traffic protesters are upset that state officials have ignored strong public opposition to state takeovers — Michigan voters repealed the emergency manager law Public Act 4 last November.

“We basically decided, if [the state was] not going to listen to the public, the public was going to slow down traffic,” Boyle said. “If we slow down traffic, maybe people will stop and listen for a moment, as to what’s going on. This isn’t business as usual.”

Read more about the protests at the Huffington Post.

If your home is vacant in Detroit chances are someone will treat it like their home.

Nothing could me more frightening then to come home and find that someone else is cooking your food, and lounging in your area as if it was their own personal space. Vacations then seem to be out of the question without an official house sitter.

One Detroit homeowner is saying no to squatters and sending a clear message to all who would dare attempt to try him at his word.

The owner printed a sign on his front door that anyone found squatting in his home will be shot. Neighbors including some who attend the church across the street from his home think his message is unnecessary and taking it too far.

Read more at NewsOne

A Detroit woman arranged to get a $1,100 illegal butt injection at a hotel and contracted an infection, Newsone reports.

On April 5th, Keke Onpoint went into septic shock and was admitted to the hospital, nearly dying. The silicone Onpoint was injected with was not meant for the human body.

Read more at Newsone.