Muslim American Road Trip, Concert of Colors 2022, Hazardous Homes

This episode originally aired on July 14, 2022. It was re-aired and updated on October 20, 2022.

This Week on One Detroit:

Ann Arbor Couple Takes ‘The Great Muslim American Road Trip’ Along Route 66

A new, three-part PBS documentary series, “The Great Muslim American Road Trip,” follows one young Muslim American couple, Mona Haydar and Sebastian Robins from Ann Arbor, on a journey of self-discovery along the iconic Route 66, but what they find from the nearly 2,500-mile drive is more than a couple weeks of vacation. They explore what it means to be Muslim in America today.

One Detroit’s Senior Producer Bill Kubota catches up with Haydar and Robins on the heels of the series premiere to hear more about the making of “The Great Muslim American Road Trip;” what the couple learned about the Muslim faith, the people they met on their dozen-plus stops, and also about their marriage along the way. Plus, Haydar and Robins discuss the potential to create a Michigan Muslim Road Trip documentary series next.

Detroit’s Concert of Colors Returns In-Person for 30th Anniversary World Music Festival

The Concert of Colors music festival, Detroit’s annual world music festival, returns to stages across Detroit this year, July 16-24, to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the festival. The Concert of Colors festival also celebrates a return to in-person performances, from international bands across the world, after having to pivot virtual programming in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Ahead of the festival’s return to in-person this year, Detroit Public TV‘s Mariellen Chynoweth and Producer Jessie Fidler sit down with Concert of Colors Founder Ismael Ahmed and Deputy Director Ralph Valdez for a conversation about how and why the Concert of Colors began, as well as how the festival continued to succeed virtually in 2020 and 2021.

Plus, Blue Note Records President and renowned producer and artist Don Was and Richard Parris, a singer for Universal Xpression, talk about the power of music as a universal vessel to share different cultures across communities, and to begin to understand the similarities we share as humans.

Hazardous Housing: Environmental Issues in Older Homes Could Lead to Health Issues

Your house could be making you sick. When you think about environmental issues, you might picture toxic chemicals in the air or the water, but the environment we inhabit most of the time is our homes, and there can be problems there, too.

Some of these issues are because of the aging housing stock. In Detroit, for example, 80 percent of housing units were built before 1960, meaning older windows, lead paint, and aging heating and cooling systems are becoming big problems. Other issues, like damaged roofs or flooded basements, can lead to mold and chronic respiratory issues for the people living in these homes.

Join environmental journalist Nina Ignaczak for a look at the environmental justice efforts happening in cities like Detroit. Ignaczak takes us inside the home of Thomasenia Weston, a longtime Detroit resident living on the city’s southwest side. Plus, gain insights and perspective from a Detroiter who created a community and climate-focused consulting firm, as well as a physician who thinks about housing as a vital piece of public health.

Trey Simon performs “The Impossible” for Detroit Performs: Live From Marygrove

Watch a special Detroit Performs: Live From Marygrove performance of one of singer-songwriter Trey Simon’s most notable singles, “The Impossible.”

Simon, who has roots in blues music, has crafted a unique identity for himself over the course of his musical career, and some esteemed accolades have come to follow. Simon has opened for the likes of Patti LaBelle, Andra Day and Andy Grammer, and was nominated for his first Detroit Music Award in 2020.