Shiver on the River is back at Belle Isle, giving you the opportunity to learn more at the nature center and attend the Great Lakes Museum for free so long as you have a recreation pass.

Plus, live puppet performances where you get to help tell the story, a dog show with vendors, an exhilarating day of local music and art, and a loving way to gather and remember beloved community leader Ismael Ahmed.

Upcoming events (Feb. 5 to Feb. 12)

Motor City Winter Dog Classic

  Vibe Credit Union in Novi

Thursday Feb. 5-8

  $10

See over 200 breeds of American Kennel Club dogs in a family friendly atmosphere with plenty of vendors. Every day of the four day event goes from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.  

Sled Season

Tangent Gallery

Saturday, Feb. 7

$25

Sled Season is back, packing a full season of festivities into one evening. Rock out to live music, attend a workshop, peruse local artisanal goods, hop in a photo booth and more. Some noted performers include Rose St. Germaine, Checker, Toboggan man and more from the local music scene. Get your tickets in advance!

Shiver on the River

Belle Isle Nature Center, Dossin Great Lakes Museum

Saturday, Feb. 7

Free

Explore the Belle Isle Nature Center and the Dossin Great Lakes History Museum with a range of educational and entertaining activities and attractions, such as ice carvings, a magic show and more. Entry is free, with concessions available for purchase. You do need a Michigan Recreation pass to enter Belle Isle. This eco fair goes from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Choose Your Own Adventures of Turtle Boy and Owl Loves Angeline

Detroit Institute of Arts

Saturday, Feb. 7

Free

Haitian-American puppeteer Emmanuel Elpenord brings a charming, heartfelt double feature to the DIA. “Choose Your Own Adventures of Turtle Boy” blends action and plenty of audience participation, while “Owl Loves Angeline” incorporates Haitian folklore and human themes that connect across all cultures. This show takes place in the Rivera Court and is free with general admission. Take a look at the DIA’s exhbit “African Diaspora in the Americas” in the reinstalled Reimagine African American Art gallery on the second floor while you’re there!

Celebration of Life Honoring Ismael “Ish” Ahmed

Ford Performing Arts Center in Dearborn

  Sunday, Feb. 8

Free

Join together in a celebration of a life lived as beloved community leader and WDET This Island Earth music host Ismael Ahmed would want you to. In his honor, the Ford Performing Arts center welcomes all those who want to share in grief and reflect on his life from 1-3 p.m. in the Guido Theater. Ish’s family asks that donations be made to the Concert of Colors in lieu of flowers or other gifts.

On MI Local, you’ll often hear in-person interviews with a wide range of local artists. We also get quite a bit of live music on the air!

Many of my guests have been stopping by to talk about an upcoming album release, or maybe a big concert they have coming up. While WDET listeners are able to hear some Q&A where we hear about their origins and their creative process, these guests also tend to bring in acoustic guitars, sometimes saxophones, sometimes even drum kits, and perform live during the show!

It’s just one week in to the New Year, so I thought I’d take one last look back at 2025 and listen to some of the recorded performances. The headline up top says “best of,” but it was honestly so hard to choose! What you’ll hear on this episode is roughly 60% of the live performances I’ve featured throughout the year, including Stef Chura, Lyons Lane, Metal Bubble Trio, The Whiskey Charmers and The City Lines.

Stay tuned, because I already have some guests booked for this year, including return visits from Checker and The Ethan Marc Band. We’re also looking forward to Jackamo stopping in ahead of their upcoming album release! Stay tuned, and find the full playlist for this week’s show, below!

Thanks for listening!

Check the playlist below and listen to the episode for two weeks after it airs using the player above.

• “Universal Themes” – Metal Bubble Trio
• “Green Cement” – Phabies
• “Hell’s Bathroom Floor” – Carmel Liburdi
• “Aerosol” – Checker
• “Out Loud” – The City Lines
• “Black Hole” – Former Critics
• “Chapels” – The Idiot Kids
• “Good Thing” – Lauren Blackford
• “Song For Joe” – John Freeman
• “Everything That I Love” – Mara Wanna
• “You’ll Always Love Me” – Rose St. Germaine
• “All I Do Is Live” – Stef Chura ft. Deleano Acevedo
• “Love Potion # 9” – Lyons Lane
• “Departures” – Corazon Szell
• “Full Moon” – The Whiskey Charmers