Exploring the experience of music, art & travel
Welcome to the Explore: music, art and travel Issue!
Being a photographer, my favorite people to work with are creatives. I've always loved working with musicians and artists. It's a tribe of people who do a lot of hard work behind the scenes to make any happen. That bond creates not only an understanding through love of a craft but also a tribe.
Travel is something I have always hungered for. The more I travel the more I realize there is so much to see and learn. Traveling is one of the greatest gifts, as it can serve as growth through exploration and experiences. Earlier this year I had the incredible opportunity to go to New Zealand and had a hiking experience that can only be described as character building.
Inside The Detroit Record Club , you’ll meet owners Joe Lalich and Tara de Boer, who have created an impressive community space that is not the musty old record shop you think of. It is truly a unique experience not only for finding and exploring albums, but a community hub that is growing and creating a local tribe through music and connection.
Moving to the visual arts you will meet two incredible men. The first one, Glenn Corey with The Lawrence Street Gallery in Ferndale, I have had the great pleasure of knowing for a really long time. Fuzz was my high school AP Art teacher and one of the teachers who helped shape my love of art. It is a full circle moment to be able to feature a man who not only taught me art, but who is also incredibly well traveled and an impressive artist in his own right.
Jarrad Heaslip of the Jarrad Heaslip Gallery is one of the most magnanimous men I have met. It shows in the way he not only carries himself but how he supports other artists and has created a truly special gallery space. The tribe that he is cultivating is truly impressive. Go and experience it.
It is a happy little accident that Jarrad happens to be from New Zealand and his part of the world is also being featured. New Zealand is not only a country of gracious people with gorgeous landscapes, the whole country is full of foodies!
Cheers,
July 2026
PUBLISHER
Amy Gillespie | amy.gillespie@citylifestyle.com
MANAGING EDITOR
Marshall Zweig | marshall.zweig@citylifestyle.com
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Sophie Emmi
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May Azzow
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ARTICLE BY MARSHALL ZWEIG PHOTOGRAPHY BY AMY GILLESPIE
INTOthe GROOVE
Inside Royal Oak’s most essential music destination
The first time a record store changed my life, I was eighteen, a University of Michigan student looking for music that wasn't on the radio, that would give me a taste of real soul. As I walked through the store, my eyes landed on an album by a band called the Dead Kennedys. I immediately thought, I’m not cool enough to be in here.
But I was brave enough to go up to the front and describe what I was looking for. The guy behind the counter said, “Oh, you want this guy,” and handed me two Bill Withers albums.
I went back to my dorm, started listening to the first one... and musically, I was never the same again.
I thought about that moment often while I was talking to Joe Lalich. Joe still has the first record he ever owned: the debut KISS album. He was maybe six or seven when he got it. Years later, he tracked down all four members and got them to sign it.
"It's not in great shape," he says. "But that makes it cooler to me."
Joe is a graphic designer, creative director, illustrator, and published comic book artist (Batman Annual, New Super-Man). He’s done work for Mötley Crüe, KISS, McDonald's, Carhartt, and the NBA, among others.
He’s also the co-founder and co-owner of the Detroit Record Club, a boutique vinyl shop on Woodward Avenue in Royal Oak. He and his partner Tara de Boer opened it in 2019, after signing a
lease on a retail space before even deciding what they were going to do with it.
"It was never a dream," he says. "Neither of us had ever been in retail. I was just driving around looking at retail spaces, and we decided to give it a try.”
The store is clean. There’s no old-record-store smell, a detail Joe mentions with quiet satisfaction. That familiar mustiness of the archetypal record shop was one of several things he specifically designed the Detroit Record Club not to be.
Instead, there are plants. An Eames chair near a listening station. The records have been ultrasonically cleaned in distilled water baths, the grooves blasted at a microscopic level, arguably cleaner than the day they were pressed.
And yet none of that is really the point. The point, if you press Joe on it, is that an object becomes more interesting the longer it's been with someone. So the cleaning isn't about making records feel new. It's about making sure what’s in the grooves makes its full impact on new ears.
Joe grew up drawing. As a small kid, he'd burst into his grandparents' house, go straight for the stationery, and just start creating. "I came by it honestly,” he recalls. “I just had that built-in interest.” He still has a Batman he did at two, the Batmobile rendered in the background.
“Listen to whatever you want to listen to. I would never discourage people from buying what they love.”
After going to Detroit’s famed College for Creative Studies, Joe landed in graphic design, the practical negotiation between artistic instinct and the need to eat. He moved to New York with Tara for advertising, went freelance a few years in, worked for a decade, then returned to Michigan — and happened by that space for rent.
"I had tons of records at the house," Joe says. "Tara and I put those into the store."
The only thing they knew they wanted was to build a community. But they knew what they didn’t want: a place with that musty smell, records in unsearchable piles, the atmosphere of ambient judgment that’s almost a tradition in record store culture. "Listen to whatever you want to listen to,” Joe says. “I would never discourage people from buying what they love."
The curation, then, isn’t taste-policing. It's what a good bookstore does: maintain enough depth that the person who knows what they want can find it, while keeping enough surprise on the shelves that the person who doesn't know what they want — like me at college — can stumble into a treasure.
This is what Joe gives you that a streaming platform’s algorithm can't: the expertise of a well-traveled ear. He’s no enemy of digital; he streams in the car, same as everyone. But a record asks something of you that a playlist doesn’t: intention.
And it gives you something a playlist can’t: “cultural touchstones," Joe observes. He knows what his were. A Billy Joel concert, two comic books from a pharmacy… and that KISS album. He thinks about that every time a young kid comes in with a parent and walks out with their first record.
A record store makes a certain kind of sense for someone whose whole creative life has moved along the border between sound and image: album art, covers, liner notes. “And you go, ‘oh my god, this person wrote that? ’” he says. As an example, he shocks me with this fact: the liner notes for David Bowie’s Young Americans is where he found out Luther Vandross, David Bowie’s former background singer, came up with the phrasing of the titular song.
Joe still has the first record he ever owned: the debut KISS album. Years later, he got all four members to sign it. “It’s not in great shape. But that makes it cooler to me.”
Audiophiles always teach me something. What surprised me about Joe was how little he wants credit for it. His humility shows in the clarification he makes when I ask for three words to describe the Detroit Record Club.
"Comfortable," he says. He thinks for a second. “And…" He searches. “Just cool.” I laugh. Then his clarification: “Not like ‘I'm telling you what's cool.’ Cool is there on the shelves. Go find it."
That's the offer. Not an algorithm. A room full of objects that are just cool, and a guy who wants to help you figure out which one’s yours.
The Detroit Record Club is at 28834 Woodward Avenue in Royal Oak. thedetroitrecordclub.com
A GALLERY WITH ARTWORK INSPIRED FROM CULTURES AROUND THE WORLD CREATES A COMMUNITY THROUGH A COOPERATIVE GALLERY MODEL IN FERNDALE
CANVAS OF THE COMMUNITY
Glenn “Fuzz” Corey always wanted to be involved with art.
“Ever since I was a kid I was interested in art. I didn’t know if I would do anything with it. I was always going to be a teacher,” said Corey.
He taught art at Troy High School. Now, Corey is a key member of Lawrence Street Gallery, a co-op gallery founded in 1987 in Ferndale, just south of Royal Oak. The gallery showcases work from talented regional artists at all skill levels, providing locals with a sense of community and valuable opportunities.
After studying all over the world and traveling often, Corey always finds his way back to Royal Oak.
“It is a nice place,” he said. “It is like the Paris of southeastern Michigan.”
Corey graduated from Schiller College in Strasbourg, France. He earned a masters in fine arts and painting. He spent time in Europe early on in his life; the time greatly influenced Corey in becoming the artist he is today.
“IT IS A NICE PLACE,” HE SAID. “IT IS LIKE THE PARIS OF SOUTHEASTERN MICHIGAN.”
“One day, I was in Copenhagen and saw a book called Dear Theo: The Autobiography of Vincent Van Gogh So I thought, ‘I could buy this book or I can buy dinner for tonight,’” Corey said. “I can eat tomorrow. I identified with parts of his life, his dedication to his work. It led my life towards art.”
The Lawrence Street Gallery artists keep all of the proceeds from their sales, which is unusual compared with traditional commission-based galleries. Most art galleries are known for charging up to 50% of the cost of the artwork.
Media includes anything from painting, ceramics, photography, sculpture, fiber art, jewelry and mixed media. In a city known for its thriving arts scene and community-centered culture, the gallery provides local artists and residents a place to connect through.
“I have been there a long time, I retired from teaching 20 years ago,” said Corey, “We have about 25 or so artists that run the place. We pay dues to pay for rent and take turns working. We have some exhibits where anyone can enter, they pay an entry fee and if they sell, our gallery gets 30%. If you are a member artist you don’t have to pay any commission.”
Corey’s own art show takes place during the month of July at the gallery and features his work on Irish Landscapes and Chinese Scrolls. The last day the exhibit will be available is July 31, 2026. Other drawing media and styles that Corey focuses on is tarot cards, dance, self portraits, mythology and much more.
He said, "I've been doing mostly figures, portraits and nudes, which is still a heavy part of the exhibit. I did some teaching in China and one day I saw a coordinator coming out of the shop with scrolls. And I thought, ‘maybe I could do something with those.’”
The gallery space also hosts events every month on the first and third Sundays. Poetry readings are held at the second reception each month, where anyone who desires to write a poem about a piece in the exhibit is welcomed.
“We have a poetry reading that afternoon, which is pretty cool I think. I am looking forward to seeing what kind of inspiration the poets will get from my work.”
For an artist like Corey who spends much of his time painting and drawing, he has a serious eye condition known as macular degeneration. He’s determined, though, not to let his eyesight challenges stop him from expressing himself artistically.
“I try to paint a little bit every day... it’s tricky; doing facial features is difficult at times because of the way my eyes are,” Corey said.
On the Chinese scrolls, Corey uses different media to draw including ink wash, charcoal and colored pencil. Most of the art in the July show will be in color, with the exception of his unique silverpoint drawings.
AS NEW EXHIBITS CONTINUE TO ROTATE THROUGH THE GALLERY, VISITORS HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO EXPERIENCE LOCAL ART WHILE SUPPORTING THE CREATIVE SPIRIT THAT KEEPS ROYAL OAK’S ARTS COMMUNITY THRIVING.
“It is an old medium drawing with silver wire. The silver is picked up and, with time, that silver color turns a golden color,” said Corey.
Corey’s artist profile on the gallery’s website says his portrait work draws inspiration from artistic traditions of the past. Corey’s work refers back to those traditions often. He fixates on themes from the past, creating a more contemporary finished product.
The Lawrence Street Gallery showcases a wide variety of interpretations for all kinds of work. The August show is titled Motor Muse Art of the Car, focusing on car inspired 2D and
3D artwork. Artists pay a small fee to be considered for awards after the show concludes.
Other shows that have been shown at the gallery earlier this year include Best of the Best 2026, Exposures Photography and Saints Sinners and Potters.
As new exhibits continue to rotate through the gallery, visitors have an opportunity to experience local art while supporting the creative spirit that keeps Royal Oak’s arts community thriving.
The Lawrence Street Gallery is located on Woodward Ave south of Nine Mile. For more information on the gallery and exhibits, visit lawrencestreetgallery.com
Between the Lines
Jarrad Heaslip’s Ferndale gallery is part studio, part showroom, and an adventure in uniqueness
ARTICLE BY MARSHALL ZWEIG | PHOTOGRAPHY BY AMY GILLESPIE
Walk past the building on Woodward Avenue in Ferndale and something will stop you. It might be the facade: chic and minimalistic black-painted brick. It might be the columns, lit from below at night. It might be the large windows, that pull the inside out onto the street like an invitation.
Or it might be the dog.
He's ten feet tall, bright yellow, and visible from a block and a half away. Artist Barry Harrison's fabricated sculpture has become something of an unofficial mascot for Jarrad Heaslip Gallery, the kind of anchor image that tells you, before you've even opened the door: this is not a typical gallery.
Inside, you get instant confirmation of that.
The space runs about 3,000 square feet, and almost none of it looks the way you'd expect a contemporary gallery to look. The walls alternate between white and black. Vivid, striking, utterly unique art hangs on both, as well as on movable eight-by-eight-foot walls on wheels, which make the entire layout modular. Working tables occupy the center of the main floor.
On them are pieces in active production.
That's the detail that catches most visitors off guard: the artist is here. Most days, you'll see Jarrad Heaslip himself taping lines, applying color,
building up the layers of epoxy resin that give his geometric paintings their distinctive sealed surface.
When someone walks in, Jarrad steps away from his creating to show them around, and explain what he’s doing.
"Producing art is kind of secondary when you've got a storefront," Jarrad says. "People quite enjoy seeing the process taking place in the space."
That working transparency — the gallery as studio made visible — is one of the things that sets the space apart from most galleries in Michigan. The full sequence from raw panel to finished piece lives within these walls. “I want them to enjoy the colors on the wall,” Jarrad explains, “but I also want them to enjoy the sound, and the smell.”
The building itself was renovated from a brick commercial property. Windows were cut into the facade that previously had almost none. What emerged is something this stretch of Woodward hadn't seen before: a space that announces itself at night, draws the eye during the day, and makes the sidewalk feel like the beginning of something.
The movable walls mean the gallery's configuration can shift to accommodate almost anything: a wine tasting, a private dinner, a gallery reception. A catering kitchen off the main floor handles the logistics.
What stays constant is the art.
Heaslip's own work is defined by geometric precision: straight lines laid out with a drafting ruler, isolated and taped in sequence. The lines are extremely fine, the kind of configuration that represents weeks of taping alone. Then they're painted in carefully chosen color combinations and sealed under epoxy resin that catches the light. The final product is three inches deep. A single piece can take months.
“People quite enjoy seeing the process taking place in the space…I want them to enjoy the colors on the wall, but also the sound, and the smell.”
"They're supposed to have a real presence," he says. "Kind of scratches that part of your brain that likes clean and tidy. If you're OCD, it makes you happy."
Color and configuration are the emotional variables. Two pieces can share the same dimensions but deploy entirely different line spacing and color arrangements, and the experience of standing before them changes completely. Anything from warm and inviting to “sexy" (his word) can emerge from the same vocabulary of tape and resin.
The gallery also features eight other artists, almost all Detroit-based. Charlie Foster's paintings use a very different process but share Heaslip's affinity for black-and-white contrasts alongside bright color. Patrick Ethan works in electric moving light: neon pieces that pulse and shift in a way that surprises and mesmerizes. Ferndale's own
Robert Mirek works in filament, with a dozen delicate maquette sculptures grouped together and several larger freestanding pieces placed throughout the space. Matthew Shlian, an Ann Arbor-based Cranbrook graduate, contributes folded paper work: geometric, single-color, bold.
"From a curatorial perspective, they all work really well together," Heaslip says. "Different in size, different in shape, different in materials. But still complementary."
The gallery has also become a willing neighbor. Jarrad is quick to point visitors toward other art spaces in the area, and there are a number of them. The gallery is part of a growing corridor between Eight and Nine Mile that’s becoming a destination for art lovers.
In July, Heaslip travels to Provincetown, Massachusetts, where a solo show opens over the Fourth of July weekend. The preparation has meant working at high volume: several pieces in production simultaneously, alongside a handful of commissions, all while running the gallery.
You notice the dog again on your way out, ten feet of bright yellow geometry watching you leave. From across the street, in the window, you can’t take your eyes off him.
That's more or less the idea.
Jarrad Heaslip Gallery is on Woodward Avenue in Ferndale. Gallery hours include the occasional Friday evening happy hour. For info on exhibitions, events, or private rentals, visit jarradheaslipgallery.com
“Different in size, different in shape, different in materials. But still complementary.”
ARTICLE BY KALI KASPRZYK
PHOTOGRAPHY BY JANIE JONES
MAKEUP BY MIKAYLA CRANE
The 10% Target Mindset
Jen Cohen ON THE PRACTICE OF ASKING FOR WHAT YOU WANT
Winnipeg in the winter, and a 17-year-old waits 45 minutes in the cold for Keanu Reeves. Her fingers are numb. She is not there for an autograph. She is there to ask him to appear in her audition tape for MuchMusic, Canada’s MTV. When he finally agrees, she writes her number on a gum wrapper with a borrowed lip liner.
He calls days later.
That 17-year-old was Jen Cohen — fitness expert, host of the Habits & Hustle podcast, and best-selling author. She has built a career on the premise her frostbitten afternoon proved. She calls the practice the 10% Target: 10 attempts at whatever you want most in life.
The premise is simple. Most people never make one attempt. Almost nobody makes two. The math works in favor of the person who keeps going.
The top-rated Habits & Hustle podcast has logged hundreds of conversations with high performers and the people who study what the body does to the mind. Her TEDx talk, The Secret to Getting Anything You Want in Life, has traveled widely inside Fortune 500 sales-training rooms. On the Share the Lifestyle podcast, Cohen sits down to share the working rules that are the foundation of her latest book, Bigger, Better, Bolder.
“You have to be the CEO of your own life.”
FEATURING JEN COHEN
Discover the full 10% Target Mindset framework.
1 2
MAKE TEN ATTEMPTS
The door opens, or another door does. The unmade attempt and the refused one leave you in the same place — except one of them teaches you something.
STACK THE DECK
Cohen frames her habits as a wager: How do I stack the deck so I win more than I lose? The workout happens first, and the food decisions follow. The email follow-up gets sent, and the answer arrives. The choices compound in a single direction.
3
DISCIPLINE IS A PRACTICED SKILL, NOT AN INHERITANCE
No one is born with it. The people who look disciplined are running a routine they have rehearsed long enough that it no longer feels like effort. The reps are the skill. Miss them, and the skill fades, the same as any other.
4
SELF-TALK ONLY WORKS WHEN THE BODY BACKS IT UP
Confidence does not arrive by repeating the word. It arrives after the body has done the thing — the workout finished, the cold walk endured, the email sent. The mind takes its cues from what the body proves it can do. Talk follows action, not the other way around.
5
NEVER MISS A MONDAY
The first decision sets the slope of the rest. Skip the Monday workout, and the rest of the week tends to follow. Hold the line on Monday, and the slope tilts the other way.
New Zealand Travel Guide
Top Destinations on the North and South Islands of New Zealand.
ARTICLE BY LONDON EVANS
PHOTOGRAPHY BY AMY GILLESPIE
From the glacier rivers to the Southern Alps, the land of New Zealand has much to offer. The lush greenery and waterfalls that cascade from the peaks of rolling hills cannot be missed; luckily, New Zealand has over 240 officially named waterfalls. This small, wondrous nation must be at the top of the list of destinations all must see.
Aotearoa, or the Land of the Long White Cloud, is a perfect place for lovers of nature, challenging hikes and an urge to slow down. With the easy, laid-back atmosphere, staying for a short or long duration is easy. New Zealand should be at the top of more bucket lists. There are hardly any crowds, more sheep than people and some of the best road trip views in the world.
On the North Island, mostly everyone will fly into Auckland. The airport is about half an hour from the Sky Tower in downtown Auckland, where people can enjoy views of the whole city.
While Auckland holds much of New Zealand’s population, Wellington is the capital. Known for being the windiest city in the world, Wellington has much to offer its tourists. The harbor walks, the Te Papa Tongarewa Museum, the Beehive and Cuba Street are some of the best attractions.
Survive the wind and be rewarded with short trips to Martinborough wine country and some of the best vintage stores in the country.
Near Auckland is Raglan, a surfer’s heaven. A laidback town with black sand beaches just down the road. Don’t skip out on some of the freshest fish and chips around at the Wharf in Raglan. On the way to the beach, stop by Bridal Veil Falls for a quick hike down to a picturesque 55-meter-long waterfall. The walk is a quick 10 minutes down to the bottom, walking through native bush.
The Coromandel is another great location for beaches and relaxing vibes. Hahei is a beach town that holds a filming location for the movie Narnia , Te Whanganui-A-Hei or Cathedral Cove. Hot Water Beach is also close by where volcanic activity creates an effect that provides heat to the sand. People come from all over to dig in the sand to create their own hot pool.
Located Southeast of Auckland is the city of Rotorua, the sulfur city. Rotorua has many activities to enjoy such as bathing in the hot springs, attending a traditional Maori ceremony, checking out the geysers, walking the Red Woods or even mountain biking. Here you can find pumice sand lakes with backdrops of beautiful mountains.
About an hour drive from Rotorua lies Tauranga, a city with the essence of Hawaii and California.
Tauranga has a beautiful downtown right on the tan sand beach. Sit at a cafe to watch surfers on one side and hikers climbing Mount Maunganui on the other. At the heart of Mount Maunganui is Mauao, a dormant volcano. The trail up the mountain is about 45 minutes, with an easier loop trail that is 4 km. Fur seals and dolphins are known to be spotted nearby.
CONTINUED >
“Travel during their summer for mild heat on the South Island and sunny beach days on the North Island. Don’t forget good hiking boots.”
New Plymouth, known for the large volcano, Mount Taranaki, is one of the furthest cities from most cities on the North Island. This Southwest region harbors wonderful beaches, Paritutu Rock, the extensive coastal walkway and an annual light festival in the park. The Te Rewa Rewa Bridge is also well known. This is a cycle and pedestrian-only bridge that opened in 2010. The bridge’s design resembles a whale’s ribcage.
New Zealand cannot be mentioned without Queenstown being highlighted, located near the bottom of the South Island. This adventure capital has various fun attractions such as skydiving, jet boating and paragliding. Absolutely, the most stunning views are everywhere you look in Queenstown. This is the closest city to Fiordland, where the unofficial eighth natural wonder of the world lies, Milford Sound.
Franz Joseph is a quiet township on the South Island with mostly outdoor activities to accomplish. The hiking is wonderful, rewarding visitors with views of glaciers, mountains and glacier rivers. This area is prone to many days with heavy rainfall, so checking for enjoyable weather is critical before attempting some of the more challenging hikes. On the way over to Franz Joseph lies Arthur’s Pass, with stunning waterfalls and common sightings of the endangered kea birds.
Lake Pukaki and Lake Tekapo are two of the more well-known glacier lakes on the South Island of New Zealand. The teal bright water is truly breathtaking and refreshing to swim in. Pukaki rewards its visitors with uninterrupted views of Aoraki, Mount Cook, the country’s highest mountain peak. Tekapo is famous for The Church of the Good Shepherd, a small chapel on the lake’s edge created for farmers to attend Sunday service. Now, the building attracts visitors for its design and aesthetic appeal at night to stargaze.
Getting away from crowds and hurry is one of the biggest highlights of travel to New Zealand. The country itself is safe with friendly people all around, which could be an important deciding factor for a destination. Hitchhiking is common and almost encouraged by locals as a more practical way to get around this laidback country. Almost every
spot in New Zealand is worth the stop; there are very few places that do not have extraordinary beauty. A handful of places worth visiting on the South Island are Kurow, Christchurch, Wanaka, Arrowtown and Oamaru.
A lovely quick stop on the North Island is the Putaruru blue springs. This is a beautiful crystal clear natural spring that extends almost 5 km. It is a protected spring, so there is no swimming, but like much of the nature in New Zealand, it is free. Some other great stops to take in on the North Island are the Hamilton Gardens, the forgotten highway and for Hobbit fans, do not skip Hobbiton. About
three weeks should give enough time to enjoy a satisfactory amount of settings in beautiful Aotearoa. Since this is the Southern Hemisphere, the off season for tourism consists of May, June, July and August. These will be cooler months in New Zealand, great for skiing or enjoying the snowy mountain views.
Travel to New Zealand during their summer for mild heat on the South Island and sunny beach days on the North Island. Don’t forget good hiking boots, and be prepared to witness the most breathtaking views of the untouched land of Aotearoa, New Zealand.
