Detroit’s 313 Day concerts canceled
“We’re not going to give up,” an organizer says of the local music festival
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A planned two-day music festival meant to celebrate Detroit pride was canceled at the 11th hour.
Based on the city’s beloved area code, the 313 Day festival was supposed to feature two nights of live music at Detroit’s Masonic Temple with an R&B-themed concert on Thursday and a hip-hop show on Friday. But organizers canceled the R&B event the day before it was scheduled to start, and then on Friday scrambled to relocate the hip-hop show before it was also canceled at the last minute.
A third day of the festival including educational events and a basketball game is still on for Saturday, according to organizers.
In a tearful video message posted to Instagram, co-organizer Chanel Dominique denied responsibility for the festival’s collapse and instead said the venue was to blame.
“Unfortunately, I trusted to partner with a venue that didn’t trust this show, truly, because there’s absolutely no reason why we could not have made this happen,” she said. “This was not anything to do with the artists, this was not anything to do with us, the coordinators, or promoters. This is everything to do with what is happening in the market of Detroit right now with a lot of these venues, and when it comes to Detroit talent.”
Dominique referred to the cancelation of the R&B concert as a “business decision” but called the canceled hip-hop show “what occurs when you have people that say they want to believe in something, or say they want to be a part of something, or say that they respect what you’ve been doing, and then you get to the wire, you get there, and you are doing everything you’re supposed to do, and they play in your face. … They literally lie.”
She added, “We worked tirelessly to try to keep this show on. To have to cancel two shows back to back is gut-wrenching for me. It’s gut-wrenching for my team.”
Organizers did not respond to multiple requests for comment. AEG Presents, which operates the Masonic Temple, declined to comment.
Officials from the Detroit Police Department and the Detroit Fire Department told Metro Times that the decision to cancel the concert was not theirs.
“The Detroit Police Department had no involvement in this matter and did not shut the event down,” a DPD spokesperson said. “The management and promoters of the show made this decision prior to the scheduled start time.”
While Detroit hip-hop has exploded in popularity in recent years, drawing fans from the city and far beyond, it has faced challenges when it comes to local concerts including multiple canceled shows. A 2024 Metro Times cover story looked at some of the problems with the local hip-hop scene, including allegations from police of threats of violence, improper permitting, and low ticket pre-sales.
In January, fans complained of production issues at a Little Caesars Arena concert presented by 97.9 WJLB called “The Big Show” that was set to feature national acts like Glorilla, Sexyy Red, and BossMan Dlow, as well as Detroit rappers Tee Grizzley, Tay B, and Snap Dogg.
Some have called for more Black-owned venues in the city, believing they would be more friendly to local hip-hop music. In her message, Dominique echoed the complaint.
“These venues, I don’t want to say boycott them, but ... they ain’t always right,” she said. “They treat us the worst. They treat everybody outside of here the best.”
In a previous interview with Metro Times, Dominique said she wanted to grow the 313 Day festival “into our own version of Coachella in Detroit.” The event launched in 2022 at the Garden Theater drawing some 1,000 fans, followed by a “Tied in 313 Day” at the Fillmore in 2023 with some 2,500 attendees. The event took a year off in 2024.
Problems with the 2025 festival were revealed Wednesday, when organizers announced the first night of the Masonic Temple shows had been postponed “due to unforeseen circumstances.”
The concert was to feature local R&B artists like Drey Skonie, Charity, Neisha Neshae, and others.
In announcing the canceled R&B show, organizers encouraged fans to buy tickets for Friday’s hip-hop show, which they said was nearly sold out.
“GET YOUR TICKETS NOW, IF YOU HAVEN’T ALREADY!” organizers wrote.
The hip-hop bill featured nearly 30 acts including Babyface Ray, Boldy James, Detroit Diamond, Doughboyz Cashout, Icewear Vezzo, Lana Ladonna, Sada Baby, Tee Grizzley, and more.
On Friday, organizers announced that the Masonic Temple show was being relocated to the Eastern, a much smaller events space in the city’s Eastern Market district. The Masonic Temple has a capacity of about 4,600, while the Eastern can hold about 600.
“THE SHOW MUST GO ON,” the organizers wrote in an Instagram post, with the caption, “Thanks For Your Patience.”
Within hours it, too, was canceled.
In her video message, Dominique insisted that the 313 Day music festival will be rescheduled.
“We’re still figuring it out,” she said. “We’re not going to give up … one thing about it is, for me, I never give up.”
She added, “I was looking forward to it, all these artists was looking forward to it. I can’t imagine what the fans and the concertgoers and everybody that supports us … feels.”
Update: This article was edited after both days of the 313 Day music festival were canceled.
