RVAMAG
@rvamag.bsky.social
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Local culture since 2005 • RVA • Richmond, Virginia #rvamag @rvamag Find our stories here: https://linktr.ee/Rvamag
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As many of you on the front lines in Virginia can attest, the fight for the soul of the cannabis market is well underway. This battle isn’t being won in grow rooms or dispensaries; it’s being fought in legislative hearing rooms, lobbying meetings, and through targeted enforcement actions.
So You Want a Virginia Cannabis License? Read This First.
Cannabis consultant Max Jackson outlines the harsh realities of entering Virginia’s emerging cannabis market. From regulatory capture to tax traps like §280E, his “Operator’s Playbook” offers blunt, e...
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When InLight returns to Richmond this weekend, it won’t just illuminate Abner Clay Park, it’ll transform it into another universe. This Friday and Saturday nights, from 7 to 11 p.m., 1708 Gallery presents Super!Giant!Jump!Star!, a two-night celebration of light, sound, and movement.
InLight 2025: Super!Giant!Jump!Star! A Richmond Night of Imagination
1708 Gallery’s InLight 2025 transforms Abner Clay Park into a glowing universe for Super!Giant!Jump!Star!, the long-awaited premiere of George Ferrandi’s cosmic art project. Featuring illuminated scul...
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Shows, shows, shows. Got some big out of towners, some big locals, some good causes, and plenty of good folks. That’s what it’s all about at the end of the day anyway.

Got a show coming up? New single? Simply want someone to talk music? I am your guy at [email protected].
Sound Check! Dead Billionaires, Dylan Gossett, Richmond SPCA Fundraiser & More!
Richmond’s October lineup spans rock, folk, and cultural celebration from Dead Billionaires’ new EP at The Camel to Dylan Gossett’s heartfelt set at Brown’s Island and the Diwali Music & Arts Festival...
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This Saturday, culture will spill across the steps of the Virginia Museum of History & Culture as Richmond celebrates its first Diwali Music & Arts Festival, a full-day gathering of color, rhythm, and connection hosted by The Rith Initiative founded by local artists Prabir Mehta and Ruchi Gupta.
Richmond Meets India: Diwali Festival Brings a Burst of Color and Culture
The Rith Initiative brings Richmond’s first Diwali Music & Arts Festival to the Virginia Museum of History & Culture on October 18. The free, family-friendly event celebrates Indian art, music, dance,...
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Join us for Salon de Résistance on October 23rd at 6pm at Black Iris for our live interview “Battleground Democracy,” featuring Dr. Alex Keena and Dr. Dana El Kurd. This is a free event, open to the public.

A big thank you to Salon de Résistance’s sponsors: MSE Properties and Medora Lazer.
SALON DE RÉSISTANCE | Battleground Democracy
Salon de Résistance returns October 23 at Black Iris with Dispatch Number Four: Is Authoritarianism Inevitable?—a live discussion on the global and local threats to democracy. Featuring Dr. Alex Keena...
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This Saturday, October 18, Richmond will again find itself on the frontlines of a national movement. Thousands are expected to gather at the Virginia State Capitol at 1 p.m. for No Kings II, a coordinated protest taking place in more than 2,500 cities across the country.
Richmond Joins Nationwide “No Kings II” Protest This Saturday
Richmond joins thousands nationwide for No Kings II, a coordinated protest on October 18 opposing what organizers call authoritarian overreach by the Trump administration. With the government shutdown...
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Every good story should probably start with a donkey. This one does, anyway.

Chico belongs to a man named Jad, who helps run Richmond City Dentistry with his brother, Dr. Babik. Jad reached out about supporting the magazine, maybe getting a few new patients in the chair...
This Story Starts with a Donkey Named Chico.
A visit to Richmond City Dentistry turns into a story about old-world care, new-world connection, and one very memorable donkey. Between Jad’s warmth, Dr. Babik’s craftsmanship, and Dr. Scott’s modern...
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This October, artoberVA turns ten. That’s ten years of murals and music, plays and poetry, galleries and gatherings. Ten years of Richmond and the Tri-Cities showing off just how creative, bold, and welcoming this region really is.
Op-Ed | A Decade of artoberVA: Why the Arts Belong to Everyone
Celebrating ten years of artoberVA, this October marks a decade of uniting Richmond and the Tri-Cities through art, culture, and community. With Pay-What-You-Will events, free festivals, and the first...
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Hours earlier, many of them sat through a General Assembly session meant to gather community input on Virginia’s long-awaited framework for adult-use cannabis sales. But by the end of the hearing, it didn’t feel like the community had been heard, it felt like maybe the verdict was already written.
Who Benefits From Virginia’s Cannabis Chaos? Small Businesses Want Answers
Virginia’s hemp and cannabis industries are caught between safety enforcement and market consolidation. As state regulators ramp up raids and restrict hemp flower sales, small businesses say complianc...
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Francine is back, maybe it’s all going to be okay. The city is healing, the magic of fall in the air. Get out in the sun before it packs up for the year. Good shows all around, can’t go wrong. 

Got a show coming up? New single? Simply want someone to talk music? I am your guy at [email protected].
Sound Check! Peach Pit, Dogpark, Horsehead, Jonathan Facka, Tight Rope & More!
Richmond’s music scene shines this week with shows from Peach Pit and Miya Folick at The National, Dogpark and Rehash at The Broadberry, and hometown legends Horsehead at The Camel. Plus, new releases...
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What followed was something you don’t see much anymore: a corporate giant acting like a neighbor, and a neighborhood acting like a family. But let’s be honest, it didn’t start that way. It started with pressure.
Francine Came Home: Because Sometimes the Community Still Shows Up
When Francine, the beloved Lowe’s cat from Richmond’s West Broad Street store, went missing, the community rallied together with Lowe’s staff, animal control, and rescue groups to bring her home. Week...
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“I’m an HIV test counselor,” he says, “and my title is IDU Outreach Specialist.” IDU stands for injection drug use, but Peters makes it sound simple: “I go out into the community, to facilities, to wherever I can find people who might need help. Some come into the clinic, but a lot don’t.”
The Man Who Never Stopped Showing Up.
Edward Peters has spent decades serving Richmond’s most vulnerable through Health Brigade. From his own recovery to helping others with HIV testing and addiction outreach, Peters embodies the clinic’s...
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Virginia sits at the crossroads of the American project. One path leads towards preserving our democratic progress; the other, towards grievance, division, and spectacle. We believe the governor’s election on November 4, at its core, is a referendum on that choice.
Vote Spanberger.
With early voting underway, RVA Magazine endorses Congresswoman Abigail Spanberger for Governor of Virginia. Spanberger represents equality, sustainability, and democratic integrity at a moment when t...
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Few things can cheer me up when beloved Richmond mascot Francine is missing. Pull the covers up to your chin, turn on something nice, you deserve it. If you’re really feeling bold, the shows will always be out your front door.
Sound Check! Tennishu, Slow Crush, Bladee, Hercules Mulligan & More!
Richmond’s music scene stays alive this October with Tennishu’s record release at Get Tight Lounge, Slow Crush, Faetooth, and NVM at The Broadberry, and Stockholm rapper Bladee with Ripsquad at The Na...
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Richmond once got called one of the most hipster cities in America, number five in the country, number twenty in the world, apparently. Depending on your disposition, that either made you proud or made you roll your eyes so hard you risked permanent damage. The thing is, it wasn’t wrong.
Richmond’s Hipster Decade 2005–2015: And the Crown We Didn’t Ask For
From 2005 to 2015, Richmond, VA became an unlikely hipster capital, blending tattoos, thrift fashion, craft beer, coffee, music venues, and activism into a cultural identity that reshaped the city. Th...
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Goose is back in Richmond this week for a two-night stand at the Allianz Amphitheater at Riverfront. For guitarist and vocalist Rick Mitarotonda, it’s another chance to chase what he calls “flow state” the unpredictable current that runs through both their songs and their shows.
Goose Takes Richmond: Rick Mitarotonda on Flow and Freedom
Goose guitarist Rick Mitarotonda talks with RVA Mag about improvisation, songwriting, and chasing “flow state” ahead of the band’s two-night run at Richmond’s new Allianz Amphitheater at Riverfront. F...
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Earlier this week, I sat down with Alli and Char of NYC rock band SKORTS to talk about their origins as a band, the ethos they carry, and their shared love of Richmond. The conversation was in preparation for their upcoming show at Get Tight Lounge this Friday with Deathcat and Human Worm.
Skorts Talk Origins, Ethos, and Why They Love Richmond
NYC rock band Skorts returns to Richmond this Friday at Get Tight Lounge with Deathcat and Human Worm. Born from chance encounters and road-worn stories, Skorts blends individuality, myth-making, and ...
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The story of Jo Ellis is one of resilience, but also service, dedication, and commitment.

However, instead of being celebrated, Ellis is one of 4,240 transgender service members now being forced out of the military under Executive Order 14183.
Jo Ellis Did Her Job. The Army Didn’t. 🏳️‍🌈
Jo Ellis, a Virginia National Guard Black Hawk pilot and Iraq War veteran, faces discharge under Trump’s Executive Order 14182 banning transgender service members. After being falsely accused of pilot...
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It’s hard to overstate the importance of the Stiff Little Fingers (SLF) to the development of punk rock. The Clash, Sex Pistols, and SLF can all be mentioned comfortably in the same sentence.
Stiff Little Fingers Henry Cluney on Punk, The Troubles, and America’s New Street Politics
Stiff Little Fingers’ Henry Cluney talks punk, The Troubles, political violence, and the legacy of SLF in an intimate RVA Mag interview.
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