S7E6 -You Can’t AI Artistic Soul: Sydney G. James on Murals, Memory, and Making Detroit Seen

Detroit is Different

"Are you gonna paint that, or feel that?" Sydney G. James drops that kind of heat in this no-holds-barred Detroit is Different conversation. She brings the stories behind the Blackout Walls, the politics of public art, and the legacy of Black family in Detroit into vivid focus. “People don’t understand—when I painted at MOCAD, folks walked in and said, ‘This feel like Grandma’s house.’ That’s art!” Sydney shares her journey from drawing cartoons at three to setting visual standards with murals that honor, heal, and celebrate Detroit. “We need pamphlets with every house in Conant Gardens,” she says, lifting up the deep lineage of culture in neighborhoods dismissed as 'red zones.' From Cass Tech to CCS, from LA TV sets to East Side lots, this episode is a masterclass in keeping it real, bold, and Black in the city that raised her. “I didn’t paint next to another Black woman until I hired her,” she reveals—making clear why Black women artists must not just be included but lead.

Detroit is Different is a podcast hosted by Khary Frazier covering people adding to the culture of an American Classic city. Visit www.detroitisdifferent.com to hear, see and experience more of what makes Detroit different.

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