What is the name of your group?  
Nikki Hicks and Momma's Biscuits 
How did the name of the band come about? 
I created that name 3 years ago because nothing brings more comfort that momma's biscuits.
Who are the musicians in the band?
Richie Valentino (bass vocal), Deshawn D Ray Jackson (drummer), Rufus Cole (keyboards) AKA Brezzy
Where are you from originally?
Buffalo
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Last month the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics put out the first official release of annual job data for metropolitan areas, so I wanted to take a brief look at this for large metro areas (more than one million in population, based on old metro area definitions that the BLS still uses). Here are the top 10 cities for percentage job growth. Nashville takes the crown.

The countdown to the Stiletto Run has begun. What started off as a spirited grassroots race six years ago has become of fan favorite for a mix of shoe lovers, party-goers and supporters of the fight against ovarian cancer. On Wednesday, June 19, 2013 the half kilometer race will kick into high heel gear as participants set off down Elmwood Avenue, from Bidwell Parkway to Auburn Avenue. 
As much as the Stiletto Run is considered a race*, there are plenty of participants who ultimately walk, skip and jog over the finish line. After

BRO submission by K Christner:
Last year I was very excited to see the Outer Harbor bike paths come alive.  However, they are now being made useless by the installation of numerous paver stones on top of the asphalt.  The pavers are already heaving and are uneven.  They have sharp edges that any cyclist will tell you will lead to numerous flat tires.  The paths are being made useless for cycling, and there are no bike paths on the roads.  
Cyclists and cars will now be forced onto narrow lanes.  Usually,

I dug up a few more Buffalonian tattoos since I first posted this tattoo last week - it turns out that the devotion runs deep and Buffalo skin art comes in all shapes and sizes.  A search on the internet turns up plenty of the predictable sports themed tattoos for sure but I was looking for something with a bit more of a real connection to Buffalo - after all, sports teams can fly the coop

What is the name of your group?
My full name is Chamus Felton Hawk - My artist name is my nick name. Chae Hawk 
How did the name of the band come about? When did it form?
I use to go by Noble Truth in my hay day as a shorty. Once I got comfortable  with my myself and my material It was only right I stay true to my government.
Where are you from originally?
Born in Albany, raised in Rochester, became a man in Buffalo 
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By Matthew Ricchiazzi: There is not even a single school board candidate that supports dissolving district schools, which disappoints me. When it comes to the decentralization of decision making, even Carl Paladino is only willing to go so far as a return to neighborhood schools. Once in a while you come across a book that ruptures the dominant narrative of a body politic, that it causes you to reshape your assessment of something.  Government Schools are Bad for Your Kids, by James Ostrowski, is an unapologetic indictment

Thanks to WNY Arts Book Center for reminding us that today is Record Store Day, which means that anyone who is into vinyl and likes to support the independent business should head on over to his or her corner record shop and drop some cash. On this special day, artists and labels make sure that the Indie shops are stocked with special releases in order to bolster business and attract new customers. Also, other independent organizations such as WNY Book Center help to promote Record Store Day by encouraging music fans to purchase ancillary items such as hand-letterpressed gig posters.

British singer and musician Brian Peters is coming to Buffalo for a late afternoon show in The Back Room at Allen Street Hardware this Sunday, April 21, for a special performance that should prove to be both intimate and compelling. "One of the main differences between the folk scene in England and the folk scene in America is beer," said local folk singer Dave Ruch.  "Good beer and folk music are inextricably linked in the UK, and British performers are inevitably horrified when they first discover that folk shows here in America are so often held in church basements, coffeehouses

Last night, the second suspect in the Boston Marathon bombings was captured alive. After an emotional week, the capture of the remaining suspect was one of those cathartic moments that a country shares on television, on social media, in bars and restaurants and in stadiums. Except, of course, if you were at First Niagara. 
The Sabres were hosting the New York Rangers and playing for their playoff lives. There were a significant amount of Rangers fans in the arena and, perhaps because of that, there was actually energy in the arena. The Sabres played a solid first period

A community meeting will be held on Tuesday, April 23 at 5:30 p.m. in the Women & Children's Hospital of Buffalo Alford Auditorium.  Attendees will have the opportunity to learn more about the process being developed for the reuse of the current hospital's campus once operations move to the new John R. Oishei Children's Hospital on the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus. 
This open community meeting follows focus groups, public meetings and other discussions held in which neighbors, local residents, business owners, constituent groups, elected and other

By Tom Murdock:
We've all seen our favorite buildings on Google Street View and toured neighborhoods - and even cities - we've never been to.  The next generation of Google Street View takes viewers inside buildings, and the technology is just getting rolled out in Buffalo.
Local businesses now have a direct connection with this exciting new Google program through the Buffalo Niagara Partnership.  Businesses can show off their facilities through virtual tours that are hosted

Years ago, a couple of local artists scoped out this blank cinder block wall at the corner of Allen and Park, to put up a mural, but at the time the storefront was vacant and with no permission from the owner of the building, the project never happened. 
Yesterday, as a precursor to the echo Art Fair event, artist Max Collins with the help of ReImagine's Cortney Morrison-Taylor, adhered a temporary wheatpaste billboard to the formerly

By Mark Kubiniec, President Grant Amherst Business Association:
This Saturday, April 20th, is the Spring Scajaquada Cleanup, as Grant Amherst Good Neighbors concerned about the health of our Scajaquada Creek form the largest contingent of Buffalo Niagara Riverkeeper's annual Spring Cleanup. Volunteers meet at 9am at the American Legion at 533 Amherst Street - bring your favorite shovel, rake and sturdy outdoor gear to join your neighbors and Grant Amherst Businesses in cleaning up our community connection to nature. Sign up online

Buffalo's CanalSide district continues to evolve as multiple construction crews, cranes, and heavy equipment dot Lower Main Street and the Inner Harbor. Lieutenant Governor Duffy was on hand yesterday alongside several local leaders including Mayor Byron Brown for a groundbreaking ceremony held for the East Canal, the latest public improvement at Canalside. The $5 million park project that will connect Washington and

More good news for the Buffalo River. Congressman Higgins has announce that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will allocate an additional $22 million towards the second phase of the Buffalo River clean-up effort, bringing the total funds to $44 Million. Federal funds are to be matched by "a consortium of non-federal funding partners through a partnership agreement between Honeywell Corporation and Buffalo Niagara Riverkeeper". 
There were concerns as of late that the Federal money would be in jeopardy for the second phase of

Preservation Buffalo Niagara is recognizing outstanding preservation projects and those contributing to preservation efforts at its annual awards ceremony May 31, 11:30 AM at Kleinhans Music Hall.  Buffalo Rising is profiling this year's winners.

The east monumental stair of the Albright-Knox Art Gallery was constructed in 1905 and consists of a tiered granite stair assembly including granite landings and cheek walls with integral granite seats. This top of this granite assembly aligns with the top of the granite base, upon which sits the original marble Gallery building.

The

By Jennifer Passaro:
There was a house in Rochester, New York that seamed a long block with its beautiful flanks, aglow beneath the soft hum of American Elms, lined, the way a landscape is lined, by the degrees of light's play. Inside this magnificent house lived a family, and a little girl with pigtails whose life would be forever changed by her experience there. The home was called Boynton House, and it was designed by architect Frank Lloyd Wright.
"Instead of standing in line with neighboring homes, the Boynton House appeared

I just received this link to Rust Belt Almanac, a start up magazine focusing on the rustbelt region of the US.  The magazine's tag line is "A magazine about industrious people."  Its founders are photographer Noah Purdy and graphic designer Michael Artman. They are twenty somethings living in Pittsburgh where they founded the magazine. They state that the magazine was born out of a shared desire to document the stories

Channels: Stories from the Niagara Frontier is Squeaky Wheel's production initiative that matches up local filmmakers with WNY's activist groups to make short documentaries about social justice issues impacting this region. This Thursday April 18th at 7 PM, Squeaky Wheel will be premiering three new films produced through the initiative at the Market Arcade Film + Art Center. In advance of the premiere, we have been posting brief previews highlighting each film.
Not Without Us by Mental Health Peer Connection + Sam Avery
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