Cover Story
Gabriel Jacoby’s one-of-a-kind Southern sound is putting Tampa on the map once again
Just over 2,500 miles separate Tampa’s Robles Park from Hollywood, California. But those worlds collided in a big way last December thanks to Gabriel Jacoby. In a livestream from Justin Bieber’s Twitch studio, the 27-year-old songwriter riffed and jammed with the pop star’s band while thousands of viewers dropped comments left and right. Bieber himself…
Exhibit from Tampa photographer Dave Decker captures state-sponsored violence in Minneapolis
There were hundreds of headlines about recent state-sponsored violence in Minneapolis—but Dave Decker wants you to see it for yourself. The Florida Museum of Photographic Arts hosts its March member spotlight for the documentary photographer and photojournalist on Tuesday, March 31. Decker’s seven-photo series features images the 52-year-old captured during the recent Minneapolis protests against…
‘Vote For Pedo’: At least 2,000 ‘No Kings’ protestors come to downtown Tampa
About 8 million people across the U.S. gathered in the streets last Saturday for the latest “No Kings” protests against President Donald Trump. In the Tampa Bay area, 2,000 people showed up in Gulfport, while thousands also demonstrated outside Tampa City Hall. Even Polk County—where Trump won by 21 points in 2024—saw 2,000 people at…
Tampa Bay Journalism Project is a nonprofit-driven effort to unlock and amplify more local, non-paywalled news and information
Every day, folks across the Tampa Bay area wake up and seek information that shapes their movements, views and thinking. Some of the questions are easy. What do I wear for this weather? What does my commute look like? What do I do with my weekend or the extra money burning a hole in my…
Film about New College’s conservative takeover screens at SXSW, and will show in Florida next month
A film tracking the conservative takeover of New College of Florida, titled “First They Came For Our College”, has hit the big screens. It just finished a run at the South By Southwest festival in Texas. WMNF’s Chris Young spoke with the film’s producer, New College alumnus Harry William Hanbury, and director Patrick Bresnan about why…
Shanghai Dumpling House opens near USF Tampa
Tampeños looking to get dumped are in luck. Shanghai Dumpling House recently opened near the University of South Florida’s Tampa campus, taking over the former home of Boil Spot Hot Pot and BBQ and adding another dumpling-focused spot to Tampa’s growing lineup of casual Asian eateries. The restaurant’s menu is centered around its wide variety…
Scientists could track species invasive to Tampa Bay using eDNA deployed in The Everglades
Environmental DNA, or eDNA, which allows early detection of invasive species by monitoring cellular material (like skin or feces) that organisms shed, is now being deployed in the Everglades to track two species that have also been documented in the Tampa Bay region. The Asian swamp eel and the bullseye snakehead are invasive, air-breathing predators that live in the…
Florida launches investigation into Discord over child safety concerns
Attorney General James Uthmeier said Wednesday his office will investigate Discord, a messaging platform, for allegedly putting children at risk of being groomed by predators online. The office issued a subpoena for information relating to the marketing of children, enforcing age-verification requirements, content moderation, parental control features and reporting of exploitative activity, according to the…
Brittany Broski gives a lecture at USF next month
The social media star will give a talk to University of South Florida students on April 7 as part of the school’s lecture series.
Grady Judd is woke now
Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd knows his county. After all, he’s been elected six times, and loves to get in front of a camera and say colloquial phrases like, “They don’t know beans from buttermilk about what’s happening in this community.” But Judd recently defended non-violent illegal migrants, which is a cardinal sin in MAGA…
Tampa Bay prog-rock favorite Anthill Cinema is raising funds to finish its next album
Perennially mentioned among the best prog-rock outfits in Florida, Anthill Cinema is moving closer to the final phases of its next album. To get the effort over the finish line, the St. Petersburg experimental fusion septet needs a little scratch. Drums just wrapped tracking last month, according to a GoFundMe for the album, which said…
Ryan Rose celebrates ‘How A Sunset Sounds’ second anniversary next month
In a new Rose Room session, DJ Ryan Rose blends Kanye and Jay-Z’s “Otis” and A$ap Ferg’s “”Dreams, Fairytales, Fantasies” with vintage R&B classics. UPDATE 03/19/26 3:18 p.m.: Ryan Rose is no longer playing this breakfast gig. In his stead is Wild 94.1’s Joey Franchize. We’ve heavily updated this post to reflect the change. The…
Tampa rapper Nico Sweet headlines Friday BeatsNChill showcase
Nico Sweet is still on the rise. Since T-Pain praised her on his Twitch stream and CL named her one of 22 Tampa Bay rappers to watch in 2022, she’s spent the last four years opening for other artists and honing her craft. The chill beats and steady flow of her 2025 album Dark Red…
Construction is underway on West Tampa land that might be home to more than a dozen graves
Construction is underway in the last privately-owned acre next to the historic Martí/Colón Cemetery. Architect Patrick Thorpe owns the area. In 2023, he sold most of his share of the Marti/Colon Cemetery to the City of Tampa –except for one acre “adjacent to it.” The acre does not have any marked graves. But, advocates like…
More and more, officials are simply ignoring Florida’s public records laws
Herbert Block, The Washington Post’s legendary political cartoonist, advocated tirelessly for government in the sunshine. The first page of his 1957 anthology, HERBLOCK’s Special for Today, depicted two bureaucrats discussing a stack of documents in a government office. One is reaching for a set of rubber stamps on his desk. “Well,” he says to the other, “We certainly botched…
Special election voting is underway for the Hillsborough County Senate Seat vacated by Jay Collins
Ron DeSantis has been an decidedly activist governor during his seven-plus years leading Florida. When it comes to filling vacant legislative seats, however, DeSantis at times has been lackadaisical in scheduling special legislative elections. For proof, look at two of the special legislative elections underway in three Florida counties with Election Day scheduled for Tuesday,…
Tampa Monitor is asking for help to finish building important reporting tools
Tampa City Council is off this week for Spring Break, so unless you want to hear about what else I’ve been working on or my rant, see you here next week. Sunshine Week & Goals Transparency. Sunshine Laws. They used to mean something, but these days it’s hard to take serious some days, especially at…
‘Robbing them blind baby’: Evidence from Live Nation-Ticketmaster trial shows Tampa fans as the butt of a joke
Anyone who hoped that Donald Trump was actually serious about taking on Ticketmaster and Live Nation was let down this month when his Department of Justice (DOJ) announced plans to settle its antitrust suit against the concert giants. Observers, including the National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) were quick to point out that a proposed $280…
St. Pete’s Chattaway restaurant will close this summer: ‘It’s definitely bittersweet’
The Chattaway, St. Petersburg’s longest-running-restaurant, will close this summer. Reached by phone at the restaurant, Greg Kitto, son of Chattaway matriarch Jillian Frers, told Creative Loafing Tampa Bay that the closing is “definitely bittersweet.” He promised to elaborate after dinner service on Tuesday night. The restaurant has operated at 358 22nd Ave. S since 1951…
Naked Farmer reopens original location in St. Pete
After nearly nine months of renovations, the doors at 200 Central Avenue reopen on Friday, March 27.
Noisy Crane Tea House opens inside The Paper Seahorse in Tampa
Following the digital detox ethos of their bungalow-mates, phone use is discouraged, laptops are not allowed and drinks aren’t available to-go. Tea is prepared and poured table-side, and the space encourages guests to sit and spend time, whether that be with friends or your local alt-weekly pub (wink).
St. Pete’s newest bookstore, Pages & Perks, opens this summer
The soil is growing rich for Tampa Bay’s bookworms, with an increasingly eclectic collection of independent bookshops. This summer, St. Petersburg gets its fifth indie bookstore, Pages and Perks. Not to mention several other new and upcoming shops in Ybor City and New Port Richey. With a primary emphasis on fiction, Pages and Perks will…
Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd says some immigrants here ‘illegally’ should have a path to legal residence
Amid a partisan divide on immigration policy, Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd is advocating for a “common sense” solution. Judd said in a press conference Tuesday that current efforts to enforce immigration law are falling short of the Trump administration’s stated goal to deport “the worst first.” At the press conference inside Winter Haven’s Sheriff’s…
Lawsuit threatened if DeSantis signs Florida version of ‘SAVE America Act’
Gov. Ron DeSantis indicated online Monday he will sign legislation requiring Florida voters after the 2026 election to prove their citizenship at the ballot box. On Tuesday, Democratic elections lawyer Marc Elias repeated that a lawsuit would be filed once the measure (HB 991) is signed, echoing a previous warning of a legal challenge he…
Oracle of Ybor: Your friend is a fucking asshole
Dear Oracle, I recently had an awful friendship breakup with someone I was very close to. I met “D” a couple of years ago and we soon were seeing each other multiple times a week. I knew her parents, I helped plan her wedding. Then, there was some miscommunication around what I thought was a…
Florida average gas prices have risen 82 cents since start of Iran war
Pump prices in Florida increased 27 cents over the past week and have grown 82 cents since the on-going conflict with Iran began. The auto club AAA reported the average gallon of gas in Florida at $3.72 on Sunday, from a low of $3.40 in Okaloosa County on the Panhandle to $4.02 in Monroe County,…
Florida AG says ‘nondangerous’ felons should be allowed to own guns
Under Florida law, convicted felons are banned from possessing firearms, but Attorney General James Uthmeier is now contending that the law is unconstitutional when it relates to convicted felons who are considered “nondangerous” and have not committed a violent crime. That opinion — never previously offered by a Florida attorney general — is being lavishly praised…
Tampa Police Dept. revises its immigration policies following Florida AG’s warning
The Tampa Police Department has revised its policies on immigration enforcement in response to a demand Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier issued last week. Uthmeier had accused the department of having “sanctuary policies” and threatened to remove Mayor Jane Castor from office unless the city backed down. “The city of Tampa has no intention of violating state…
In City of Tampa redistricting, Planning Commission chooses ‘Alternative 2’
It moves the predominantly Hispanic Precinct 345 from the most populous District 7 to District 5.
Lukas Nelson makes Tampa Bay solo debut in April
Lukas Nelson is far from a new artist. Between writing songs at 11 years old—later to be recorded by his father, to forming Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real at the age of 20, and winning both BAFTA and Grammy awards for his musical contributions to the 2018 film, “A Star is Born, “the…
Florida sheriffs, including Grady Judd, criticize Trump’s mass deportation efforts
A group of sheriffs on a state immigration enforcement board sharply criticized the federal government’s mass deportation efforts Monday, a stark departure from hardline policies in Florida, where Gov. Ron DeSantis has spearheaded collaboration with federal officials to remove all undocumented immigrants. Some members of the State Immigration Enforcement Council, which is comprised of four…
Nah Dogs opening brick-and-mortar in downtown St. Pete this summer
The longtime pop-up, owned by local couple Jeff and Jenny Howe, plans to open a brick-and-mortar at 18 22nd St. S. in the Grand Central District, adding a third St. Pete staple to the already beloved Black Crow Coffee Co. and Tombolo Books duo.
Immigration attorneys say Tampa mayor should ‘stand up’ for residents in wake of removal threat
As Tampa Mayor Jane Castor faces removal, she has a chance to “stand up for the people of Tampa” by refusing to get rid of an alleged policy that protects victims and witnesses from immigration enforcement, local immigration lawyers say. Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier sent a letter to Castor last week demanding she end…
DeSantis criticizes House for not passing vaccine exemption bill amid measles outbreak
After the legislative session ended Friday, Gov. Ron DeSantis criticized the House for failing to expand vaccine exemptions for public K-12 students. “It seems to me you’re fumbling right on the goal line here,” DeSantis said. “Punch it in for the touchdown and get it done. I know a lot of people in Florida really…
Photos: Tampa celebrates St. Patrick’s Day with River O’Green and downtown parade
Thaddeus Bullard, aka Titus O’Neil grand marshaled the downtown Tampa St. Patrick’s Day parade.
![‘Pride means fight back’: Tampa activists stage People’s Pride march through Ybor City [PHOTOS]](https://i0.wp.com/www.cltampa.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Peoples-Pride-Coallition-36-scaled.jpg?resize=1200%2C900&ssl=1)
‘Pride means fight back’: Tampa activists stage People’s Pride march through Ybor City [PHOTOS]
Organized in part by the Tampa chapter of Students for a Democratic Society and the Tampa Immigrant RIghts Committee, the action started and ended at Centennial Park in Ybor City.
Interview: Before Clearwater concert, John Legend talks new Broadway project, prison reform, and more
Years before the awards, while he was still collecting small payments like the $500 check from Columbia Records for work on The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, John Legend was always Mr. Even-Keeled. Last week, ahead of a solo concert in Clearwater, the man born John Stephens told Creative Loafing Tampa Bay that he’s just naturally…
Street skating legend Mike Vallely comes to Tampa Bay this month
Some things don’t change much, and skateboard culture is one of them. While the money and sponsorship game has leveled up, skateboarders have always been the ones to do off the wall shit anywhere they could. Mike Vallely is a legend for it around the Bay area. Now in his mid-50s, and long known as…
Spring hard hat tour offers insider look at Tampa Union Station renovation
Things are changing at Tampa Union Station. The city’s 113-year-old landmark is in line for a facelift, and staging areas for passengers are being set up as you read this (the trains aren’t going to stop running, after all). As WMNF News reported in January, the renovation at the hands of architect Jerel McCants is…
Tampa activists protest Iran conflict outside MacDill Air Force Base
The base has been instrumental in military operations since the early days of World War II. It houses CENTCOM (U.S. Central Command) and serves as the headquarters for the U.S. Operations Command.
21 new restaurants that opened in Tampa Bay so far this year
Spring has arrived in Tampa Bay (and so has the pollen), which means new restaurants are blooming. From popular burger chains, street tacos, boozy trailers and high-end dinner spots, there’s plenty of reasons to get out with your bibs out.
Florida’s version of the ‘SAVE America Act’ heads to DeSantis
Florida voters could be required to prove their citizenship at the ballot box, but not until after the 2026 elections, under a bill headed to Gov. Ron DeSantis. The House on Thursday passed a bill (HB 991) on a 77-28 vote along party lines, imposing new identification requirements on voters, but it doesn’t take effect…
Tampa Bay’s best live music happening March 13-19
Tampa Bay’s live music weekend has arrives, and it’s all over the place, from a sapphic exploration of the Caribbean diaspora, to a Legend-ary night of stories, political concerts, rise ups, literal-cult favorites, homegrown heroes, and more. This listing of the best concerts and live music events happening across Tampa Bay from March 13-19 is…
The Florida Orchestra says ‘pay-what-you-want’ at insider Mozart concert
Many violinist, oboist and bassoonist are familiar with the piece from auditions, but everyone else is getting a glimpse of Mozart’s “Jupiter Symphony” this year, which marks the composer’s 270th birthday. Mozart’s “Symphony No. 41,” was given its nickname posthumously by German-born, London-based Johann Peter Salomon—aka the man who brought Haydn to London. Mozart’s final…
Pop-punk comes to the movies this month at Tampa’s Sun-Ray Cinema
The new concert series inside Sun-Ray Cinema at Tampa’s former University Mall rolls on this weekend, with Right On Time leading the charge. The Tampa pop-punk and emo outfit’s 2023 LP, Strange Sounds From Seminole Heights, is a highly-melodic throwback to the golden days of Hot Topic, and for this gig the band finds itself…
Sunday concert aims to ‘Engage’ Hillsborough Democrats
Democrats, lately, always look like they are at a crossroads or existential crisis, wringing their hands and doomscrolling online looking for the next think piece that’ll explain why they can’t win elections not just across Florida but locally, too. A concert and fundraiser for the executive committee of the Hillsborough County Democrats is asking voters…
A no-cover ‘Women In Music’ concert closes Tampa Shuffle anniversary weekend
Two of the most powerful women in Tampa Heights celebrate the eighth anniversary of their neighborhood bar, Shuffle, during a weekend-long celebration that culminates in this concert that’s become a springtime tradition in the Bay area music scene. Best of the Bay-winning cellist Melissa Grady is on the bill along with rock band Boycott, powerhouse…
Moody country star Zach Bryan plays second Tampa stadium concert this weekend
Even after throwing epic tantrums and going back and forth about his aversion to immigration enforcement, Zach Bryan still rules as king of country and Americana. His second stadium gig in Tampa comes nearly a year after the 29-year-old Navy veteran signed publishing deals reportedly worth $350 million—and per usual, he is joined by a…
New World Tampa hosts an indie-rock dance party that’ll get you home by 10 PM
Face it, you’re too fucking old to stay up past 10 p.m., even on a Saturday. For anyone who loved nights at Czar, DNA, or Parthenon, but also finds themselves getting mail from the AARP, DJ Cub has curated an early-evening night where he’ll spin dance club hits from the ‘80s, ‘90s, and early-aughts. There’s…
Emo Night Tampa welcomes psych-folk songwriter Jaron Jammer for no-cover Saturday show
In the daylight hours (and there are more of them for the next few months!), Jaron Jammer writes about musical instruments. By night, the Tampa songwriter, Jordan Esker collaborator, and Sorry Barb drummer plays sublime, pristinely-recorded alt-folk that could’ve soundtracked movies like “Garden State” or “Juno.” This weekend, on his way out of town, he…
Gender-swapped ‘Julius Caesar’ sells out premiere in St. Pete
Roxanne Fay, who adopted the play and stars as Brutus, told Tampa Bay Arts Passport that the production should feel more like reliving Roman-inspired action movies like “Gladiator” and “Spartacus” than high school english homework.
Florida bill authored by DeSantis allowing state to label groups as ‘domestic terrorist organizations’ now heads to DeSantis
Schools tied to designated terrorist organizations must lose their state-sponsored tuition vouchers and college students supporting these groups must be expelled under legislation that won final passage Thursday. Gov. Ron DeSantis is expected to soon sign HB 1471 into law, largely because his office, according to the Tampa Bay Times, drafted the preliminary version of the measure, which…
Florida bill banning local governments from ‘net-zero’ policies heads to DeSantis
The Florida Senate has voted final approval of an amended tax bill (HB 1217) to ban local governments in Florida from using net-zero policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions — the primary driver of climate change. The vote was 24-12, with Miami Republican Alexis Alexis Calatayud joining all the Democrats in opposing the bill. The…
Québécois electro producer Cult Member brings ‘New Life’ to Tampa
House music has so many offshoots, and Liam Hayden plays some of its most popular strains. Better known as Cult Member (aka FKA GothBoiClique, Thraxxhouse, or Ghoste), the 27-year-old used to make cloud rap inspired by Spaceghostpurrp and Gravity Boys, but he currently plumbs the depths of techno, ambient, and trance music on records that…
Tampa’s Yuengling Center hosts a ‘Cubatón’ festival this weekend
If Donald Trump has his way, Cuba could be a very different country before the year is over. Ahead of an April set by one of the country’s finest exports (Cimafunk, who was added to the Gasparilla Music Festival lineup this week), stars of the Cubatón genre—including Latin Grammy-nominated Gente de Zona and Becky G…
