ROX-TV hits Southwest Detroit with HEXXX, Rude Boy, and DJ Carlito. Take a ride with us through Mexicantown, Delray, the Clark Park, and Corktown.

Welcome back to the ROX-TV website. It’s been a busy couple of weeks and this last weekend was no different. The team was out in full force, covering all the happenings in and around the Motor City. There was action at the CRB studio Friday night, as well as Chicano Fest 2021, and we kicked it in Southwest Detroit as well, hitting up some well known locations. So hop in and roll with us.

Friday: HEXXX returns to Detroit

This was a big weekend for the underground sounds in Michigan and it kicked off with the arrival of HEXXX at Detroit Metro Airport off of I-94. HEXXX had been selected to be an official performer at the Chicano Fest 2021, which was set to take place the following day at the Michigan Squeeze Station (6716 Michigan Ave, Detroit). I met HEXXX and his manager Macey at the airport and then we made our way to Southwest Detroit, Mexicantown to be exact, for some local eats.

The weather was perfect, with a hint of fall on the horizon. For the first time in a month or so, I was pretty comfortable and could feel hoodie weather right around the corner. We got off I-96 and took a right on Vernor. As soon as we hit the street, Mexicantown came into view.

Mexicantown in Southwest

I pulled onto 23rd Street and parked in the shade, just south of Bagley Street near La Gloria Bakery. The street was still sleepy and just waking up. After piling out of the car and stretching our legs, it was simply a matter of figuring out where to drop a few bills and enjoy some neighborhood fare.

There was lots of places to eat including Los Galanes, Xochimilco Restaurant, Evie’s Tamales, Taqueria Lupitas, and the Mexicantown Restaurant, all within a block or so on Bagley Street. The Bagley Street stretch has some interesting history as well, including the Bagley Boys gang, which once dominated the area. The legends of the Bagley Boys are remembered by the older residents of Southwest Detroit and if you know the right people to ask, you can hear the tales for yourself.

I was lucky enough to have a living link so to speak, from Rudy “Rude Boy” Hill. His father and uncles were all members of the Bagley Boys, and during interviews for his life story (which is nearing completion as we speak) Rudy told me about some of the wild fights and history behind the legendary Detroit neighborhood gang.

One of the more interesting things about the Bagley Boys is that they had a very particular whistle, which served as an “all hands on deck” call when done in the correct way. Rude Boy had passed the tradition onto his kids and I witnessed first hand what happened when the signal was enacted. For more on that, you’ll have to read the book though. So anyway, back to the food.

After cruising the block, we decided to hit the Mexicantown Restaurant on the corner of Bagley and 24th Street. It was pushing almost 2pm and I was ready to replenish my system with some food. The place had a real nice atmosphere to it and I was immediately comfortable. A wonderful waitress got us seated and handed over a couple of menus to mull over.

Now I’m not exactly an expert when it comes to authentic Mexican food. You can blame that on my Irish heritage I suppose, but it doesn’t mean that I don’t like to try new things. I enjoy celebrating and learning about other cultures, and I encourage everyone to do the same.

The more we know about each other, the less there is to divide us. And as you will see when you start to learn about others, you find out that we have more in common than separating us. We all want the same things in life. A fair wage, food in the fridge, a little smoke or drink on Friday night, and happiness for our families.

Don’t be afraid of the unknown, get to know people and the world around you. Do it for yourself and avoid “blanket” labels. Believe in the things you see and know, not what some asshole politician is selling (because in the end, they all represent control and I’ve yet to meet a broke politician on either side of the isle. They all seem to enjoy money and power, perhaps too much at times). But enough of that talk for now. This article is about a wonderful community called Mexicantown in Detroit and it was time to eat.

So, I’m an Irish guy….potato jokes may commence, I have thick skin and don’t mind a little comedy. After checking out the menu for a few minutes, I decided to play it safe and ordered some beef tacos. I know….not very adventurous as far as the options on the menu, but I’ve discovered in life that the best choice can sometimes be the safe choice (at least when it comes to eating out).

I’ve known a lot of people in my life, who are not afraid to order new things and try dishes previously unexplored. I can appreciate this, but I’ve also seen the same people pissed off, when that new item didn’t hit the spot.

I learned my lesson with a plate of Calamari one time. It sounded interesting so I took “a chance” on it. For those of you who are not familiar, Calamari is the culinary term for squid. Calamari is a popular dish in the Mediterranean and Asian cultures or so I am told. The squid is a member of the mollusk family, and are invertebrates (meaning they have no backbone).

If you over cook Calamari, it is reported to become rubbery, which is exactly how I would describe it. On top of the that, I got sick shortly after and although I blame the Calamari, it’s hard to say with one hundred percent certainty that it was the cause. I decided to play it safe from then on, and although it can be boring as far as food goes, I’m rarely disappointed these days.

The beef taco’s were good and I was happy with my final selection. I poked the beans and rice around a bit, but the taco’s filled me up, leaving little room for the extras. After eating and talking about the upcoming events at CRB and the Chicano Fest, we headed for the door. I enjoyed the Mexicantown Restuarant and wouldn’t hesitate to eat there again. Outside the sun was shining and a light breezed touched down on Bagley Street. We stopped for a picture in front of Xochimilco and took in the sights and sounds. There was a small market across the street and we popped in to see what they had to offer. Before too long though, it was time to go.

Delray and Zug Island

We cruised downtown to find Macey a cup of coffee. The time change from Cali to Michigan was tough and the lack of sleep made caffeine vital in the moment. We sorted the coffee out and then zipped down to Zug Island to check out the Black Horse Cantina (7844 W. Jefferson Ave) in Southwest. They have great food and an excellent atmosphere, so if your rolling down Jefferson Avenue, stop in for a drink and a meal. You will not be disappointed.

The neighborhood is called Delray and has a long history going back to 1836 when it was platted. In 1897 Delray was included in Ecorse Township as a village, but eventually lost it’s municipal status when Detroit annexed the village in 1905.

In 1930, some 24,000 people called Delray home, but after years of industrialization and disrepair, by 2007 was declared “the closet thing to a ghost town within the city limits” by the Detroit Metro Times.

Delray had a serious gang problem in the early 1990’s, which included the Spanish Cobras, Cash Flow Posse, Gangster Disciples, Latin Counts, Latin Kings, and the Delray Mafia (sourced from Behind the Paint, Bruce and Echlin 2003). The police used targeted efforts to combat the crime and recruitment of these gangs with mixed success.

There is currently a new bridge being built that will connect America with Canada, and the project is going to run right through Delray. Later on when we linked up with Rude Boy and DJ Carlito, Rudy told us about the neighborhood and how the bridge builders had been buying up the land and leveling the old neighborhood. Where there was once houses, schools, and businesses, is for the most part now empty lots. It was sad to hear about a neighborhood being slowly erased from time for special interests and in the name of the almighty dollar.

I suppose in a few years, the people will have been pushed out completely, the bridge will be finished, and the property value will sky rocket. The area will be flooded with big money types and the land of the people will again wind up in the hands of the rich. Is that really the American way? It seems to happen rather often…and its a shame. When you remove the heart and soul of an area, it’s really like a spiritual crime (in my opinion). I’m sure the trendy fucks have no problems sleeping at night, even with the displacement of the keepers of the soil. I suppose one day in this country, there will be hell to pay when we unite and take it all back…but until then we have to wait. So anyways.

Clark Park in Southwest Detroit

We linked up with the DJ Carlito and the Rude Boy around 5pm and decided to head over to the Clark Park in Southwest Detroit, to film some interviews and dig on the scene. We stopped on Vernor near Clark for some forty ouncers and then headed south on Clark Street.

We parked in front of the Old YMCA and got out to take in the famous park and neighborhood. The Rude Boy was dropping knowledge and used to visit the YMCA when it was in operation back in the day. He had fond memories of the area and of the Clark Park. We unloaded our gear and the jumbo’s (forty ouncers) from the car and then made our way on foot through the park.

We walked over to a small concrete stage, which had “Clark Park” proudly displayed on one side. Rudy talked about different people who had visited the park over the years, including a stop by President Obama, when he was running for office years earlier. The park has plenty of history and legends of its own.

I took in the view and tried to capture the feelings for all time. The park was big and there were groups scattered throughout the area. Black squirrels were everywhere, getting ready for the fast approaching winter.

The Rude Boy interviewed HEXXX on the edge of the concrete stage, while DJ Carlito filmed it. I drifted around capturing different images and angles, some for Rudy’s book and others for ROX-TV. We spent an hour or so, just kicking back, sipping, laughing, and enjoying the vibe. I could see Western International High School off in the distance near Scotten Street. The school was built in 1898 and as of 2021, has close to 2,ooo registered students.

For the Juggalos out there, they are probably very familiar with the names and places we were hitting. The locations are intertwined with the music and history of the Insane Clown Posse.

For HEXXX, it was a dope experience to come to the “heart” of it all, where the Dark Carnival really got going. We had the greatest guide in Southwest Detroit, the Rude Boy, and we got it in. There was a few more places that we needed to hit and time was running short. HEXXX was going to be making an appearance on Cruisin The Barrio to give an exclusive interview about the Chicano Fest performance and other topics. We had one more stop to make in Corktown, with another filming location to add to an upcoming ROX-TV project Rudy was finishing up. Before we left though, we got a nice group shot in front of the “Clark Park” wall.

Corktown

We drove over to Corktown to film on location. For those of you who might not know, Corktown is the oldest surviving neighborhood in Detroit. During the great potato famine in Ireland, a mass exodus of the Irish fled starvation for a better life in America.

The majority of the Irish that came to Detroit, settled on the west side of the city. Because so many of these immigrants were from County Cork (Contae Chorcai’) the area became known as “Corktown”. My family was also from Contae Chorcai’ and I have it tattooed on my left wrist.

Many people might not know this but the Irish were the largest ethnic group to settle in Detroit at the time. The Germans would follow though, fleeing revolutions of their own.

Eventually the Irish began to disperse throughout the city and Mexican immigrants began to move into the area during the turn of the century. The area also seen African Americans and southern Anglo Americans relocate for a chance to work in the automobile industry as the century continued to roll on.

We stopped by the area of 6th Street and Porter near the Holy Trinity Church and the St. Francis Cabrini Clinic. We were going to film the interview in the small park on the corner of Brooklyn and Porter Streets, but moved up Brooklyn to Labrosse for a better back drop. There was some decent murals painted on the wall, so that’s where the ROX-TV set up shop. After filming what we needed, we hung around for a bit to take in the spot. The sun was slowly going down and the temperature was dropping ever so slightly. Before leaving the area, Rudy took us to an empty lot that he used to hustle Tiger’s fans for parking as a young boy. “I could fit almost twenty cars in the little lot” Rudy explained, before he would go spend all the money at the corner store. Rudy was young then, so it mostly got spent on candy. (This story will be included in Rudy’s book, which is tentatively scheduled for a holiday time release in early December)

We all piled back into the Impala and shoved off for the CRB Studio. We had covered some decent ground in Southwest Detroit and everybody had a good time. If you’ve never been to Mexicantown or Southwest Detroit, you should check it out sometime and find out what your missing. That’s all the time we have for this one. Please tune into the next article, which will pick up where this one leaves off, if you can pick up what I’m laying down. Until then….

Signing Off,

Mike Shepard

ROX-TV Head Writer

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