Sheefy McFly: Detroit’s Art Social Scene Hero

astern Market after dark-not to be confused with the annual event of the same name, but we're talking almost any weekend after dark – is where real hip-hop pulses. And in these circles, you want to catch the guy with the pompadour.

Sheefy McFly might be cooler than you. An artist, a musician, a producer, a gadfly, a you-name-it-he's-probably-doing-it, McFly (real name Tashif Turner) is a leader of a new crop of Detroiters connecting the city's past with the city's future through creative pursuits.

"I feel like a lot of Detroiters overlook how magical Detroit is," he says. "It's so much magic around us and people don't realize it."

McFly coordinates art shows and art-based social events in the city, mostly concentrated in the Eastern Market area. He's the co-founder of Rager Haus, a collective of artists and musicians-sometimes both-that holds exhibits and shows, sometimes in collaboration with the Red Bull House of Art. "We're just raging in the market," McFly says.

He also founded The Air Up There, a regular hip-hop showcase, and releases techno music under the moniker Edward Elektro. He paints with acrylic, oil and spray cans. An album on vinyl is dropping later this year. And there's the house music he produces.

"I'm an all-around creative," McFly, who dropped out of the College for Creative Studies, says. "We're in the middle of a renaissance. Detroit has never been what it is right now."

What’s key to McFly is building a community between other artists; they're invited to exhibit through Rager Haus, or one of McFly's other events, often spread through word of mouth. "We're supportive, but I want to show people how to make it lucrative.

"We're past the aftermath of riots and crack," McFly says about the creative scene, "so what will happen next?"

Follow Sheefy McFly on Twitter at @sheefymcfly; for more about the Rager Haus, visit RagerHausRecords.com.