✦ "Ain't No Mo," ✦ "Middle Age Cabaret: Cougar Club" ✦ Savory Stories: Grits ✦ Kosmo's Vinyl of the Week ✦ ArtsATL Weekly Cultural Calendar

✦ In good art, there is often beauty, offense, challenge, common ground, and that special little something that stays with you long after you've experienced it. When City Lights Collective co-host Jon Goode went to The Balzer theater to see the True Colors theater's presentation of "Ain't No Mo," by playwright Jordan E Cooper, he didn't know what he was in for but left knowing he'd just seen some good art.

✦ The 8th annual "Middle Age Cabaret: Cougar Club is a sizzling mix of burlesque, comedy, aerialists, and more. WABE arts reporter Summer Evans takes you to the cabaret.

✦ When thinking of foods that are deeply rooted in the American South, Grits might immediately come to mind. City Lights Collective members and food contributors Akila McConnel and Chef Asata Reid have the story behind the creamy porridge's history, AND how grits became a classic Atlantan dish.

✦ Alex "Cost One" Acosta lives at the intersection of art and community outreach. His non-profit organization, Soul Food Cypher, uses freestyle rap and lyricism as tools for empowerment. By showcasing the positive aspects of rap through cypher events and tournaments, the organization provides lyricists with a nurturing environment where their voice and artistry can grow.

This year marks the 13th anniversary of their first freestyle cypher, and their next event is August 24, at Create ATL in Adair Park. When Soul Food Cypher founder Alex Acosta and Cypher member Rio Nkosi recently spoke with City Lights Collective Co-host Kim Drobes, Acosta painted a picture of a typical Cypher event.

✦ Visual artist and music enthusiast Kosmo Vinyl bought his first LP when he was nine. He spent the next several decades immersed in music and began his professional career at London's pioneering indie label, "Stiff Records." In 1979, Kosmo started working exclusively with "The Clash" and stayed by their side until the punk icons disbanded in 1986.

Over the years, Kosmo's record collection became legendary. In 2014, he began posting about his favorite releases on social media for his series, "Kosmo's Vinyl of the Week," and he joins us weekly to share the stories behind the records he treasures. Today, he tells us the story behind X-Ray Spex's "Germ Free Adolescents."

✦ City Lights Collective member Shane Harrison spends his days at Arts ATL looking for cultural events to share with readers. He joins us weekly to share highlights, and today, his mix includes Monster-rama, The Black Martial Arts Cinema Double Feature at the Plaza, and a flute quartet at the Supermarket.

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