Quad City Arts presents the 44th Annual High School Art Invitational at Quad City Arts Gallery in Rock Island, from March 27-April 29, 2021. The exhibition is free and open to the public. The gallery will be open extended hours-until 8 pm-on April 1 and 29th.  A virtual award presentation will go live on Quad City Arts Facebook page on April 1st, along with an online gallery where all of the entries can be viewed: https://www.quadcityarts.com/hs-invitational.html This exhibition features exemplary works of art selected by each high school art teacher in the region. On the average, 16 schools,... Read More

Charlotte Boyer, a 17-year-old junior at Rock Island High School, made her national television debut Monday night on the final rounds of blind auditions for Season 20 of NBC’s “The Voice” singing competition, which began Monday, March 1. She was featured singing a minute-long rendition of Amy Winehouse’s “Love Is a Losing Game,” and didn’t get the response she hoped for from celebrity judges John Legend, Kelly Clarkson, Blake Shelton and Nick Jonas. None turned their chair for her. “I am so sorry we don’t have better news for you today,” Legend told Charlotte on the show. “I... Read More

ROCK ISLAND — In the coming weeks, twelve area hospitals are set to receive a combined $20,000 from the Plumbers and Pipefitters Local Union 25 and the Mechanical Contractors Association of Eastern Iowa/Western Illinois (MCA). Through their Labor-Management Cooperative Committee (LMCC), both Local Union 25 and the MCA work to preserve and expand job opportunities in the Quad Cities region and explore innovative approaches for the advancement of the industry as a whole. The group’s unanimous decision to donate to local healthcare facilities comes in the wake of the continued spread of COVID-19. “We... Read More

Rock Island Mayoral Candidate Thurgood Brooks has released an ambitious 100 Day Plan which he will be striving to achieve in his first 100 days in office should he be elected over current Mayor Mike Thoms in the April 6 elections. The plan is as follows: To hear Brooks talk about elements of his plan and his campaign, listen to our conversation on the podcast QCUncut here.  Read More

The Big Tip” is a Service Industry Event designed to help the Service Industry itself, put together by a non-profit organization called “The Big Give”. The Covid-19 social distancing and restrictions that started in March 2020, caused the unemployment rate to jump from an average of 3% in both Iowa and Illinois, to 10% and 16% respectively.The Service Industry is still suffering through another round of social distancing and restrictions that caused another dip in December in 2020. This fundraiser event will help the economic relief of the Service Industry through social media, staffing... Read More

In late October 2020, Quad City Arts’ Visiting Artist Series launched the Educational Resources project with content from 11 professional performing artists. A dozen new artists presenting a broad selection of music, dance, theatre and visual arts are joining the project as of Friday, March 5, for a total of 21 artists and ensembles participating. Quad City Arts has enlisted these performers, including a North Carolina rapper and banjo player, a former NPR “Tiny Desk Concert” contestant, and an emerging Chicago dance studio, to create videos and documents to be shared with Quad City educators... Read More

Imagine it’s Super Bowl Sunday, pre-covid. You’re in your home, minding your own business, watching TV, having a couple beverages with a number of friends, having a good time. Across the street, you see lights on in your neighbors’ houses. You see cars out front. They have guests too, and all of you are enjoying a weekend night. Suddenly, the evening is split by the flashing lights and squeal of two police cars, and an ambulance in tow, roaring down your street and pulling up to your neighbor’s house. Everyone is looking out the windows to see what’s going on. You all see your neighbor... Read More

EXCLUSIVE: Controversy erupted with the ferocity of a barroom brawl on social media Monday night after the Rock Island City Council voted 4-3 to indefinitely maintain a 2 a.m. closing time for bars in the downtown Rock Island District area. It’s worth noting that one of the people voting against the measure was alderman Dylan Parker, whose ward includes the District. The other two were Ivory Clark and Dave Keenan. It’s also worth noting that Parker’s vote against the continued closure is representative of the opinions of his constituency, the bar owners, which were hoping that the council... Read More

Kavanaugh’s Hilltop is THE neighborhood bar and grill of the Hilltop area of the Quad Cities. Featuring the best local draft beer selection and great food. It’s at 1228 38th St., Rock Island. And every Wednesday night at 8 p.m. at the Hilltop you can check out some awesome local musicians at the open mic blues jam. So if you like the blues, head to the Hilltop on Wednesdays!  Read More

SuperStorm 2021 (or at least the latest one) is over, but winter’s cold and dreariness continues on. But don’t despair, there are things in the Quad-Cities to smile about! Every month, we at QuadCities.com, in conjunction with our media partners at KWQC-TV6’s “Paula Sands Live,” present What’s The Good News? A look at some of the positive things going on in and around the Quad-Cities. So, what’s the good news for February? Here ya go… Rock Island Teen Is Headed To ‘The Voice!’ Charlotte Boyer, a 17-year-old junior at Rock Island High School,... Read More