Ultimately, Corktown STRUT an opportunity for Detroit's artists, cultural leaders, local businesses and art organizations, to collaboratively build a stronger collective future. For one weekend, lets all work, and play, together. Join us in supporting our community and creating an event everybody can be proud of.

Forward Arts mission is to grow, sustain and preserve Detroit’s arts communities and industries. We achieve this by creating arts programming, providing services to artists and organizations, and support long-term strategic planning for Detroit’s art community.

Corktown STRUT falls within our programming column, and is also a long-term strategy for our arts community (artists, venues, promoters, organizations, etc.)regarding cultural and economic development.

Cultural Development: STRUT is focused on creating a platform for Detroit’s arts community. One that unites and showcases our cultures across genres and mediums. 

Economic Development: Currently, Detroit businesses don’t do well over 4th of July, and so do not book artists to do anything that weekend. It’s bad business for everybody. Our region has not had an event since Tastefest ended in 2009. STRUT should stimulate economic activity for artists, businesses, promoters, Corktown neighborhood and the arts community at large.

In 2016, STRUT created over 50 Detroit artist opportunities and paid out over 21k in artist fees. We created over 100k in economic development, with local music venues seeing on average 46% more in sales then they would have compared to past 4th of July weekends. And lastly, STRUT engaged with 48 businesses and organizations to make STRUT happen, almost all Detroit based.

A portion of festival profits will be used to create more arts infrastructure programs and programming like STRUT. These support structures support and stimulate an interconnected and vibrant arts and cultural ecology in Detroit. STRUT is an opportunity to help create these community investments.