Michigan
Country music star cancels Michigan International Speedway show, put on ‘strict vocal rest’
BROOKLYN, MI – Up-and-coming country music artist Nate Smith has canceled all of his shows for June, including his prerace concert scheduled for Michigan International Speedway.
Smith was supposed to lead a concert at MIS on Sunday, June 8, prior to the FireKeepers Casino 400 NASCAR race. The show was part of the Busch Light Summer Music Series.
Smith’s doctors put him on “strict vocal rest” through the end of June.
“We’ve all come to the decision that the best way to get my voice fully back is to rest it for the first time in almost five years,” Smith wrote in a Facebook post. “This is the part that is so hard for me, because I have multiple bucket list shows coming up this month (including CMA Fest) and it breaks my heart knowing I won’t be there to see all of you.”
MIS officials couldn’t be reached Wednesday afternoon to say whether there will be a different performer for the show, prior to Sunday’s race.
The concert was supposed to last for an hour on the grass field near the start/finish line. Fans didn’t need to purchase a separate ticket – anybody with Sunday tickets could watch the show.
Smith is a multi-platinum, award-winning country music artist. In 2024, he was named Billboard’s Rookie of the Year and Amazon’s Breakthrough Country Artist.
His most famous songs include “Whiskey on You,” “World on Fire,” “Wildfire” and “Bulletproof.”
Smith is scheduled to tour this summer on Jason Aldean’s Full Throttle Tour.
No Faster Horses
Smith isn’t the only country music cancellation at MIS in 2025. The annual Faster Horses music festival was canceled for this summer. Organizers said they were “taking the year to make plans for a bigger and better Faster Horses.”
Track officials hope to have Faster Horses return in 2026.
Campground owner plans her own ‘mellower’ festival after Faster Horses cancellation
“Obviously we would rather have the event if we could. But it’s a pause year,” MIS President Joe Fowler said. “We have so many things that happen throughout the year here, especially in the summer, event-wise, that we’re going to keep a pretty busy schedule.
“I have no reason to believe that Faster Horses won’t be back next year.”
Michigan
Michigan trooper hospitalized after car hits patrol vehicle on Detroit’s west side
A Michigan State Police trooper is recovering after the patrol vehicle they were in was hit by a car on Detroit’s west side Sunday morning, the state agency said.
Troopers were investigating a fatal collision on Interstate 96 near Outer Drive when a crash involving a semitruck and an SUV happened at a nearby exit ramp, officials said.
The trooper who was hurt was sitting in the patrol car with its emergency lights on during the investigation into the exit ramp crash when the car hit the passenger side of the law enforcement vehicle, according to the state agency. The trooper was taken to the hospital with injuries that were not life-threatening.
Officials said the driver of the car that hit the patrol vehicle, identified as a female of undisclosed age, refused medical treatment. Troopers determined while interviewing her that she was “impaired by both alcohol and narcotics,” according to the state agency.
The female was arrested and taken to the hospital for a blood draw, according to officials.
“Please slow down, focus on the roadway, move over for emergency vehicles,” Michigan State Police First Lieutenant Mike Shaw said in a written statement.
Charges against the female are pending.
Michigan
How to watch Michigan vs. Michigan State as the rivalry continues
Michigan and Michigan State conclude their regular seasons with another game in their long and intense men’s basketball rivalry.
Tip-off is Sunday at 4:30 p.m. at the Crisler Center in Ann Arbor, and the game will be televised by CBS.
No. 3 Michigan (28-2, 18-1 Big Ten) has already clinched the Big Ten regular-season championship outright, but No. 8 MSU (25-5, 15-4) will look to put a blemish on the Wolverines as both teams head to conference and NCAA Tournament play.
In the first meeting this season, Michigan prevailed 83-71 at the Breslin Center on Jan. 30, snapping a four-game losing streak in the series. It was UM’s first win in East Lansing since January 2018. Michigan’s Yaxel Lendeborg had 26 points and 12 rebounds, while Jeremy Fears Jr. scored a career-high 31 for the Spartans.
The Michigan vs. Michigan State rivalry began in 1909 and the Wolverines lead the all-time series 98-92.
Michigan State at Michigan
▶ Tipoff: 4:30 p.m. Sunday, Crisler Center, Ann Arbor
▶ TV/radio: CBS/760, 94.7
▶ Records: No. 3 Michigan 28-2, 18-1 Big Ten; No. 8 Michigan State 25-5, 15-4
▶ Outlook: This is the regular-season finale for both teams. Michigan won the first meeting, 83-71, on Jan. 30 in East Lansing and is seeking its first sweep since 2014. The Wolverines will celebrate senior day and their outright Big Ten regular-season title during a postgame ceremony.
More coverage
▶ Wolverines take aim at historic send-off for seniors: ‘They set the standard’
▶ ‘I need him’: How Dusty May’s comments drove Jeremy Fears Jr., Tom Izzo closer
▶ Michigan basketball gets first taste of life without guard L.J. Cason
▶ Jaxon Kohler shares MSU senior night with great-grandfather, Pearl Harbor vet
▶ Michigan basketball beats Iowa to complete rare Big Ten road feat
▶ Carr, Fears lead Spartans out of senior-night trap against Rutgers
▶ Michigan basketball chasing more milestones, history
▶ This is March: Michigan State basketball peaking as postseason looms
Michigan
EF-3 tornado moved through Southwest Michigan city, National Weather Service says
An EF-3 tornado moved through Union City, Michigan, during Friday night’s severe storms in the southwest part of the state, according to the National Weather Service.
The federal agency said three people were killed and 12 others were injured in the Branch County twister, which had a wind speed of at least 165 mph — just 1 mph shy of an EF-4 classification on the Enhanced Fujita Scale.
Several homes in the area of Tuttle Road and Prairie Rose Lane were severely damaged by the twister, according to the agency.
Officials said Saturday that only a small portion of the tornado’s possible track has been assessed and that other details, including how far it went and how long it lasted, “will be released as they become available.”
The last EF-3 tornado that touched down in Michigan was in Gaylord in 2022.
A twister was reported in Three Rivers, Michigan, on Friday, though the National Weather Service hasn’t confirmed the report. Three Rivers is around 30 miles southwest of Union City.
Sheriff Clint Roach of Cass County, which is around 30 miles west of Three Rivers, said a 12-year-old boy, identified as Silas Anderson, was killed in Friday’s storms.
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said Saturday on social media that she would be declaring a state of emergency for Branch, Cass and St. Joseph counties.
According to the Michigan State Police, the Salvation Army and the nonprofit Disaster Relief at Work were going door-to-door on Saturday with meals and cleaning supplies in Union City and Three Rivers.
Anyone who was impacted by Friday’s severe weather and needs resources is asked to call 211.
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