Minnesota

Review: Wallflowers, McBride bring musical flavor to revamped Taste of Minnesota

Published

2 years ago

July 6, 2024

Review: Wallflowers, McBride bring musical flavor to revamped Taste of Minnesota

The location, layout and general vibe may be very different this year. Like Taste of Minnesota festivals of old, however, the free music lineup Saturday in the revamped event’s new downtown Minneapolis site offered an oddly mish-mashed, nostalgia-heavy but crowd-pleasing mix.

Country music veteran Martina McBride, ’90s adult-rock hitmakers the Wallflowers, and homegrown alt-country veterans the Gear Daddies were the top-drawing acts for the first of two days in Taste’s second year in a setting that also feels quite hodge-podgey.

The fenced-off Taste grounds are spread out between empty parking lots and blocked-off streets around the Minneapolis Central Library and the north end of Nicollet Mall. It’s not the prettiest of sites, and finding somewhere to sit is harder than spotting a low-calorie food option.

However, the new digs did smoothly accommodate the strong turnout amid Saturday’s golden weather, with organizers reporting more than 35,000 attendees through the gates by 3:30 p.m.

Considering the festival’s old location on Harriet Island has been flooded in recent days, the new spot certainly felt sufficient for Taste’s many offerings — including a new fleet of food trucks, four music stages, an amateur wrestling ring and even a zip line.

The biggest of the four new Taste stages is in a crumbly lot sandwiched between the library, Four Seasons Hotel and other tall buildings. Thanks to this site, U.S. Bank Stadium may no longer hold the distinction of being Minneapolis’ most echoey music venue. A mid-afternoon set by rapper and DJ Sophia Eris with beatmaker pal Makr was especially muddied by the bouncing acoustics and other technical issues.

The sound and vibe at the Jazz 88 stage on the north end of the Taste layout was much more appealing, in part because it’s one of the few places you’ll find trees or grass. Local jazz stylist Jennifer Grimm had fans there cooling in the shade and singing along to Billie Holliday’s “I’ll Be Singing You,” and the BZ3 Organ Trio with all-star drummer Kevin Washington had them up and grooving through an instrumental cover of Prince’s “Controversy.”

Since none of the other mainstage acts enjoyed huge Instagram followers or TikTok numbers, it was no surprise that many of the attendees who stuck by the big stage looked old enough to have regularly attended Taste of Minnesota’s prior iterations, evolving over the mid-1980s to the late 2000s on Harriet Island and the State Capitol grounds in St. Paul.

Performing between Eris and an ultra-hyping intro by comedian Fancy Ray McCloney, Gear Daddies’ frontman Martin Zellar joked that his band was “going to cut the energy in half.” Of course, their old favorites such as “Zamboni” and “Stupid Boy” did the opposite and sparked big, smiley audience singalongs. Even the downers in the Daddies’ set were well-received, including “Color of Her Eyes” and “Cut Me Off.”

The Wallflowers started out feisty and loud with songs off their last album, highlighted by “The Dive Bar in My Heart” — reminiscent of Minnesota legends the Replacements, whose bassist Tommy Stinson was watching from side-stage. Wallflowers frontman Jakob Dylan greeted the crowd by cheekily noting that, unlike his dad Bob, he did not qualify as a taste of Minnesota.

“You guys do know I’m not from here, right?” he cracked. “But I thank you for this as some kind of homecoming.”

Despite personnel changes over the years and a long lull in the 2010s, the rock scion’s band sounded as rock-solid and full-spirited as ever as it revisited some of their best-known tunes, including a rootsier-styled “6th Avenue Heartache” and “One Headlight.” Instead of offering a taste of (Bob) Dylan for the Minnesota fest, Jakob paid tribute to Tom Petty with covers of “Refugee” and “The Waiting” at the end of their set.

In the headlining slot, McBride played to a smaller crowd but showed why she’s endured in the male-dominated Nashville music biz for three decades. Her 1993 breakthrough hit “My Baby Loves” kicked off a series of feel-good love songs, including “Safe in the Arms of Love” and “Love’s the Only House.” Her covers of country classics “Rose Garden” and “You Ain’t Woman Enough (to Take My Man)” came off sweet, too, given they were launched by two female country music legends. Too bad Taste’s spotty sound system cut out during the former song.

Taste of Minnesota continues Sunday with a music lineup that is more truly Minnesotan — and should attract a lot of Prince fans — as Jimmy Jam, Terry Lewis and Morris Day and other members of the Time are slated to stage a rare reunion tied to the 40th anniversary of “Purple Rain,” preceded by Sounds of Blackness and more.

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Minnesota

Minnesota lawmakers push bipartisan measures to regulate AI

Published

49 minutes ago

March 11, 2026

Press Room

Minnesota lawmakers push bipartisan measures to regulate AI

Michelle Griffith
| Minnesota Reformer

A bipartisan group of Minnesota lawmakers is proposing several bills to regulate the artificial intelligence industry.
Proposed measures include restricting minors’ access to AI chatbots and requiring disclosure when a person is communicating with AI.
One bill aims to prohibit the government from using “reverse warrants” to obtain location or search data, citing privacy concerns.

A bipartisan group of Minnesota lawmakers are hoping to limit how the artificial intelligence industry operates in the state, arguing that it’s evolving in ways that are harmful and unconstitutional.

Minnesota senators on Monday considered five measures to regulate AI, including a bill (SF 1857) stating that companies that create AI chatbots — like ChatGPT — ensure minors do not access them, and a bill (SF 1886) requiring that companies disclose when a person is communicating with AI.

Sens. Erin Maye Quade, DFL-Apple Valley, and Eric Lucero, R-St. Michael, are leading the bipartisan effort to regulate AI. The duo — who are on opposite sides of the political spectrum — said they aren’t opposed to the technology but urged lawmakers to protect Minnesotans. Maye Quade and Lucero were co-authors of a bill regulating deepfakes — digitally altered photos or videos depicting events that didn’t actually happen — which became law in 2023.

“There’s a recognition that we need to do something to bring controls in place, to uphold the Constitution, to protect privacy and to empower individuals against these multi-billion dollar industries,” said Lucero, who works in cybersecurity, on Monday.

One of Maye Quade and Lucero’s bills (SF 1120) would prohibit the government from requesting reverse-location data, which many law enforcement agencies use when they do not know who specifically committed a crime.

Law enforcement can obtain a warrant that mandates a technology company give them data about which cellphones were in a certain location at a specific time or who has searched for a specific word or phrase on their phones or on an AI chatbot.

Civil liberties advocates argue warrants are supposed to be narrow, and these so-called “reverse warrants” allow the government to conduct widespread surveillance on everyone who was in an area at a given time or on people who are searching for words or phrases. This is a violation of the Fourth Amendment, advocates argue.

Law enforcement officials, including the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, testified against the bill, arguing that it would harm public safety.

“While I certainly appreciate Sen. Maye Quade’s intentions to protect individuals’ privacy rights with such technological capabilities, prohibiting this critical investigative tool would have extensive negative consequences in local and state investigations,” BCA Superintendent Drew Evans stated in written testimony. “It would impact the ability for law enforcement to prevent and solve crimes and to hold individuals accountable.”

A growing number of states are seeking to regulate AI, as more companies seek to capitalize on the technology. Last year, 38 states adopted or enacted around 100 AI-related measures, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

But the federal government has sought to curb states’ ability to regulate AI, as companies are furiously lobbying Congress and the White House to get rid of state regulations. Lawmakers last summer attempted to include a 10-year moratorium on state AI laws in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, but the Senate dropped it.

President Donald Trump in December signed an executive order giving the attorney general the ability to sue states and overturn laws that don’t support the “United States’ global AI dominance.”

Maye Quade said that minors should be prohibited from accessing AI chatbots because the machine could introduce virtually any topic including disturbing content.

Maye Quade said she’s been talking to AI companies about the regulations and believes they could reach a compromise, but she said she’s okay if they oppose the bills.

Maye Quade said that states shouldn’t back down from trying to regulate AI.

“For decades, tech companies have told legislators and the public that damage and destruction from their unregulated products are necessary byproducts of growth and innovation. They have told us that they can do amazing things, like cure cancer, but not comply with 50 different laws in states. We can no longer accept that narrative,” Maye Quade said.

Minnesota Reformer is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.

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Proposal would ban crypto ATMs in Minnesota

Published

13 hours ago

March 10, 2026

Press Room

Proposal would ban crypto ATMs in Minnesota

article

ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) – ATMs that deal in cryptocurrency could be banned in Minnesota soon.

Crypto ATM ban considered

The backstory:

Police across the state are urging lawmakers to pass a DFL ban on those kiosks that convert cash to crypto.

They say the machines are used extensively by criminals trying to scam people or to hide the proceeds of their crimes. In 2024, lawmakers passed a law to regulate the machines. Still, last year Attorney General Keith Ellison warned of an increase in crypto ATM scams.

At a hearing last month, Faribault police reported their residents had lost $500,000 since 2022 from crypto ATM scams. Woodbury Detective Lynn Lawrence told lawmakers about a victim she helped who had completed at least ten Bitcoin transactions over six months at crypto ATMs.

By the numbers:

Right now there are about 350 crypto kiosks in the state. They are often located in gas stations and grocery stores.

Their owners say this proposed law goes too far, but they’d support a law requiring full refunds for any customers who were victims of fraud.

How crypto ATMs work

Dig deeper:

Crypto ATMs allow users to turn fiat money into digital currency or vice versa. Users typically have to scan their identification to be able to use the machines and then the currency is sent to a wallet of their choosing.

However, the machines are increasingly used by scammers who convince elderly victims to use the ATMs to use the machines to send them money. Once the money is sent, it’s impossible to recoup the funds from the scammers.

Exchanges can blacklist scammers’ wallets and block them from withdrawing ill-gotten funds. However, most scammers will use “mixers” which wash the funds through a service that makes the coins hard to track or find ways around large exchanges like decentralized exchanges and peer-to-peer exchanges.

The other side:

At a hearing on Tuesday, Larry Lipka, counsel for digital currency platform CoinFlip, which operates 50 crypto ATMs in Minnesota, recognized scams are an issue, but pointed out scamming won’t disappear if crypto kiosks are banned.

“While I understand that scams are a problem, scams are a problem everywhere in this country,” said Lipka, “They are a problem for crypto kiosks, they are a problem for wire transfers, and they are a problem for gift cards. But no one is here today saying we should ban exchanges or gift cards or wire transfers because scammers use them.”

Instead of a ban, Lipka urged lawmakers to instead consider smarter and better controls for kiosks. According to Lipka, back in 2024, CoinFlip pushed for further protections when the previous crypto ATM bill was being discussed, arguing that legislation didn’t go far enough.

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Initial Thoughts on the Vikings’ Free Agency Moves

Published

1 day ago

March 10, 2026

Press Room

Initial Thoughts on the Vikings’ Free Agency Moves

The Minnesota Vikings were not big players in the first day of the ‘legal tampering period’ which has become essentially the first day of free agency as a torrent of deals are announced.

The Vikings did make some big splashes in free agency last year, and the dead cap hits to clear those moves is a big reason why they haven’t made any big splashes so far this year. That should serve as a useful reminder that often times the big splashes in free agency don’t work out and prove to be bloated contracts the team dumps in a couple years.

‘Moneyball’ Free Agency for the Vikings

The Vikings did sign a one free agent today that wasn’t previously on the team, namely cornerback James Pierre formerly with the Steelers.

The above graphic is difficult to read but the upshot is that Pierre had the lowest passer rating when targeted allowed along with the lowest completion rate when targeted allowed of all defensive backs in the league last season. That translated into the highest PFF coverage grade among cornerbacks with more than 13 coverage snaps last season as well. Pierre is an older player- 29 – but the Vikings signed him on a 2-year deal with an average annual value (AAV) of just $4.25 million. Overall, a good but overlooked player who could fill the CB3 role for the Vikings or potentially be a quality depth piece if the Vikings draft a cornerback that wins a starting job. I like this move by the Vikings a lot better than the move to sign Jeff Okudah last year.

There was no news on the Kyler Murray front as the Cardinals have not officially released him yet, which precludes any announcements from his future team, but should he end up signing with the Vikings as is widely expected, he too would be another “Moneyball” type signing as a quality starter on just a veteran minimum salary.

The Vikings didn’t seriously involved in any bidding wars either, including for their own free agents. Jalen Nailor signed with the Raiders on a 3-year, $35 million deal. There was no way the Vikings were going to pay Nailor anything near that to be WR3. Nailor will move up the depth chart with the Raiders and their likely new quarterback Fernando Mendoza. The Vikings also let punter Ryan Wright sign with the Saints on a 4-year, $14 million deal.

The Vikings were also rumored to be looking into the free agency running back market, but don’t appear to have been serious contenders for any of the higher profile names- Kenneth Walker, Kenneth Gainwell, Travis Etienne, or Tyler Allgeier. My own view on this is unless the Vikings went for a big splash and ponied up to sign Walker, the other running backs on the market really aren’t going to move the needle on the Vikings’ running game. That’s not to say they aren’t good or decent running backs, they just aren’t going to make much difference and come at higher prices. The Vikings would be better off using a mid-round pick on a running back who could rotate with Jordan Mason and possibly Zavier Scott. There are a few running backs in this year’s draft who could fill that role nicely and could surprise on the upside.

The Vikings also wisely avoided the overheated center market, highlighted by Tyler Linderbaum signing a 3-year, $81 million deal with the Raiders that is basically fully guaranteed, as the last year of the deal becomes fully guaranteed at the beginning of next season. For comparison, quarterback Kirk Cousins signed the first fully guaranteed free agent quarterback contract back in 2018- 3-years, $84 million. Now centers are getting the same deals.

The Vikings did make deals with some of their own, however. They signed linebacker/core special teamer Eric Wilson on a 3-year, $22.5 million deal with $12.5 million guaranteed. The details of the deal are not yet available, but it looks like more of a two-year deal at $6.25 AAV with a third-year club option. Wilson had one of his better seasons last year, leading the league in quarterback pressures among off-ball linebackers while still being good in run defense. He was mediocre in coverage but also a leader on special teams and highest PFF-graded among core special teamers. He may be the special teams captain this season with the retirement of C.J. Ham.

The Vikings also agreed on some Exclusive Rights Free Agent (ERFA) deals with Bo Richter, Jalen Redmond, and Zavier Scott- essentially league minimum deals- and made a tender offer on Ivan Pace Jr. on a Restricted Free Agent (RFA) deal that will likely keep Pace with the Vikings this year for $3.5 million.

What’s Next in Free Agency

Apart from the Vikings potentially/likely signing quarterback Kyler Murray at some point after he’s officially released by the Cardinals, there’s not a lot of rumors out there linking the Vikings to any particular free agent. They could potentially be looking to add to just about every position room at this point. The Vikings still have plenty available to spend in free agency, but I don’t expect any big money splashes on one particular player.

There is also rumored to be interest among at least a couple teams in trading for Jonathan Greenard. The Eagles, Patriots, and 49ers, among others, could be willing to make a strong trade offer for Greenard. The asking price is thought to be at least a Day Two draft pick this year- most likely a second-round pick- but even a late first-round pick is a reasonable comparable after the trade of Maxx Crosby to the Ravens for two first-round picks. We’ll see what happens, but it seems more likely than not the Vikings will get at least one trade offer for Greenard. Whether any will be sufficient for them to move him is another question.

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