On May 30, St. Ambrose University will host the Quad Cities Black Music Conference, a gathering of Midwestern artists, producers, beat masters, DJs, and promoters for a first-of-its-kind symposium on the Midwestern hip-hop scene. Yet while the event's main focus is music, for organizer Tiana Washington - better known as program host "DJ Powder" for St. Ambrose's KALA-FM - the day is all about learning.

"I realized that there was not enough education," says Washington, "especially for those who are serious [about hip-hop] and have created some headway for themselves. And it was time. Time to create an event that focused on not just the music element, but on the education and business sides of music.

"Because, you know, [radio station] B-100 can't play something that's not put through the proper channels. DJs cannot just do a friend a favor and play their music. And there's this perception that that can happen."

Washington laughs. "We gotta talk about that."

Music

Juli Wood

The Redstone Room

Sunday, May 16

Performing at Davenport's Redstone Room on May 16, saxophonist and jazz singer Juli Wood is the latest guest in Polyrhythms' Third Sunday Jazz Matinée & Workshop series, and her local appearance is bound to make jazz fans shout a vigorous "Hurray!" Or, if you'd prefer, "Hoora!", "¡Hurra!", or "????!"

A note for future first-time visitors to the A. Rhythmic Time dance studio: If you find yourself nearing your destination but are pretty sure you're lost, don't panic. You're probably right where you're supposed to be.

"When we got this place," says Rick Thames, who co-owns the Moline studio (at 5447 Third Avenue) with wife Brenda, "we finished renovations in the winter [of 2008], when it was too cold to paint the outside of the building. And, you know, it's an industrial area, and you have to come down an alley, and there's a dumpster outside ... . So we'd just tell people, 'Look for the blue door.'"

Yet when you do find that blue door to the Thameses' converted-warehouse space, don't be afraid to walk in: Despite the venue's somewhat off-putting exterior, inside you'll find a lovingly designed, 35-foot-by-100-foot, honest-to-goodness ballroom.

A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET

Before its title card appears, director Samuel Bayer's reboot of A Nightmare on Elm Street opens -- as these things usually do -- with a dream sequence, in which a frightened, sleep-deprived teen finds himself face to face with the scarred and monstrous personage of Freddy Krueger. Granted, the murderous apparition with the razor-blade gloves and snappy sweater-and-hat combo, last seen in 2003's Elm Street/Friday the 13th mashup Freddy Vs. Jason, hasn't been away from cineplex screens for terribly long. But Freddy's arrival should still provide both a jolt and a kick, especially with the creepy, ferrety Jackie Earle Haley taking over the role from Robert Englund, whose initially horrifying figure in Wes Craven's low-rent classic descended into camp long before the series reached (what we incorrectly presumed was) its conclusion.