In addition to MOT’s efforts to facilitate conversations surrounding Blue, Detroit visual artist Sheefy McFly has also been commissioned to create an original piece incorporating the themes of the opera.

“Once I heard the description of BLUE, I had so many emotions evoked that I wanted to illustrate. Even though the color palette is calming, I wanted to portray rage and chaos,” Tashif “Sheefy McFly” Turner said. “With the blue flame engulfing the city in the background I wanted to express the intensity of pain and truth that Black people know so much. The fist and badge colliding represents the friction of not only the community and police, but the inner battle of a police officer & his wife losing their son that they love to the very same entity that they abide by.”

Sheefy McFly is Motown’s Renaissance Man. The multifaceted artist is a College for Creative Studies alum and well-rounded independent entrepreneur. Sheefy has over 20 murals in the city of Detroit spreading his “Sheefy Faces” on walls all over the state of Michigan, making his signature style become prolific. From his cubist, surrealist, and pop art influences, Sheefy creates his own subconscious gesture figures that grow stronger with every painting completed.

“Sheefy McFly came to the launch of BLUE at the Aretha Franklin Amphitheater, and it was so moving to hear how much this opera resonated with him. It’s an honor to have his authentic response to the work among the array of conversations and imagery around the themes of the opera. Opening up this opera to different (and differing) Detroit-specific perspectives is so important for MOT , because we feel BLUE – and all opera – should create a space where real dialogue may be possible.”