Usher, Big Sean Invest $1M+ in Entertainment Incubator in Detroit

Photo Credit: Nils Huenerfuerst

R&B singer Usher and ‘Big Sean’ Anderson have teamed up to create a million dollar production studio and entertainment incubator in Detroit.

Their $1 million investment will help create a new Michigan Central hub for the Boys & Girls Club of Southeastern Michigan. It will be the new home for a Detroit Entertainment Innovation Incubator, which will offer a virtual production studio, special effects lab, creators lounge, and more.

The newly announced 13,000 square foot space will also feature an autonomous training center and innovation lab designed to connect youth to broader emerging industries.

“Detroit is where my creativity was born,” shared Anderson in a statement. “From freestyling in my mom’s basement to performing on the biggest stages in the world. My mission has always been to make sure the next generation of dreamers and innovators from my city have the access, tools, and mentorship to do the same.”

“The Innovation Incubator is about showing young people that they don’t have to leave Detroit to chase opportunity, they can build it right here.” The new Michigan Central BGCSM Club location is slated to open February 2026. This project is being led by the philanthropic arms of both artists—Usher’s New Look and the Sean Anderson Foundation. Partners on the project include Ilitch Sports + Entertainment and Atlanta’s Emory University’s Goizueta Business School.

The Incubator will be housed within the new Michigan Central BGCSM Club on the dedicated youth floor inside The Station—part of Michigan Central’s 30-acre innovation district where startups, industry, and community partners convene and collaborate to turn bold ideas into real solutions. The Innovation Incubator will deliver a full suite of advanced programming that equips young people ages 14-24 for careers from film and music production to AI, 3D, immersive technologies, and special effects.

“I’ve always been a true believer in igniting a spark in the next generation to be better and have access to things we didn’t,” shared Usher. “This new spark lab in Detroit with my friend and fellow Boys & Girls Club alum Big Sean will not only minimize the access gap for the youth but also prepare them for greatness. It takes just one person to believe in your success, and I’m honored to be one of many in this partnership to help make that happen.”