James Arvia

About the author James W. Arvia is an author and cultural preservationist who grew up in Chicago's Roseland neighborhood on the far South Side. His work focuses on honoring the families, stories, and everyday history of the community that shaped him, preserving its legacy with clarity, warmth, and respect. His latest project, "Reach for the Stars" - The M&R Rush Story, extends that mission by chronicling the rise of a group of Roseland kids whose friendship, grit, and music carried them through five decades. Through this biography, Arvia captures not only the band's journey but the spirit of the neighborhood that launched them. Over a storied career, M&R Rush shared stadium stages and legendary venues with rock royalty, including Styx, Kansas, REO Speedwagon, and Survivor. In Reach for The Stars, The M&R Rush story, Arvia takes readers behind the velvet rope and inside the tour bus. After selling out it first two print runs directly to core fans, their definitive rock memoir is now available worldwide on Amazon, Kindle and in audio book format narrated by Broadcast Hall of Fame legend and Chicago radio icon Mitch Michaels.