Carré Callaway and Wes Borland in front of their Boston Edison home in Detroit. (used with permission / credit: haydencscott

By George Fox – @GeorgeJFox

DETROIT (CBS Detroit) New York, Minneapolis, Denver and Oregon were runners up on the short list of places for Carré Callaway and Wes Borland to start the next phase of their lives.

They were sold on Detroit after spending one day here.

Temporarily crashing in Troy, the two were preparing for the big move on Thursday to an ornate three story home in Detroit’s Arden Park-East Boston neighborhood.

Tough Sell

The couple argue about how the plan came to fruition, but here’s the gist. She pitched the idea. At first Borland wasn’t receptive, but eventually he came around. “If you love me — you’ll follow me to Detroit,” he said, jokingly describing an ultimatum he perceived from Callaway.

“That’s not what I said,” Callaway protested, laughing.

Borland didn’t want to sleep on it. He made it clear he was against the idea from the start.

The on and off Limp Bizkit guitarist’s less-than-sterling impression of Detroit came from only seeing part of the picture. “I remember playing gigs at Harpos,” he said.

Callaway convinced him to check out the houses and neighborhoods and then make a decision. “Wes immediately fell in love with it,” she said.

Detroit Draw

After growing up in Denver, and stints in L.A. and NYC — Callaway was turned off to what she described as the overdone and over populated cities and the “rat race.”

Friends turned her on to Detroit for its flourishing art scene and Midwest hospitality.

Borland identifies with the spirit of the city.

“Everyone in Detroit is pulling together. It’s like screw everybody — we’ll make the city our own,” he said.

Also, it doesn’t hurt that he’s a thrill-ride fan. Apparently, proximity to Cedar Point was a draw. “Millennium Force is so much better than Goliath,” said Borland about his recent trip to the amusement park in Ohio, comparing its biggest coaster to a competitor at Six Flags in California.

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Back in the city, they plan to build a studio in the three-story 1923 vintage home. Though they couldn’t share too many details, they did reveal HGTV/DIY Network will begin shooting Thursday for an episode focused on the renovation of the rockers’ home.

They wanted a lot of space, a sense of history and excitement, which they couldn’t find elsewhere.

With so many abandoned houses, they saw an opportunity to join the revitalization of Detroit, “What’s the saying? Put your money where your mouth is,” said Callaway

Queen Kwong

Blazing a trail is nothing new for Carré Callaway. She is the driving force and lead singer of indie rock band Queen Kwong, which just finished a tour opening for fellow L.A. alt-rock band Failure. Callaway was discovered by Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails — opening for his With Teeth tour at the age of 17.

What’s Ahead

Congratulations are in order as Wes and Carré are planning to get married next summer at one of Detroit’s grandest gems, the Detroit Institute of Arts.

Queen Kwong will tour next summer in the states to support their first full-length album “Get a Witness” available for pre-sale. Listen to the second single and title track off the album.

Callaway said they plan to also do stand-alone shows in Detroit from time to time. Visit Queen Kwong’s official site for more information.

They’re excited to explore the local art scene and so far they’ve met local Instagram phenom Joe “Camera Jesus” Gall who is helping them line up a wedding photographer.

But they probably won’t be hanging out with another Detroit rock star resident, Kid Rock, since they’re “not friends with anyone who kills animals,” said Borland.