American hip hop artist
Open Mike Eagle
Open Mike Eagle performing in 2017
Birth name Michael W. Eagle II Also known as Mike Eagle Born (1980-11-14 ) November 14, 1980 (age 43) Origin Chicago, Illinois, U.S. Genres Occupation(s)
Rapper Years active 2003–present Labels Website
mikeeagle .net
Musical artist
Michael W. Eagle II
[2] (born November 14, 1980),
[3] better known by his stage name Open Mike Eagle , is an American hip hop artist and comedian. Originally from Chicago, Illinois, he is now based in Los Angeles, California,
[4] where he is a member of the hip hop collective
Project Blowed .
[5] He has also been a member of
Thirsty Fish ,
[6] Swim Team,
[6] and Cavanaugh.
[7]
Early life
Mike grew up in Chicago's
Robert Taylor Homes and lived with his grandparents until he was 13 at which point he moved in with his mother.
[8] Mike also has a younger brother and sister.[
citation needed ] He attended
Whitney M. Young Magnet High School and went on to
Southern Illinois University Carbondale where he majored in psychology.
[9]
He did a year of grad school, but quickly moved to Los Angeles to live with his dad. He began working for
AmeriCorps for six months before getting a job at a non-profit halfway house.
[8] As he continued to work odd jobs, Mike rapped as a hobby before discovering
Project Blowed and then creating
Thirsty Fish .
[8]
Career
Music
Open Mike Eagle, with
Dumbfoundead and
Psychosiz , formed the rap trio
Thirsty Fish .
[10] They released the first album
Testing the Waters in 2007 and the second album
Watergate on Mush Records in 2011. All three members of Thirsty Fish are also co-founders of the battle crew Swim Team. In 2008, Swim Team released the mixtape Ocean's 11 .[
citation needed ]
In 2010, Open Mike Eagle released his first solo album,
Unapologetic Art Rap , on
Mush Records .
[11] The album features
Nocando ,
Busdriver , and
Serengeti .
[12] His second album, Rappers Will Die of Natural Causes , was released on
Hellfyre Club in 2011.
[13] It features vocal contributions from
P.O.S and
MC Paul Barman .
[14]
[15]
In 2012, he released an album, 4nml Hsptl , on
Fake Four Inc.
[16] It is entirely produced by Awkward.
[17] In that year, he co-authored and participated in a study conducted by the
National Institutes of Health that observed the locations of increased brain activity during freestyle rapping.
[18]
In 2014, he released an album,
Dark Comedy .
[19] In 2016, he released
Hella Personal Film Festival , a collaborative album with
Paul White .
[20] In 2017, he released
Brick Body Kids Still Daydream , a concept album about the
Robert Taylor Homes , a public housing project in Chicago, Illinois.
[21] It was placed at number 34 on
Rolling Stone ' s "50 Best Albums of 2017" list,
[22] as well as number 49 on
Pitchfork ' s "50 Best Albums of 2017" list.
[23] In 2018, he released an EP, What Happens When I Try to Relax .
[24]
Podcasts and comedy
Eagle in 2015
In June 2015, Eagle along with
John Moe , launched "Conversation Parade", a podcast in which the two discuss the
Cartoon Network animated television series
Adventure Time . The podcast has featured guests like
Jeremy Shada ,
John DiMaggio ,
Hynden Walch ,
Adam Muto ,
Kent Osborne ,
Niki Yang ,
Olivia Olson ,
Jesse Moynihan ,
Jessica DiCicco , Elizabeth Ito, and
Neko Case .
[25] More recently, Open Mike Eagle podcasts regularly on his podcast Secret Skin .
[26] Mike Eagle also co-hosts the pro wrestling podcast
Tights and Fights with
Hal Lublin and Danielle Radford on the
Maximum Fun Network.
[27] Mike Eagle also hosts the podcast "What Had Happened Was," during which he conducts in-depth interviews with hip-hop artists about their careers. During Season 1, Mike Eagle spoke with producer
Prince Paul , and during Season 2 he interviewed rapper and producer
El-P .
[28] Season 3 featured Mike interviewing producer and record executive
Dante Ross .
Film and television
Mike Eagle has expressed his appreciation for Adventure Time .
[29] During Adventure Time ' s
tenth season , he appeared in the episode "Son of Rap Bear", voicing a rapping gingerbread man.
[30] On April 18, 2017,
Comedy Central announced they were greenlighting The New Negroes , a stand-up and musical series co-hosted by Open Mike Eagle and
Baron Vaughn .
[31] The New Negroes premiered on Comedy Central on April 9, 2019 and includes a new music video each episode in which Eagle collaborates with other hip-hop artists including
MF Doom ,
[32]
Danny Brown ,
[33]
Phonte ,
[34] and
Lizzo .
[35] He also appeared in three episodes of
Netflix 's 2020 show
History of Swear Words .
[36] He writes original songs for AppleTV+'s
Strange Planet .
Personal life
He met his ex-wife Tiffany at a
TransAfrica conference at
UCLA , and they have one son together.
[8] Mike Eagle and his wife divorced in 2020.
Style and influences
Open Mike Eagle has coined his own term for the style of some of his music, which he calls "art rap".
[37] In a 2016 interview, he stated that
They Might Be Giants influenced him.
[38]
[39]
Discography
Studio albums
Solo
Unapologetic Art Rap (
Mush Records , 2010)
Rappers Will Die of Natural Causes (
Hellfyre Club , 2011)
4nml Hsptl (
Fake Four Inc. , 2012) (produced by Awkward)
Dark Comedy (
Mello Music Group , 2014)
Hella Personal Film Festival (Mello Music Group, 2016) (produced by
Paul White )
Brick Body Kids Still Daydream (Mello Music Group, 2017)
Anime, Trauma and Divorce (Auto Reverse Records, 2020)
Component System with the Auto Reverse (Auto Reverse Records, 2022)
Another Triumph of Ghetto Engineering (Auto Reverse Records, 2023)
Collaborations
Mixtapes
Premeditated Folly (2008)
Ocean's 11 (
Project Blowed , 2008) (with
Dumbfoundead , et al., as Swim Team)
The Dark Dark Purple Tape (2018)
EPs
The Finger Booger EP (2003)
Another Roadside Attraction V2 (2009)
Art Rap After Party (Mush Records, 2010)
Extended Nightmares Getdown: The Dark Blue Door (Hellfyre Club, 2011)
Rent Party Extension (Hellfyre Club, 2012)
Sir Rockabye (Hellfyre Club, 2013)
Invasion (2013) (with
Dumbfoundead and
Psychosiz , as
Thirsty Fish )
A Special Episode Of (Mello Music Group, 2015)
What Happens When I Try to Relax (Auto Reverse Records, 2018)
The New Negroes with Baron Vaughn & Open Mike Eagle: Season 1 Soundtrack (2019)
Quarantine Recordings (Auto Reverse Records, 2020) (with
Serengeti , as Cavanaugh)
Singles
"I Rock" (Mush Records, 2010)
"Home Movies" (self-released, 2012) (with Dumbfoundead and Psychosiz, as Thirsty Fish)
Guest appearances
Abstract Rude – "Thynk Eye Can (Blowedian Next Generation Mix)" from
Rejuvenation (2009)
Nocando – "DSD2" from
Jimmy the Lock (2010)
Busdriver – "Deer God" from
Computer Cooties (2010)
Flash Bang Grenada – "In a Perfect World" from
10 Haters (2011)
Mega Ran – "Now Hiring" from Mega Ran 10 (2011)
Myka 9 &
Factor Chandelier – "5 Mikes" from
Sovereign Soul (2012)
Zilla Rocca – "Full Spectrum 2" from Full Spectrum (2012)
Busdriver – "Werner Herzog" from Arguments with Dreams (2012)
Cars & Trains – "Stay Awake" from We Are All Storms (2012)
Sole – "Definition of Slave" from
A Ruthless Criticism of Everything Existing (2012)
Premrock & Willie Green – "Jogger" from Premrock & Willie Green (2012)
Ras G – Kampala Blackouts (2012)
Random – "Super Move" from Language Arts Volume 2 (2012)
Illogic &
Blockhead – "From Scratch" from Preparing for Capture 2 (2012)
Curly Castro – "My Beloved" (2013)
Loden – "An Evening with Open Mike Eagle" from The Star-Eyed Condition (2013)
Milo – "The Otherground Pizza Party" from Things That Happen at Night (2013)
Kool A.D. – "Red Wine" from
63 (2013)
Billy Woods – "Fool's Gold" from Dour Candy (2013)
Armand Hammer – "Fools Gold Remix" from Half Measures (2013)
Hot Sugar – "Watermelon" from Made Man (2013)
L'Orange & Stik Figa – "Decorated Silence" from The City Under the City (2013)
Mishka & Rad Reef – "Hyperbolic Chamber Music II" (2013)
Gregory Pepper & Madadam – "Stirring Dead Leaves" from Big Huge Truck (2013)
Factor – "Stone Cold" from
Woke Up Alone (2013)
Armand Hammer – "New Museum" from Race Music (2013)
The MC Type – "Preacher Song" from A Good Tattoo (2013)
MC Frontalot – "Much Chubbier" from Question Bedtime (2014)
Megabusive w/ Awkward – "Apexes and Peaks" and "So Much" from Hell on Hell (2014)
Drummachinemike – "The Anti-Socialite's Theme Song", "Bowling Tips" and "The Kids Don't Like Me" from Drum Machine Music (2014)
Ardamus – "If Only I Gave Ah", from I Can't Replace Me, Pt. 1: Improve (2014)
Busdriver – "When the Tooth-lined Horizon Blinks" from
Perfect Hair (2014)
Milo – "Objectifying Rabbits" from A Toothpaste Suburb (2014)
Eligh – "Get Like Me" from 80 Hrtz (2015)
Abstract Rude – "Kan of Whoop Ass Reprise" from Keep the Feel: A Legacy of Hip Hop Soul (2015)
L'Orange &
Kool Keith – "Meanwhile, Back Home" from
Time? Astonishing! (2015)
Memory Man – "Funtastic" from Broadcast One (2015)
Milo – "True Nen" from
So the Flies Don't Come (2015)
Aesop Rock – "Syrup" from
The Impossible Kid deluxe edition (2016)
Blu & Fate – "Oblivia" from Open Your Optics to Optimism (2016)
Factor Chandelier – "Dozer II" from Factoria (2016)
P.O.S – "Infinite Scroll" from
Chill, Dummy (2017)
Uncommon Nasa – "Extra Lives" from Written at Night (2017)
Buy Muy Drugs – "American Robot" from
Buy Muy Drugs (2017)
Czarface &
MF Doom – "Phantoms" from
Czarface Meets Metal Face (2018)
Left at London – "I Split My Ribs Open" from Transgender Street Legend Vol. 1 (2018)
MC Paul Barman – "Echo Chamber" and "Believe That" from Echo Chamber (2018)
The Skull Eclipses – "Gone" from The Skull Eclipses (2018)
Blockhead – "Slippery Slope" from Free Sweatpants (2019)
Two Door Cinema Club – "Nice to See You" from
False Alarm (2019)
Awol One – "I Can Do That" from Tony the Walrus (2020)
R.A.P. Ferreira – "Pinball" from Purple Moonlight Pages (2020)
Rav - "Ass Backwards" (2021)
Blockhead – "Mastering How To Land" from The Aux (2023)
Compilation appearances
"Silent Protest (A Modest Proposal)" on Prometheus (2011)
[40]
"Celebrity Reduction Prayer" and "Dark Comedy Late Show" on Persona (2015)
[41]
"How to Be Super Petty to Your Ex" on
30 Days, 50 Songs (2016)
[42]
References
^ Caswell, Estelle (June 7, 2016).
"How They Might Be Giants influenced art-rapper Open Mike Eagle" .
Vox .
Archived from the original on October 31, 2018. Retrieved May 8, 2022 .
^ Kamegawa, Annalise (September 18, 2017).
"Open Mike Eagle turns an American hero in 'Brick Body Kids Still Daydream' " .
The Daily Californian .
Archived from the original on October 20, 2018. Retrieved October 20, 2018 .
^ Jeffries, David.
"Open Mike Eagle – Biography" .
AllMusic . Archived from
the original on October 20, 2018. Retrieved October 20, 2018 .
^
"SXSW 2011: Politicking with Shabazz Palaces and Open Mike Eagle" .
Los Angeles Times . March 19, 2011.
Archived from the original on March 26, 2011. Retrieved February 16, 2012 .
^
"Open Mike Eagle Unapologetically Talks About "Art Rap" " .
LA Weekly . July 8, 2010. Archived from
the original on July 22, 2012. Retrieved February 16, 2012 .
^
a
b Monster (June 28, 2012).
"A Conversation With Open Mike Eagle" .
Complex . Retrieved April 4, 2020 .
^ Aku, Timmhotep (November 4, 2015).
"First Watch: Cavanaugh (Open Mike Eagle & Serengeti), 'Screen Play' " .
NPR .
Archived from the original on October 14, 2019. Retrieved April 4, 2020 .
^
a
b
c
d
"BA #064:'Open' Mike Eagle" . Box Angeles podcast . February 16, 2015.
Archived from the original on February 19, 2015.
^ McCormick, Moira (April 18, 2019).
"Open Mike Eagle, Baron Vaughn hybrid TV series showcases comics, singers" .
Chicago Sun-Times . Retrieved May 18, 2020 .
^ Bell, Max (June 9, 2014).
"Fly Like an (Open Mike) Eagle: Soaring with Rap's Comedic Genius" .
Noisey .
Archived from the original on October 31, 2018. Retrieved October 31, 2018 .
^ Jones, Kevin (May 2010).
"Open Mike Eagle – Unapologetic Art Rap" .
Exclaim! .
^
"Open Mike Eagle" . UGSMAG . May 10, 2010. Archived from
the original on February 21, 2012. Retrieved February 16, 2012 .
^ Weiss, Dan (August 30, 2011).
"Open Mike Eagle – Rappers Will Die of Natural Causes" .
The Phoenix .
Archived from the original on January 7, 2012.
^
"Open Mike Eagle – "Why Pianos Break ft. P.O.S." " . UGSMAG . June 7, 2011. Archived from
the original on February 8, 2012.
^ Castano, Fred (June 19, 2011).
"Open Mike Eagle – Rappers Will Die Of Natural Causes" . Potholes in My Blog .
Archived from the original on May 22, 2013.
^
"Premiere: Open Mike Eagle ft. Serengeti – "Universe Man" " . Pigeons & Planes . May 14, 2012. Archived from
the original on May 16, 2012.
^ Sullivan, Matt (July 2, 2012).
"Open Mike Eagle, 4NML HSPTL" .
Impose .
Archived from the original on July 23, 2012.
^ Liu, Siyuan; Chow, Ho Ming; Xu, Yisheng; Erkkinen, Michael G.; Swett, Katherine E.; Eagle, Michael W.; Rizik-Baer, Daniel A.; Braun, Allen R. (2012).
"Neural Correlates of Lyrical Improvisation: An fMRI Study of Freestyle Rap" . Scientific Reports . 2 : 834.
Bibcode :
2012NatSR...2E.834L .
doi :
10.1038/srep00834 .
PMC
3498928 .
PMID
23155479 .
^ Weiss, Jeff (December 24, 2014).
"Open Mike Eagle Is Indie Rap's Sharpest, Funniest Social Critic" .
LA Weekly .
Archived from the original on October 31, 2018. Retrieved October 30, 2018 .
^ Matera, C. G. (February 4, 2016).
"Open Mike Eagle and Paul White Team for Hella Personal Film Festival, Share "Check to Check" " .
Pitchfork .
Archived from the original on December 25, 2018. Retrieved October 30, 2018 .
^
"Open Mike Eagle's New Album 'Brick Body Kids Still Daydream' Due This Year – XXL" .
XXL . July 31, 2017.
Archived from the original on September 6, 2017. Retrieved August 26, 2017 .
^
"50 Best Albums of 2017" .
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Archived from the original on December 13, 2017. Retrieved December 14, 2017 .
^
"The 50 Best Albums of 2017 (page 1 of 5)" .
Pitchfork . December 12, 2017.
Archived from the original on October 31, 2018. Retrieved October 30, 2018 .
^ Maicki, Salvatore (October 18, 2018).
"Open Mike Eagle shares new EP What Happens When I Try To Relax" .
The Fader .
Archived from the original on October 20, 2018. Retrieved October 20, 2018 .
^ Eagle, Mike; Moe, John (2015).
"Conversation Parade: An Adventure Time Podcast" . Infinite Guest Podcast Network .
Archived from the original on June 30, 2015. Retrieved June 27, 2015 .
^
"Secret Skin ® | Podcast | APM Podcasts" . APM Podcasts .
Archived from the original on February 3, 2017. Retrieved February 3, 2017 .
^
"Tights and Fights" . Maximum Fun Network . August 5, 2016.
Archived from the original on November 7, 2017. Retrieved November 2, 2017 .
^
"What Had Happened Was | Starburns Audio" . Starburns Audio. Retrieved June 12, 2021 .
^ Staggs, Matt (June 13, 2014).
"Rapper Open Mike Eagle Talks Adventure Time, Art Rap, and XTC" .
Suvudu .
Archived from the original on June 30, 2015. Retrieved June 27, 2015 .
^ Lafyatis, Diana (supervising director); Sandra Lee (art director); Seo Kim & Somvilay Xayaphone (storyboard artists) (September 17, 2017). "Son of Rap Bear". Adventure Time . Season 10. Episode 3.
Cartoon Network .
^
"Comedy Central Picks Up 'Corporate', 'The New Negroes' & 'Taskmaster' To Series, Orders 9 Pilots" .
Deadline Hollywood . April 18, 2017.
Archived from the original on January 31, 2020. Retrieved April 17, 2020 .
^
"Open Mike Eagle & MF Doom – 'Police Myself' (Music Video)" . YouTube . April 25, 2019.
Archived from the original on May 22, 2019. Retrieved May 15, 2019 .
^
"Open Mike Eagle & Danny Brown – 'Unfiltered' (Music Video)" . YouTube . April 15, 2019.
Archived from the original on May 14, 2019. Retrieved May 15, 2019 .
^
"Open Mike Eagle & Phonte – 'Woke as Me' (Music Video)" . YouTube . May 2, 2019.
Archived from the original on May 10, 2019. Retrieved May 15, 2019 .
^
"Open Mike Eagle & Lizzo – 'Extra Consent' (Music Video)" . YouTube . May 9, 2019.
Archived from the original on June 17, 2019. Retrieved May 15, 2019 .
^
"IMDB History of Swear Words" .
IMDb . Retrieved January 7, 2021 .
^ Weiss, Jeff (July 8, 2010).
"WTF Is Art-Rap?!" .
LA Weekly .
Archived from the original on February 15, 2015. Retrieved February 16, 2012 .
^ Caswell, Estelle (June 7, 2016).
"How They Might Be Giants influenced art-rapper Open Mike Eagle" .
Vox .
Archived from the original on October 31, 2018. Retrieved October 30, 2018 .
^ Dart, Chris (June 23, 2016).
"Put a little birdhouse in your rhymes: How They Might Be Giants influenced Open Mike Eagle" .
The A.V. Club .
Archived from the original on October 31, 2018. Retrieved October 30, 2018 .
^
"Pop & Hiss premiere: The Hellfyre Club's 'Prometheus' mixtape" .
Los Angeles Times . March 11, 2011.
Archived from the original on December 9, 2011. Retrieved February 16, 2012 .
^ Kaye, Ben (February 27, 2015).
"Open Mike Eagle teams with Oddisee for "Celebrity Reduction Prayer" – listen" .
Consequence of Sound .
Archived from the original on March 2, 2015. Retrieved March 12, 2015 .
^
"Open Mike Eagle – 30 Days, 30 Songs" . 30 Days 30 Songs . Retrieved June 22, 2020 .
External links
International National Artists