Open Mike Eagle


Michael W. Eagle II, 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, where he is a member of the hip hop collective Project Blowed. He has also been a member of Thirsty Fish, Swim Team, and Cavanaugh.

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. Mike also has a younger brother and sister. He attended Whitney M. Young Magnet High School and went on to Southern Illinois University Carbondale where he majored in psychology.
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. As he continued to work odd jobs, Mike rapped as a hobby before discovering Project Blowed and then creating Thirsty Fish.

Career

Music

Open Mike Eagle, with Dumbfoundead and Psychosiz, formed the rap trio Thirsty Fish. 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.
In 2010, Open Mike Eagle released his first solo album, Unapologetic Art Rap, on Mush Records. The album features Nocando, Busdriver, and Serengeti. His second album, Rappers Will Die of Natural Causes, was released on Hellfyre Club in 2011. It features vocal contributions from P.O.S and MC Paul Barman.
In 2012, he released an album, 4nml Hsptl, on Fake Four Inc. It is entirely produced by Awkward. 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.
In 2014, he released an album, Dark Comedy. In 2016, he released Hella Personal Film Festival, a collaborative album with Paul White. In 2017, he released Brick Body Kids Still Daydream, a concept album about the Robert Taylor Homes, a public housing project in Chicago, Illinois. It was placed at number 34 on Rolling Stones "50 Best Albums of 2017" list, as well as number 49 on Pitchforks "50 Best Albums of 2017" list. In 2018, he released an EP, What Happens When I Try to Relax.

Podcasts and comedy

Mike Eagle has expressed his appreciation for the Cartoon Network animated television series Adventure Time. In June 2015, Eagle along with John Moe, launched "Conversation Parade", a podcast in which the two discuss the show. 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. More recently, Open Mike Eagle podcasts regularly on his podcast Secret Skin. Mike Eagle also co-hosts the pro wrestling podcast Tights and Fights with Hal Lublin and Danielle Radford on the Maximum Fun Network.

Film and television

During Adventure Times tenth season, he appeared in the episode "Son of Rap Bear", voicing a rapping gingerbread man. 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. 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, Danny Brown, Phonte, and Lizzo.

Personal life

He met his wife Tiffany at a TransAfrica conference at UCLA and they have one son together.

Style and influences

Open Mike Eagle has coined his own term for the style of some of his music, which he calls "art rap". In a 2016 interview, he stated that They Might Be Giants influenced him.

Discography

Studio albums