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Real name Michael W. Eagle II, Open Mike Eagle is an American rapper, songwriter and podcaster born on November 14, 1980 in Chicago, Illinois. He grew up on Chicago's South Side, before moving to Carbondale for his studies at Southern Illinois University. He went on to study psychology at UCLA, which had a strong influence on the introspective, analytical aspect of his music. He moved to Los Angeles, where he joined the Project Blowed collective and then the avant-garde Hellfyre Club, alongside artists such as Busdriver, Nocando and Milo (R.A.P. Ferreira). In 2010, he released his first solo album, Unapologetic Art Rap, which laid the foundations of his style: cerebral rap, full of humor, cultural references and introspection, far removed from mainstream codes. He followed this up with Rappers Will Die of Natural Causes (2011), then 4nml Hsptl (2012), in collaboration with producer Awkward, and Dark Comedy (2014), hailed by critics as a turning point in his career, where he deepens his vision of melancholic, self-ironic "art rap". In 2015, he collaborated with Serengeti, with whom he formed the duo Cavanaugh, and released the album Time and Materials. Open Mike Eagle also became a media figure with the launch of his podcast Secret Skin, then in 2017 of the series The New Negroes on Comedy Central, mixing stand-up, music and reflections on black culture. In 2017, he released Brick Body Kids Still Daydream, a concept album centered on memories of his childhood in Chicago's low-income housing projects, acclaimed as one of his best projects, where he blends political acumen, nostalgia and urban poetry. He followed this up in 2020 with Anime, Trauma and Divorce, a highly personal album marked by his divorce, anxiety and love of geek culture, blending dark humor and raw vulnerability. In 2021, he delivers Component System with the Auto Reverse, a tribute to his youth, cassettes and pirate radio. He followed this up with Another Triumph of Ghetto Engineering (2023) and Neighborhood Gods Unlimited (2025), featuring tales still steeped in his experiences, with that very original touch in rap.
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