No artist has emerged from Minnesota this decade and walked his own private catwalk quite like Prof. After spending the early part of the 2010’s having amassed a strong loyal following, distributing nearly 200,000 records through his own imprint, Stophouse, his 2013 signing to Rhymesayers Entertainment helped propel him to the next stage of his career before releasing his landmark 2015 Rhymesayers debut, Liability. Additionally, his annual self-headlined Prof Outdoors festival has repeatedly sold out a 4,000+ capacity for years. While there’s been a perception that the eccentric Minneapolis MC is out-of-control, Prof’s undeterred, unwavering commitment to his mission has revealed the detailed craftsmanship behind the perceived chaos. Today, as his latest album title states, the newly sophisticated Prof is more accurately referred to as Pookie Baby.

While Prof may be best known for his show-stopping live performances, with this album he pulls back the curtain, inviting the listener to join him for the most private of moments, all with a sleek touch of sophistication. As much of a showman as he is a shaman, Pookie Baby was poured out of the perspective of a man known for wild live shows, whose rigorous touring and performance schedule led to debilitating injuries. Grounded for months and undergoing multiple surgeries, Prof returned with a new perspective, and a new pair of gators. This new Pookie Baby persona is all cleaned up, teeming with unbridled sexuality, and suited with a multitude of styles that run the gamut from triple-time Chicago drill to emotive, bluesy crooning. Pookie Baby helps clarify where this passion and the essence of Prof come from, and he’s never been better dressed for it.

As Prof continues to become more refined in crafting songs, Pookie Baby showcases a spectrum of moods, ranging from infectious absurdity to earnestly introspective. “Focus” highlights Prof’s well-buttoned dedication to perfectionism behind the anarchy. “No” unflinchingly gives aggressive self-preservation the anthem it’s always deserved. “Be Around” touches on the most satisfying comforts of dependability in relationships. “Send Nudes” finds reward in the vulnerable intimacy present in exposing oneself via text message, when done consensually. Pookie Baby culminates in the one-two punch of “Minneapolis” and “Eulogy,” with the former asserting his love for his hometown, while the latter affirms his keen awareness of the ever-present fragility of life and the specter of mortality.

From cynically skewering the authenticity of artistic statements, as on “I’ve Cooked Crack Before”, through the heartfelt reminiscence of “Designated Hitter” recounting the place marijuana holds in his happier memories, to ultimately knowing how he wants to be remembered once he’s left the world’s stage, Pookie Baby is just as much the crowd-pleasing party animal’s moment of prideful self-reflection, as it is the blueprint for making the most out of life while navigating the hardships. Please remember to enjoy Pookie Baby responsibly.

My name is Sean Anonymous.

I rap with Wide Eyes.

Yup.

Mike Mictlan is a native to Southern California and a current proud resident of South Minneapolis. His style has roots in both scenes. In his delivery, he’s a rapper’s rapper and a technician. He can stick fast stuccato runs, flip a pattern, and freestyle long after everyone else has gone to bed. But he’s also a writer who doesn’t shy from big themes and personal narrative.

Mike met the founding members of Doomtree during his junior year in high school. In response to his deliquent streak, Mike’s parents had sent him from their L.A. home to live with his uncle in Minnesota. (No, the Fresh Prince storyline is not lost on us, please save your letters.) Living with his uncle and attending Hopkins High, he met P.O.S, Lazerbeak, MK Larada, and Paper Tiger. Although Mictlan soon returned to L.A., the Doomtree family tree had taken root. As the collective gained momentum in Minneapolis, Mictlan received more and more phone calls urging him to move to the Midwest. Five years later, he got off a plane with 2 duffel bags and a footlocker, ready to go wherever Doomtree was headed. In his debut collaboration with Lazerbeak, Hand Over Fist, Mictlan employed his understated poetry to epic effect. The album goes by in a pageant of imagery: of fire and flight, long odds and close calls.

A lot has changed in the four years since Mike Mictlan released Hand Over Fist, his first full-length album in collaboration with Lazerbeak. He’s played a key role in helping Doomtree, his rap crew for over a decade now, steadily climb into the national spotlight; touring the world over again and again, playing major summer festivals (Lollapalooza, Paid Dues), and winning over critics the likes of Pitchfork, MTV, Spin, and Rolling Stone off of their collaborative 2011 release No Kings.

SNAXXX is the culmination of those four years grinding it out on the road, and it marks a giant leap forward from Mike’s previous solo work. His million-mile-a-minute delivery, tongue twister patterns, and abstract introspection remain completely intact, but there is a much more playful, ambitiously creative side that now creeps heavily into the mix. Musically,SNAXXX takes the traditional everything-plus-the-kitchen-sink Doomtree sound and blows the doors off the hinges. New comer 2% Muck (Tha Clerb, Spyder Baybie Raw Dog) produces 11 of the 15 tracks, and it’s his rapid fire snare patterns, crushing low end, and blown out synth lines that anchor and shape this new sonic direction for Mike. SNAXXX also features a slew of Minnesota’s finest up and coming rappers (Lizzo, Greg Grease, Spyder Baybie Raw Dog, Freez) along with lifelong Doomtree partner-in-crime P.O.S, who shows up on two of the album’s cuts.

Doomtree released SNAXXX for free in the fall of 2012 while Mike wraps up his next official full length, HELLA FRREAL in order to give people a taste of where he’s at now and where he’s headed. With mainstream appeal, surgical precision, and unshakable crew love, Mike Mictlan is an unparalleled force in the underground. His live show is a spectacle of sweat and laughter and fury and communion. You could search every venue in every city, but you will not find an emcee in rap music with more heart than Mike Mictlan. No hype, just a simple guarantee. He believes in the music, the movement, and in his crew of friends. To see him in person, and to hear his voice, makes it hard not to believe it too.

Ac and Term have shared a number of things over the years, from a plate of nachos one time, to an unhealthy infatuation with polysyllabic rhyme schemes, to their very first mushroom trip. However, these two sissy boys most recently enjoy sharing various stages throughout the Chicagoland area and posting make out videos on YouTube. They can be considered: in the moment, on the edge, over the top, but under the radar. so turn on, tune in, and drop dead cuntface.