Open Mike Eagle is always the man with a story: His successful 2014 project Dark Comedy embraced and wrestled amongst the trials, tribulations, and musings of a premature midlife crisis, injecting his own humorous observations into uncomfortable truths for listeners to chew on. His latest record, Brick Body Kids Still Daydream, on the other hand, drips with a poignancy reflective of recent times. Emotional, but not without the wit, Mike tells the story of a kid from the Robert Taylor Homes, a South Side Chicago project that has been dismantled and repurposed for a new community unlike the one that was there before.

Mike may not be glittery, loud, or boisterous, and he’s certainly far from being a rap caviar poster boy, but for fans of rap’s nuances — wordplay, cleverness, and even a bit of comedy — Open Mike Eagle is the guy that’ll tell you the truth that’ll make you cry, laugh, and nod your head all at the same time.

Open Mike Eagle, Billy Woods
The Independent
October 26, 2017
8:30pm, $14 (21+)