Michael Lafayette Troy (born January 15, 1969), better known by his stage name Myka 9, is a

rapper Rapping (also rhyming, flowing, spitting, emceeing, or MCing) is an artistic form of vocal delivery and emotive expression that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and ommonlystreet vernacular". It is usually performed over a backing ...

from

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. He is a member of

Freestyle Fellowship Freestyle Fellowship is an American hip hop group from Los Angeles, California. It consists of Aceyalone, Myka 9, P.E.A.C.E., and Self Jupiter. The group was a prominent part of the Good Life Cafe collective, and are part of the Project Blo ...

, Haiku d'Etat and Magic Heart Genies. Known for years as Mikah Nine, he changed the spelling to Myka Nyne with the release of ''A Work in Progress'' in 2003. Since Magic Heart Genies' album ''Heartifact'' in 2008, he has been credited as Myka 9.

History

Originally known as Microphone Mike in the 1980s, Myka 9 was a member of the MC Aces with

Aceyalone Edwin Maximilian "Eddie" Hayes, Jr. (born September 30, 1970), better known by his stage name Aceyalone, is an American rapper from Los Angeles, California, United States. He is a member of Freestyle Fellowship, Haiku D'Etat and The A-Team. He is ...

and Spoon Iodine. He ghost-wrote the Rappinstine song "Scream" on

N.W.A. N.W.A (an abbreviation for Niggaz Wit Attitudes) was an American hip-hop group formed in Compton, California in 1987. Among the earliest and most significant figures of the gangsta rap subgenre, the group is widely considered one of the great ...

's debut album '' N.W.A. and the Posse'' in 1987. As a co-founder of

, he was instrumental in the scene at the

Good Life Cafe The Good Life Cafe was a health food market and cafe run by Janie Mae Scott-Goodkin aka IfaSade in Los Angeles, California, known for its open mic nights that helped the 1990s Los Angeles alternative hip hop movement flourish. In 2008, director Ava ...

in the early 1990s. Released in 1993, Freestyle Fellowship's second album ''

Innercity Griots ''Innercity Griots'' is the second studio album by American hip hop group Freestyle Fellowship. It was released on April 28, 1993, on 4th & B'way Records and distributed through Island Records. Critical reception Nathan Bush of AllMusic praised ...

'' is one of the landmarks of Los Angeles hip hop. Their videos for "Inner City Boundaries" and "Hot Potato" brought them to the attention of a wider audience. Myka 9 was also featured on two tracks on ''Project Blowed'' compilation in 1994. In the late 1990s, Myka 9 came together with Aceyalone and

Abstract Rude Aaron Pointer, better known by his stage name Abstract Rude, is an American rapper from Los Angeles, California. He is the rapper of Abstract Tribe Unique, alongside dancers Zulu Butterfly and Irie Lion King, turntablist DJ Drez and producer ...

to form Haiku D'Etat. In 2008, Myka 9 formed Magic Heart Genies with J the Sarge and DJ Drez. Myka 9 has collaborated with

The Wailers Band The Wailers Band is a Jamaican reggae band formed by former members of Bob Marley and the Wailers after Marley's death in 1981. It was led by bassist Aston "Familyman" Barrett until 2016, when he passed the role onto his son, Aston Barrett J ...

Prefuse 73 Guillermo Scott Herren is an American producer who has been based in Atlanta, Barcelona, and New York City. Herren releases music under the aliases Prefuse 73, Delarosa & Asora, Ahmad Szabo, and Piano Overlord, and is also part of the groups S ...

Daddy Kev Kevin Marques Moo (born 1974), better known by his stage name Daddy Kev, is an American record producer, DJ, Grammy Award-winning audio engineer, songwriter and executive from Los Angeles, California. He is the owner of Alpha Pup Records and the ...

Busdriver Regan Farquhar (born February 12, 1978), better known by his stage name Busdriver (sometimes stylized in all caps), is an American rapper and producer from Los Angeles. He has collaborated with rappers such as Myka 9, R.A.P. Ferreira, Nocando ...

Cut Chemist Lucas MacFadden (born October 4, 1972), better known as Cut Chemist, is an American DJ and record producer. He is a former member of Jurassic 5 and Ozomatli. He has collaborated with DJ Shadow on a number of projects. Early life Cut Chemist gr ...

Talib Kweli Talib Kweli Greene (; born October 3, 1975) is an American rapper. He first earned recognition through his collaboration with fellow Brooklyn rapper Mos Def (now known as Yasiin Bey) in 1997, when they formed the group Black Star. Kweli's music ...

, and many others. He has worked extensively with producer and trumpeter Josef Leimberg, who produced the majority of ''It's All Love: American Nightmare'' and ''A Work in Progress''. He has released three albums with Canadian producer

Factor Chandelier Graham Murawsky (born March 28, 1982), better known by his stage name Factor Chandelier (formerly Factor), is a Canadian underground hip hop producer from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. He is a founder of Off Beat Production and Side Road Records. Hist ...

. In 2022 it was found that Myka 9 has the largest vocabulary in hip-hop history. Myka employs over 9,000 unique words throughout his catalog.

Style and legacy

Myka 9 is known for rapid-fire, jazz-influenced, melodic rapping, often incorporating singing and occasionally scatting into his songs. Myka 9 has said of his style: "My rhymes take the direction of a jazz trumpet or sax solo, like

Miles The mile, sometimes the international mile or statute mile to distinguish it from other miles, is a British imperial unit and United States customary unit of length; both are based on the older English unit of length equal to 5,280 English f ...

Trane Trane is a manufacturer of heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems, along with building management systems and controls. The company is a subsidiary of Trane Technologies, a company focused on manufacturing HVAC and refrigera ...

, if I was to rhyme in the same meter as those notes... that’s my concept." Myka 9 has had a large influence on Los Angeles

underground hip hop Underground hip hop (also known as underground rap or simply underground) traditionally refers to hip hop music that is outside the general mainstream canon or counter-cultural in nature, usually with a heavy emphasis on emotion, lyricism, and/or ...

and

freestyle rap Freestyle rap, also simply known as Freestyle, is a style of hip hop music where an artist normally improvises an unwritten verse from the head, with or without instrumental beats, in which lyrics are recited with no particular subject or structure ...

in general. Discussing the influence of Myka 9's song "7th Seal" on Freestyle Fellowship's first album '' To Whom It May Concern...'' (1991), Ellay Khule said, "'7th Seal' blew everybody's mind for at least 2 years straight. People studied that shit backwards and forwards—even we don't know all those words. That made everybody say like 'I gotta get a tape out' or 'I can't rap like so-and-so no more. I can't be in 80s, now we movin' to the 90s.' That totally transferred our musical thought." Drummer and producer JMD said, "Mike was like the

Charlie Parker Charles Parker Jr. (August 29, 1920 – March 12, 1955), nicknamed "Bird" or "Yardbird", was an American jazz Saxophone, saxophonist, bandleader, and composer. Parker was a highly influential soloist and leading figure in the development of beb ...

of all these motherfuckers."

Pigeon John John Kenneth Dust (born John Kenneth Dunkin: November 30, 1972), better known by the stage name Pigeon John, is an American rapper based in Los Angeles, California. He is a former member of L.A. Symphony. Early life Pigeon John claims that his ...

said, "For me Mikah 9 was like

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th century music, 20th-century music. Davis ado ...

. He was a tall good looking dude, the girls always liked him and this dude just went on stage and there was no effort in him. He was a genius in what he did. He affected and influenced so many people in hip-hop including

Mos Def Yasiin Bey ( ; born Dante Terrell Smith; December 11, 1973), formerly known as Mos Def ( ), is an American rapper, singer, and actor. A prominent figure in conscious hip hop, he is recognized for his use of wordplay and commentary on social an ...

, that whole scene. Years before

Leaders of the New School Leaders of the New School was an American hip hop group based in Long Island, New York. History 1986–1990: Early Years In 1984, Leaders of the New School was formed by Long Island natives Charlie Brown (born Bryan Higgins on September 19, ...

, there are stories where Freestyle Fellowship, when they first came out and they went to New York. That whole shouting stuff, they had this ingenious way to do it and they had a backing jazz band before

Digable Planets Digable Planets () is an American hip hop trio formed in 1987. The trio is composed of rappers Ishmael "Butterfly" Butler, Mariana "Ladybug Mecca" Vieira, and Craig "Doodlebug" Irving. The group is notable for their contributions to the subgen ...

Busta Rhymes Trevor George Smith Jr. (born May 20, 1972), known professionally as Busta Rhymes, is an American rapper, singer and actor. Chuck D of Public Enemy gave him the moniker Busta Rhymes, after National Football League, NFL and Canadian Football Lea ...

ran up to him (Myka 9) afterwards and said 'dude what kind of style is this,' and then lo and behold

came out. So there's plenty of stories like that, but that's just like a taste of how potent that scene was at the Good Life."

Film

Myka 9 is featured in the documentary '' Freestyle: The Art of Rhyme'', ''Where We're From: The Elements Documentary'', and the ''Hip Hop Evolution'' Netflix series. He is also featured in the award-winning documentary '' This Is the Life'', chronicling the music movement that was birthed at The

in South Central, Los Angeles. The Good Life Cafe is the open-mic workshop where he first performed with Freestyle Fellowship in the early 1990s.

Publications

In 2022, Myka 9 released a book called ''My Kaleidoscope,'' which features song lyrics, a detailed oral history, and photography by Brian "B+" Cross and more. Myka 9 has also been featured in the books ''How to Rap'' and ''How to Rap 2'' by Paul Edwards, ''The Real Hiphop'' by Marcyliena Morgan, and ''The Yale Anthology of Rap.''

Discography

Studio albums

Solo

*''It's All Love'' (1999) *''Timetable'' (2001) *''A Work in Progress'' (2003) *''Citrus Sessions Vol. 1'' (2006) *''

1969 1969 ( MCMLXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1969th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 969th year of the 2nd millennium, the 69th year of the 20th century, and the ...

'' (2009) (with

) *''Mykology'' (2011) *''

Sovereign Soul ''Sovereign Soul'' is a collaborative studio album by American rapper Myka 9 and Canadian producer Factor Chandelier. It was released on Fake Four Inc. in 2012. Music videos were created for "You Are Free" and "Mind Heights". Critical reception ...

'' (2012) (with Factor Chandelier) *''Gramophone'' (2012) *''Famous Future Time Travel'' (2015) (with Factor Chandelier) *''Teleported'' (2017) (with Freematik) *''A New Suspiria'' (2018) (with Jade River) *''Tonight's Program'' (2019) (with AbnormaL Injustice) *''High Maintenance Jackson'' (2019) (with Slippers) *''In Motion'' (2019) (with Adriatic) *''Teleported 2'' (2020) (with Freematik) *''Nine Clouds'' (2021) (with Profound) *''The Ninth Dimension'' (2021) (with Freematik, as Flavor Wolf) *''FLVRWLF 2'' (2022) (with Freematik, as Flavor Wolf)

Freestyle Fellowship Freestyle Fellowship is an American hip hop group from Los Angeles, California. It consists of Aceyalone, Myka 9, P.E.A.C.E., and Self Jupiter. The group was a prominent part of the Good Life Cafe collective, and are part of the Project Blo ...

(Myka 9 with

, P.E.A.C.E. &

Self Jupiter Ornette Glenn (born March 16, 1970), better known by his stage name Self Jupiter, is an American rapper from Los Angeles, California. He is a member of Freestyle Fellowship alongside Myka 9, P.E.A.C.E., and Aceyalone. He is also one half of Th ...

) *'' To Whom It May Concern...'' (1991) *''

'' (1993) *''

Temptations The Temptations is an American vocal group formed in Detroit, Michigan, in 1961 as The Elgins, known for their string of successful singles and albums with Motown from the 1960s to the mid-1970s. The group's work with producer Norman Whitfield ...

'' (2001) *'' The Promise'' (2011)

Haiku d'Etat

(Myka 9 with

& Aceyalone) *'' Haiku d'Etat'' (1999) *'' Coup de Theatre'' (2004)

Magic Heart Genies

(Myka 9 with J the Sarge & DJ Drez) *''Heartifact'' (2008) *''Cardiac Arrest'' (2010) *''Pulmonary Artistry'' (2012)

AyeM Ray-Dio

(Myka 9 with Abstract Rude) *''AyeM Ray-Dio'' (2015)

Other releases

EPs

*''The Citrus Sessions'' (2005) *''

Shockadoom ''Shockadoom'' is a 2002 EP by American hip hop group Freestyle Fellowship. Production After releasing ''Innercity Griots'' in 1993, Freestyle Fellowship went on hiatus due to the incarceration of Self Jupiter. In 1998, the group reunited and rec ...

'' (2002) (

) *''It's All Myka'' (2003) *''Long Ago MMXVI'' (2016) (with AbnormaL Injustice) *''Oeuvre EP'' (2017) *''Prophetic Vision'' (2019) *''Stay Tuned'' (2020) (with AbnormaL Injustice) *''Constellations'' (2020) (with Adriatic) *''People Into Making Progress'' (2020) (with

)

Mixtapes

*''Power Plant'' (2011) (Freestyle Fellowship) *''Discoveries from the Ninth Dimension'' (2020) (with Freematik)

Remix albums

*''To Whom It May Concern... Version 2.0'' (2001) (Freestyle Fellowship with J. Sumbi)

Compilations

*''Haiku de Theatre: The Best of Haiku'' (2017) ( Haiku d'Etat) *''Years (2009-2019)'' (2019) (with Factor Chandelier)

Singles

*''Bullies of the Block'' (1992) (

) *''Hot Potato'' (1993) (Freestyle Fellowship) *''Los Dangerous'' (1997) ( Haiku d'Etat) *''Can You Find the Level of Difficulty in This?'' (1999) (Freestyle Fellowship) *''Sex in the City'' (2001) (Freestyle Fellowship) *''Temptations'' (2002) (Freestyle Fellowship) *''Mike, Aaron & Eddie'' (2004) (Haiku d'Etat) *''Triumvirate'' (2005) (Haiku d'Etat) *''Citrus District'' (2006) *''Where Would You Be'' (2008) *''On This Earth'' (2010) (Freestyle Fellowship) *''Get Mystical'' (2010) (Magic Heart Genies) *''Momz'' (2012) (Magic Heart Genies) *''Delusions of Grandeur'' (2012) *''Playing Our Song'' (2012) (Freestyle Fellowship) *''Move Beat'' (2012) (Magic Heart Genies) *''PTSD'' (2012) *''Gramophone (Kenny's Cookin' Remix)'' (2013) *''War with Yourself'' (2014) (with

) *''Farewell Welfare'' (2017) (with Otherwize & DJ JahBluez) *''Creeper'' (2017) (with Factor Chandelier) *''Good Lookin' Lady'' (2018) (with Jade River) *''The Sacred Well'' (2018) (with Factor Chandelier) *''Battle'' (2019) (with DJ JahBluez) *''Survive'' (2019) (with DJ JahBluez) *''Sea to Sea'' (2019) (with LaPrada &

Moka Only Daniel Denton (born November 14, 1973), better known by his stage name Moka Only, is a Canadian hip hop artist and producer . He is originally from Langford, British Columbia, where he cultivated a deep passion for hip hop. Later, moving to San ...

) *''Life or Death'' (2019) *''Upliftment'' (2020) *''Waves'' (2020) (with Magik Eyes Only) *''Walking with God'' (2020) (with Profound) *''Cloud Nine'' (2021) (with Profound) *''Joy & Pain'' (2021) (with Profound)

Guest appearances

- "Know Nots" and "B-Boy Kingdom" from ''

All Balls Don't Bounce ''All Balls Don't Bounce'' is the debut studio album by American rapper Aceyalone. It was released in 1995 on Capitol Records. In 2004, it was re-released on Project Blowed and Decon as ''All Balls Don't Bounce: Revisited'' with a bonus disc. It ...

'' (1995) * The A-Team - "Slower Traffic to the Right" and "O.G. Crew (Heavyweights Round 3)" from ''Who Framed the A-Team?'' (2000) *

- "Life Death" from ''

Vocal Studies + Uprock Narratives The human voice consists of sound made by a human being using the vocal tract, including talking, singing, laughing, crying, screaming, shouting, humming or yelling. The human voice frequency is specifically a part of human sound production in ...

'' (2001) *

- "First Things Last" from ''Lost Angels'' (2001) *

Radioinactive Kamal Humphrey de Iruretagoyena, better known by his stage name Radioinactive, is an American hip hop artist from Los Angeles, California. He is a member of The Shape Shifters. He was a member of Log Cabin along with Eligh, Murs (rapper), Murs an ...

with Daedelus - "Weather Locklear" from '' The Weather'' (2003) * Josh One - "Afterhours" from ''Grey Skies'' (2003) *

- "Originalz" from ''

Is Dating Your Sister ''Is Dating Your Sister'' is the second solo album by American rapper Pigeon John. It was released on Basement Records Basement Records is an American independent record label founded by Chuck Dietrich in 2000. The company is headquartered in L ...

'' (2003) * Busdriver - "Sphinx's Coonery" from '' Fear of a Black Tangent'' (2005) *

Blue Sky Black Death Blue Sky Black Death (abbreviated BSBD) was a production duo with ties to the San Francisco Bay Area and Seattle, Washington. It consisted of Ryan Maguire, better known by his stage name Kingston, and Ian Taggart, better known by his stage nam ...

- "Grimey Styles" from ''

A Heap of Broken Images ''A Heap of Broken Images'' is the debut studio album by American hip hop production duo Blue Sky Black Death. It was released by Mush Records in 2006. The album title comes from the T. S. Eliot poem '' The Waste Land'' ("A heap of broken ima ...

'' (2006) * Mochipet - "Hope Again" from ''Microphonepet'' (2008) *

- "Good Old Smokey" from ''Chandelier'' (2008) * BK-One with Benzilla - "MJage" from ''Radio Do Canibal'' (2009) * Busdriver - "Manchuria" from ''

Jhelli Beam ''Jhelli Beam'' is the sixth studio album by American rapper Busdriver. It was released on Anti- in 2009. Critical reception At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received ...

'' (2009) *

Awol One Anthony Charles Martin, better known by his stage name Awol One, is an songwriter, alternative hip hop artist and graphic designer based in Los Angeles, California. Discography Albums Awol One * ''Souldoubt'' (2001) (with Daddy Kev) * ''Number ...

& Factor - "Stand Up" from ''Owl Hours'' (2009) *

- "Thynk Eye Can (Haiku D'Etat Mix)" from ''

Rejuvenation Rejuvenation is a medical discipline focused on the practical reversal of the aging process. Rejuvenation is distinct from life extension. Life extension strategies often study the causes of aging and try to oppose those causes to slow aging. ...

'' (2009) * Lazor Sword - "Cosmic Ride" from ''Lazor Sword'' (2010) * Factor - "That's How I Feel About It" from ''

Lawson Graham ''Lawson Graham'' is a studio album by Canadian hip hop producer Factor Chandelier. It was released on Fake Four Inc. in 2010. It features guest appearances from Gregory Pepper, Cars & Trains, Radical Face, Sole, Myka 9, Ceschi, and Moka On ...

'' (2010) *

Noah23 Noah Raymond Brickley (born February 10, 1978), better known by his stage name Noah23, is a Canadian-American hip hop artist from Guelph, Ontario. He is co-founder of the Plague Language collective and record label, and has been described as "one ...

- "Sea of the Infinite Wave" from ''

Fry Cook on Venus ''Fry Cook on Venus'' is a 2011 studio album by Canadian hip hop artist Noah23, released on Fake Four Inc. Music videos were produced for "Bright Green Laces" and "Intangible Heart Crescendo". Critical reception Vish Khanna of ''Exclaim!'' gave ...

'' (2011) *

K-the-I??? Kiki Ceac, better known by his stage name K-the-I???, is an American rapper and producer based in Los Angeles, California and currently signed to Fake Four Inc. History K-the-I??? began recording in 2002. He released several small-issue records ...

- "Social Misfit" from ''Synesthesia'' (2011) * Headnodic - "Viles" from ''Red Line Radio'' (2011) * Acid Reign - "Fantastic 4" from ''Diversity'' (2011) *

AmpLive Amp Live is an American alternative hip hop producer and disc jockey. He was one half of the duo Zion I, but left the group in 2015 amicably. He has remixed works by Radiohead, Tokyo Police Club and Jamie Lidell. Life and career Born and rais ...

- "Get Served" from ''Murder at the Discotech'' (2011) * Sixo - "Trees" from ''Free Floating Rationales'' (2012) * Abstract Rude - "The Media" from ''Dear Abbey'' (2012) * Substance Abuse - "Paper Tigers" from ''Background Music'' (2012) * AF the Naysayer - "Imagerial Denouement" (2013) * Factor - "Denied" from ''

Woke Up Alone ''Woke Up Alone'' is a studio album by Canadian hip hop producer Factor Chandelier. It was released on Fake Four Inc. in 2013. Critical reception Thomas Quinlan of ''Exclaim! ''Exclaim!'' is a Canadian music and entertainment publisher ba ...

'' (2013) * Notorious BEN - "Human Horse Race" from ''Mind of Many Voices'' (2013) * VNDMG - "Daggers at Dawn" from ''Million Minds'' (2014) * Pseudoubt - "One Place" from ''Where Nothing Grows'' (2015) * Milo - "Zen Scientist" from ''So The Flies Don't Come'' (2015) * The Mighty Rhino - “The Shit That Will Fuck You Up” from ''We Will No Longer Retreat Into Darkness'' (2018) *

Jesse Dangerously Jesse Alexander McDonald, better known by their stage name Jesse Dangerously or The Halifax Rap Legend, is an alternative hip hop artist from Halifax (former city), Nova Scotia, Halifax, Nova Scotia and operating out of Ottawa, Ontario. Dangerous ...

- "Life Jacket" from ''The Rap Hundreds'' (2018) * Timi Hendrix - "Autist" from ''Tim Weitkamp Das Musical'' (2018) * Ronesh - "Float" from ''Olive Branches'' (2019) * Factor Chandelier - "First Storm" from ''First Storm'' (2020) * Factor Chandelier - "Time Invested" and "Village Required" from ''Time Invested II'' (2022)

References

External links

*
Magic Heart Genies
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Myka 9 Alternative hip-hop musicians American hip-hop record producers Rappers from Los Angeles West Coast hip-hop musicians Living people 21st-century American rappers Record producers from California Project Blowed 1969 births