Michael D. Ellison (aka MIKE-E, Mike Ellis, Michael Ellison) is an

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

recording artist. He is well known for his slam poetry performances and his involvement with the Detroit

Concert of Colors A concert is a live music performance in front of an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, choir, or band. Concerts are held in a wide variet ...

annual event.

Biography

Ellison was born in

Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the Er ...

to expatriate African American parents who lived and worked in Ethiopia's capital

Addis Ababa Addis Ababa (; am, አዲስ አበባ, , new flower ; also known as , lit. "natural spring" in Oromo), is the capital and largest city of Ethiopia. It is also served as major administrative center of the Oromia Region. In the 2007 census, ...

Performance work

Ellison is noted for his slam poetry and hip-hop performances, which he performs under the name MIKE-E as well as with his group called AfroFlow. He has performed in several venues such as HBO's

Def Poetry ''Russell Simmons presents Def Poetry'', better known as simply ''Def Poetry Jam'' or ''Def Poetry'', is a spoken word poetry television series hosted by Mos Def and airing on HBO between 2002 and 2007. The series features performances by establ ...

, for the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ma ...

, for

Toyota is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on . Toyota is one of the largest automobile manufacturers in the world, producing about 10 ...

, and for the

NAACP The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is a civil rights organization in the United States, formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E.&nb ...

. MIKE-E's music was also used by the Barack Obama presidential campaign,. Ellison had a narration role and also appeared in the film ''

Standing in the Shadows of Motown ''Standing in the Shadows of Motown'' is a 2002 American documentary film directed by Paul Justman that recounts the story of The Funk Brothers, the uncredited and largely unheralded studio musicians who were the house band that Berry Gordy hand-pi ...

''. He has also appeared as a part of marketing campaign for the urban fashion brand

Pelle Pelle Pelle Pelle is an urban fashion brand designed by Marc Buchanan. Pelle Pelle was launched in 1978 and started as a leather outerwear company. The brand was also the first brand to launch the designer baggy pants. Pelle is based in Auburn Hills, ...

as a part of their 25th anniversary.

Concert of Colors involvement

As a part of his Detroit-based work, Ellison has been a regular participant in the city's

annual event, which emphasizes both world talent in addition to performances from performers originally from Detroit. Ellison has been called a highlight of the event One of Ellison's performances called ''Stepping into Destiny'' demonstrated various transitions in American music from

field holler The field holler or field call is mostly a historical type of vocal work song sung by field slaves in the United States (and later by African American forced laborers accused of violating vagrancy laws) to accompany their tasked work, to commun ...

work songs to blues and featured performances from Kenny Watson, saxophonist DeShawn Jones, and drummer

Eric Gaston The given name Eric, Erich, Erikk, Erik, Erick, or Eirik is derived from the Old Norse name ''Eiríkr'' (or ''Eríkr'' in Old East Norse due to monophthongization). The first element, ''ei-'' may be derived from the older Proto-Norse ''* ain ...

. Previously, Ellison's production was sold out and many attendants were unable to attend, causing organizers to plan a separate performance was held at Detroit's

Scarab Club The Scarab Club (commonly referred to as ''Historic Scarab Club of Detroit'') is an artists' club, gallery, and studio in the Cultural Center Historic District of Detroit, Michigan, located at 217 Farnsworth Street, near the Detroit Institute ...

The AfroFlow Tour

MIKE-E’s performances addressing the disproportionate tobacco advertising aimed at youth, ethnic and economically challenged populations brought him to the attention of the American Cancer Society (ACS).
In 2007, the ACS partnered with MIKE-E, sponsoring the Afroflow Tour. Entering its fourth year in 2010, the tour of U.S. colleges and universities, middle and high schools, churches, communities and music venues was intended to engage youth, young adults and families nationwide in the fight against cancer, as well as tobacco prevention and cessation. MIKE-E also wrote, produced and appeared in a series of public service announcements for the ACS, one of which (Victorious) features his aunt, a cancer and heart transplant survivor.

External links

Afroflow
��official site.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ellison, Michael D. Living people Year of birth missing (living people) American hip hop musicians American people of Ethiopian descent African-American musicians 21st-century African-American people