You may not recognize the man in the image posted above, but his name is Micheal Larsen.  If you don’t recognize the name “Micheal Larsen“, it’s probably because he was better known under his moniker “Eyedea” and as the mc-ing half of the hip hop duo Eydea and Abilities.  Wearing a T-shirt, cardigan and converse, along with his unkempt mane and facial hair, he often resembled a variation of Kurt Cobain more than a highly gifted battle rap champion and underground hip-hop icon.  Unfortunately, Larsen suffered a similar fate to late Seattle-based legend, losing his life far too early.  On the plus side, the similarities don’t end there, as he was also able to leave a huge impact on the world before his untimely demise at the tender age of only 28 years old.

Last Sunday October 17th, tweets and facebook posts stating that Larsen had passed away began popping up everywhere.  These yielded two separate reactions from those that read them.  The first was the obvious shock and remorse that anyone would have when a respected artist and/or peer passes away.  The second, however, was a different kind of disbelief.  In the past, Larsen’s been known to wear black T-Shirts with the phrase “EYEDEA IS DEAD” printed on them in white text.  This raised some confusion and a great deal of hope that the announcements of his death may, in fact, have been a hoax.  Of course, as we all know now, the late vocalist/writer/artist’s expired body was found by his mother, with an official cause of death yet to be announced or determined.

We don’t usually post press release straight up and “as is”, but, this is one of those rare exceptions.  After receiving 2 nearly identical press releases from the publicists for Eyedea‘s former label Rhymesayers Entertainment, it’s clear that the amount of information provided through them is both necessary and already formatted in the best possible way.  Along with details about Larsen‘s public wake, there is also  information regarding donations and tributes.  The end of the post also features various statements about Micheal‘s from close friends, label mates, and collaborators, including his mother, P.O.S., Brother Ali, Murs, Abstract Rude. Read the rest of this entry →