MIKE hasn’t gone a calendar year without releasing a full-length album since his 16th birthday in 2014, dropping a groundbreaking project on the 21st day of either June or December with each trip around the sun. He’s continuing the tradition in 2022, with Beware of the Monkey — his first LP since June 2021’s “Disco!” — due to sneak in just before the winter holidays. Today, he’s released the project’s second single, “What Do I Do?,” and shared plans for his 2023 “Ipari Park” North American tour with support from 454 and Slauson Malone.
The new track, which follows last month’s “nuthin i can do is wrng,” is a characteristically woozy slow burn. Mike raps for 90 seconds in his hookless, free-flowing yet methodical way, the titular soul sample anchoring the lyrics to the beat. Then, in the final minute, he breaks into song. “If you gave me all of you / Would you tell me what do I do?,” he repeats, his voice ever-so-slightly off-key but rich as mousse.
“What Do I Do?” comes with a dreamlike visual treatment courtesy of Ryosuke Tanzawa. Watch it above, and view the flyer and full schedule for MIKE’s “Ipari Park” tour below.
MIKE’s 2023 “Ipari Park” North American tour
March 9 - Boston, MA - Middle East (Upstairs) *
March 10 - Montreal, QC - Bar Le Ritz *
March 11 - Toronto, ON - Velvet Underground *
March 12 - Cleveland, OH - Mahall’s *
March 15 - Des Moines, IA - xBk *
March 16 - Minneapolis, MN - Underground Music Cafe *
March 17 - Milwaukee, WI - Cactus Club *
March 18 - Chicago, IL - Lincoln Hall *
March 19 - Lawrence, KS - Bottleneck *
March 22 - Denver, CO - Lost Lake *
March 23–24 - Boise, ID - Treefort Music Festival
March 25 - Seattle, WA - Madame Lou’s *
March 26 - Portland, OR - TBA *
March 28 - Sacramento, CA - The Starlet Room *
March 29 - Berkeley, CA - Cornerstone *
March 30 - Santa Cruz, CA - Catalyst Atrium *
April 1 - Los Angeles, CA - The Regent ^
April 2 - Tucson, AZ - Hotel Congress (Club Stage) ^
April 4 - Austin, TX - Ballroom ^
April 5 - Dallas, TX - Cheap Steaks ^
April 6 - Houston, TX - The Secret Group ^
April 7 - New Orleans, LA - Gasa Gasa ^
April 8 - Atlanta, GA - The Masquerade (Hell) ^
April 9 - Durham, NC - Motorco ^
April 11 - Richmond, VA - Richmond Music Hall ^
April 12 - Baltimore, MD - Ottobar ^
April 13 - Philadelphia, PA - First Unitarian Church ^
April 14 - Brooklyn, NY - Music Hall of Williamsburg ^
* with 454
^ with Slauson Malone
