"Hey, you look like a baller. Wanna buy this?" This is what Stef Alexander — stage name P.O.S. — said to Mike Mictlan, a new Minneapolis resident, on his first day of high school. Mictlan couldn't have imagined that buying a punk-rock magazine from a guy in cheetah-pattered pants and blue hair would lead to a lifetime friendship and two-sevenths of hip-hop collection Doomtree.

Mictlan started writing rap music at age 13 in southern California. That was when he told his parents that he was going to be a professional rapper. He imagined a having a successful career like rap duo Kriss Kross or Run DMC. Twenty years later, he's not only successful as a solo emcee, but also a label owner and a member of hip-hop collective Doomtree.

This Saturday, Aug. 30, Mictlan and the rest of the Doomtree crew will be performing live on the Minnesota State Fair Grandstand stage as a part of The Current's MN Music-on-a-Stick showcase. Doomtree are known for their impressive show and captivating stage presence, but Mictlan admits that in their 12 years together, Doomtree have only rehearsed four times as a group.

After a year and a half hiatus, Mike Mictlan's third full-length is on the way. Three songs off the ten-track album were performed at the Minnesota State Fair on the MPR stage. The record titled HELLA FRREAL releases this fall.

Songs Performed

"CLAPP'D"
"Tha Brink"
"Super'merica"

All songs off Mike Mictlan's forthcoming record, HELLA FRREAL, out Tuesday, Oct. 28, via Doomtree Records.

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