We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Mike Harris a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Mike, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.

Coming from a musical family, I’d always had an interest in music but it wasn’t until I was 15 that I realized it could be a career. I started off wanting to be a rapper. Then my older brother approached me one day and said, “man with the way you approach writing rap lyrics, I think you’d be good at writing R&B songs for artists.” Until that conversation, it never occurred to me that artists didn’t write their own songs all the time. Then he started showing me people like The Underdogs, Bryan-Michael Cox, Babyface, Diane Warren, Shep Crawford and more. Some of the names I’d never heard of but their songs I’d heard a million times. From that point on I was hooked. Always looking at album credits seeing who wrote what. Then at 15, I wrote my first song.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

My name is Mike Harris. Most friends, family, and peers refer to me as Big Mike. I am a songwriter. I started out writing R&B songs but gradually developed an affinity for creating music in multiple genres. I got my start professionally through my cousin and frequent collaborator Brandon Hodge, known professionally as Grammy nominated music producer B.A.M. Back at the end of 2010/early 2011 he and a group of creatives were working with Tyrese. At the time, I’d honestly given up on music. But he reached out to me and said “I want you to write a song to this track and maybe Tyrese will let you come work with us.” I spent the rest of that night in a local recording studio writing and recording to that track. Tyrese heard it and told my cousin “this is dope! If he can make it out here, he can work with us.” I had not a dollar to my name at the time but somehow between family and the grace of God, I was able to buy a $452 one way ticket to LA leaving the next day. That opportunity opened the door for others that would eventually come.

Through this journey I’ve met some greatly talented people and written some incredible music. One of the big highlights of that journey was co-writing a song on Chris Brown’s 2017 album Heartbreak on a Full Moon. That album went on to go double platinum. Being apart of that album and seeing my name on an RIAA certified plaque solidified for me that I chose the right path all those years ago. This path is not an easy one at all and is very unpredictable but my hope is to contribute to many more artistic offerings in any way I can.

Have you ever had to pivot?

Years ago, I believe I was 19 at the time, I was gearing up to move to Indiana to go to school. I was kind of coasting through life at the time with no real direction. My older cousin was big on education and convinced me that making the transition to Indiana and going to college would benefit me. I was all set. Had an apartment, went to enroll in classes, ready to start this new chapter. Only 3 days in, I knew something didn’t feel right. This path just didn’t feel like me. It felt like a cop out. I knew I had to make a decision. I found someone to sublet my place, I packed up and I headed back home. Upon arrival I set a plan in motion. I was going to work and save up to get my own recording set up. I taped papers up on my wall to indicate the amount of time it would take to reach my goal. Every week I’d rip a paper off the wall counting down until I reached my goal, which I eventually did. That recording set up is the same one that I would eventually use to write and record my first placements with R&B legends Tyrese and Joe. Had I not listened to my gut and made that pivot, I never would’ve known that I had what it took to take my craft to that level.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

The most rewarding part is seeing the connection between the art and the people who consume the art. To write a song and hear people sing it word for word or tell you that something you created made them feel understood or less alone in this world is an immeasurable feeling.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bigmikeink
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BigMikeChristian?mibextid=LQQJ4d

Image Credits

Christa Harris – @theblumgallery
Austin Wallace – @goodshotwall