Midwestern singer-songwriter Michael Marcagi has been drawn to folk music since childhood. The Cincinnati native recalls riding in the car with his mother and connecting to artists like John Prine and Jim Croce.
It wasn’t until college that Marcagi took the stage. His local band, The Heavy Hours, garnered a record deal and achieved some chart success. When the pandemic halted their momentum and they disbanded, Marcagi found himself at a crossroads.
“I still felt like I had something to say in music,” he says. “I had this batch of songs that I had been sitting on.”
Two of those songs were “The Other Side,” his breakout hit as a solo artist that details the claustrophobia of small-town life, and “Scared to Start,” a cinematic tribute to taking a leap of faith that pushed his TikTok view counts into the millions and landed him a record deal.
Released in January 2024, “Scared to Start” reached No. 5 on Billboard’s Hot Rock & Alternative Songs chart and became Marcagi’s first Billboard Hot 100 entry.
“That song opened up all the doors for me,” Marcagi says of the viral track that has since racked up more than 1 billion global streams, 4 billion TikTok views, 236 million Instagram Reel views, and 24 million YouTube views. As we enter 2026, “Scared To Start” has now been certified 2X Platinum. “It was like this little rocket ship that didn’t seem to slow down. I strapped myself in and went along for the ride.”
Following its success, Marcagi released two globally acclaimed EPs, American Romance and Midwest Kid. Each project demonstrates Marcagi’s relatable and narrative-driven songwriting, complemented by sparse yet intriguing musical accompaniment. Both projects, produced by David Baron (The Lumineers, Noah Kahan, Jade Bird), further cemented Marcagi as an artist to watch.
The Platinum-certified rising star readies his next chapter with the joyous banjo-driven “Unlocks Me.” Penned with Andrew Yorio, “Unlocks Me” is the first single from Marcagi’s forthcoming debut album Under the Streetlights.
The 10-track project, available via Warner Records in early 2026, tackles a wide range of topics and emotions. Sing-along arena-ready anthems about love (“Falling,” “I Should Know Better”) are featured in between heart-wrenching songs about divorce (“Don't Include Me (American Dream”) and searching for something better (“Loose Ends”).
“I’ve finally gotten to a place where my words actually mean something,” he says. “If 10 people relate to these songs and find something in them, that’s enough for me.”