Eli Cash is an emcee, producer and musician. Tired of what has become the mainstream focus of rap music (excess, guns, diamonds, misogynist lyrics, etc.) Eli Cash and lowKey Productions formed in 2003 to beat the mainstream at its own game. Although starting his career as a drummer, independent emcee/producer Eli Cash has brought a fresh, honest mentality to hip-hop while making a name for himself releasing underground hip-hop albums with fellow producer, the Jolly Taxpayer under their indie label, the Madison, WI-based lowKey Productions. Fueled in part by growing up south of Milwaukee in the racially-segregated, poverty-stricken town of Racine, WI, and influenced strongly by the country's post-9/11 way of thinking, Eli Cash mixes firey street-smart wit, memorable choruses and twista-style rhymes with funky, all original production and recording. Eli Cash's debut album, Kill the Radio, was a call to end all of the "bs on corporate radio...with fake rappers that'll do anything to sell their own image" and brought electrified reviews from alternative media. Gaining strong word of mouth support developed from his unique website elicash.com and tight live shows, Eli Cash and Kill the Radio have become an underground classic. In his latest release, 2005's Escapism, Cash mixes deeply personal strife with emerging global issues as he examins the deceptive, careless nature of the US government, the resonating effects of unemployment, depression and the driving need to escape it all. Eli Cash's insightful lyrics are put to gritty yet melodic backbeats, with production influences ranging from 60's Doo-Wop and Soul ala Otis Redding, the Shirreles ("Dreams") to alternative hip-hop (Mos Def, RZA, DJ Shadow) and modern rock (Radiohead, RJD2) ("Neo-Retro").