Though you want to root for his obvious sincerity and sense of genuine love for the art, Mission Man is not a good rapper. His rhymes have about as much natural rhythm and cadence as a penguin in bondage—which is a shame, because the tonal quality of his voice is really quite pleasing, and even sounds a bit like Frank Zappa's. His lyrics are awkwardly phrased, and his style is closer to Sir Mixalot's than anything else. His backing tracks sound like a band composed of Les Claypool sniffing a whole tube of glue on bass, Bender the Futurama robot on TR-505 drum machine, and the Revenge of the Nerds guy on Casio Keytar. To his credit, he cops to his awkward nerdiness in "Ugly Child," admitting to a pizza face, Coke bottle glasses and a childhood admiration for Alex P. Keaton, but in the end, his earnestness just isn't enough to overcome the inferior quality of the music.
Mission Man: Press
Gary Milholland missed a call for this interview because he was out smelling the roses.
“I had to get away from the computer,” he said. “I went to this beautiful garden in Columbus [Ohio]. Whenever the wind would blow, it would pick up the fragrance of all the flowers; it was fantastic.”
The 30-year-old is breathing in life’s sweet scents since he quit his Web marketing and maintenance job at a company in Chicago to pursue music full time.
Milholland is Mission Man, a hip-hop, rap artist.
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I quit at the end of March, and I’ve been on tour since then,” he said from Dayton. “At this point, I’m running out of money. I’ll need to get another job in a few weeks, but this is the longest I’ve been able to sustain [my music career]. It’s been a great experience that will lead up to when I tour again next summer.”
The musician is working on new material for his next disc, “31 Hours Til What,” and testing songs on his Do What You Love Tour.
“I basically wrote [‘31 Hours Until What'] knowing I was going to quit my job and go on tour because I knew Chicago just wasn’t working out, so I was figuring out what the next step was going to be,” he said. “It was sort of a self-motivational song as well as a positive, uplifting song to send out to other people.”
Not only is Milholland an optimist, he’s a thrifty man determined to live his dream. On his web site at www.missionman.net, he wrote some days he spends $1 to eat.
“I kind of stumbled across the fact that peanut butter can fill you up, even in small amounts,” he said. “I’d go and buy a loaf of bread and a jar of peanut butter; it costs $5 and it would last me four days. I’d have maybe two peanut butter sandwiches for lunch, two for dinner, and then do the same thing the next couple days.”
Mission Man has sacrificed a lot to make the music happen.
“I’ve been technically homeless because it’s cheaper; I don’t have to pay rent somewhere,” Milholland said, adding he stays with friends, fans and in his car.
“This has been an absolutely tremendous experience. I’ve laid the foundation, made more connections,” he said. “So I’ll go back, get an apartment, start working at Papa John’s, which I did for a long time, living in Oxford [Ohio] … I’ll be really trying to establish myself in a lot of cities in Ohio … and after I get established in those, save up some money and then go on the ‘31 Hours Til What’ CD release tour next summer. My goal with that one would be to basically tour at least 40 states… I don’t know what will happen after that; it could be my last tour; it could be the tour that would get me to the point where I could make a living off music.”
Mission Man will return to Toledo to play the Jeff-Fest benefit at Mickey Finn’s Pub July 11. He will take the stage at 5 p.m. Other acts scheduled to perform between 2 p.m. and 2 a.m. are The Killer Tomatoes, Intolerance and The Dougouts, among others. Tickets are $10.
Mission Man
Thursday, April 16
Mickey Finn’sGary Milholland, better known on stage as Mission Man, is exactly what his name suggests — a man on a mission. The 30-year-old, straight-edge hip hop master has been “kicking out raps” since 1992. Mission Man has written more than 130 songs resonating with today’s youth, often dealing with relatable issues like losing his mother to cancer; basing one’s self-esteem on who you are, not what you look like; and delivering pizzas. Originally from Ohio, Mission Man sought out a full-time day job in Chicago, which he recently announced he was quitting in order to go on tour in support of his hip hop routine.
“I’ll be living the exciting life, including sleeping in my car, crashing at random friends’ and fans’ places and figuring out how to shower, eat and pay for gas on a daily basis,” Milholland said. “I’m actually very excited about it all, as I’ve done this on a smaller scale for 16 days.”
Mission Man kicks off his “Do What You Love” tour on Thursday, April 16, opening for the local Velvet Underground tribute band, the Falling Spikes. 9 p.m. $5. Mickey Finn’s, 602 Lagrange St. www.sonicbids.com/missionman. —ER
Mission Man continues cancer fund-raising efforts
Mission Man gave away about 1,260 demo albums and spent approximately $400 promoting for Saturday evening's 4th annual Playing for a Cure. But the 28-year-old Oxford resident, otherwise known as Gary Milholland, said he was still happy with the $147 his event at The Balcony raised for the American Cancer Society (ACS).
Attendance at the performance was minimal, with a few members of the event's previous bands listening to Mission Man's performance. Five fans did stream in at the end, singing along to his best known hit, "Chillin' at the Papa."
"It's pretty chill here tonight," said Brittany Treacy, a Miami University senior and a fiancé of senior Ryan Troescher, who performed that evening. "There's not going to be a ton of people here … People are just chilling, playing pool. It's an added bonus to have Mission Man here tonight."
Mission Man was the headline act, but Blues Phoenix, Troescher and Justin Wagner were scheduled as well. Mission Man orchestrated Playing for a Cure to raise money for the ACS, as he lost his mother to cancer in 1994. He accredits music to helping him through those difficult times.
"It's those kinds of things when I actually need music, regardless of if I'm concentrating on my career or if I'm just doing it as a hobby," he said. "I don't see myself giving up doing it anytime soon."
Mission Man coordinated costume changes for each song he performed, from various T-shirts to a Boston Celtics jersey. And according to the Oxford native, even sparsely attended events such as Saturday night's performance offer him a chance to sharpen his skills.
"I love performing live; the hard part is when I'm playing to a bartender and a couple of sound guys," he said, prior to the event. "I've played a lot of those shows. I still perform my set, I try to give the same energy but it is not quite possible. (Still performing) shows that I'm still serious with what I'm doing and gives me a chance to come back and bring a little fan base. It's a moment to practice on stage. But even five people going crazy-that keeps me going."
And Mission Man is still going.Since he was 13 he has been rapping a form of music that he said is most properly defined as "intelligent hip-hop." His first album came out in January 1997, he's working on his ninth and he has mainly frequented open mic nights in Oxford, Dayton and surrounding communities. He said he his performances have varied from empty establishments to crowds of more than 100 people. And he doesn't plan on stopping anytime soon.
Mission Man's claim to fame is "Chillin' at the Papa," a song that highlights his employment at Papa John's in Oxford since 1998.
"People see me on the street and they don't know what else to say but, 'Chillin at the Papa,'" he said, laughing. "I'm like, I have 130 songs but, yes, I made that. I did write that song in five minutes."
And Mission Man said he typically does not sing on pizza deliveries-though he has on a few occasions-but he does pass out his demo CDs when the opportunities arise.
He said he always has demo CDs on him, calling them his "ID cards."
Over the years Mission Man has seen the dynamics of uptown nightlight change little, he said, however did point out that Miami has the potential to be a great music town-but it just isn't there yet.
"Oxford has the potential to have one of the best music scenes in the country, just based on concentration of people in a small area and I think the college students are open to that independent, independent-thought kind of music," he said. "But the bar owners don't want to take the risk, and they are business owners first and I understand that and it's frustrating for me as a musician. There are a whole lot of bands in Oxford that would turn out a decent crowd, but … if I brought out 50 people in a bar in Dayton they would love me, they would have me back every month. But here I've brought out 70 on a Tuesday but that wasn't good enough to have a weekly spot because 70 here on a weekend is nothing. If you've got 70 people in bar, like in a Brick Street, if they had 70 people there they would go out of business."
He's enthusiastic for his next mission, at Stadium Sports Bar and Grille's Battle of the Bands, scheduled for Oct. 17.
"I've been trying to make (music) my career for a long time," he said. "I want to do it on an independent level."
Mission Man 'Playing for a Cure'
Gary Milholland is more than just your average pizza delivery guy. He's a businessman, a philanthropist and most importantly, a rapper.
Milholland, or "Mission Man" as he's more commonly known, is Oxford's own Eminem. He's Papa John's favorite employee, delivering more than just pizza and breadsticks to hungry customers.
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Milholland quickly became a local celebrity when he started "free-styling" at each of his pizza deliveries in 2004. His "self expressive" and "very honest" rap lyrics have led to a growing fan base, and the production of eight albums since he began rapping at the age of 13.
Milholland had been missing from the Miami community the past few months, taking a break from his Mission Man persona to open a business.
After this short hiatus, Mission Man is at it again, hosting the fourth annual Playing for a Cure concert at Balcony on Sept. 29.
The concert, which benefits the American Cancer Society, was started by Milholland in 2004, on the 10th anniversary of his mother's death.
When his mother, Amy Milholland, died of cancer when he was only 15, Milholland said he turned to his music to help him get through the difficult time in his life.
"I wanted to do something to honor my mom's memory," Milholland said.
Mission Man has played for a cure all over the area, taking his show to Kentucky, Dayton and Cincinnati. While each venue has helped him raise hundreds of dollars for cancer research, he said Oxford is where his real fans are.
This year's concert takes place during Miami's Parents' Weekend, and Milholland said he is confident the show could sell out.
The show will feature local groups Blues Phoenix, Ryan Troescher and Justin Wagner, along with Mission Man.
"These bands can bring 30 to 40 people alone," Milholland said. "So I think there's going to be a great turn out."
To promote the concert, Milholland said he has given out 1,113 demo CDs, sent out invitations on MySpace, created a Facebook group and spoken to publications all over Oxford.
Despite all his efforts, he said he remains nervous about one thing.
"I'm competing with Bill Engvall," he laughed. "So we'll have to see."
With the next Playing for a Cure concert just weeks away, Milholland is already looking further ahead. His next goal? To make his show a Miami ASG sponsored event, he said.
While there have been rumors of retirement, Milholland said that as long as he's making music, there'll be Playing for a Cure.
For more information about Playing for the Cure or Mission Man, visit www.missionman.net.
Oxford rapper hits the road
Friday, September 08, 2006
Gary Milholland's Oxford apartment is a maze of cardboard boxes, musical instruments and second-hand furniture. It's impossible to navigate through his living room without stumbling into one of the boxes, which contain his latest CD.
For six months, the 27-year-old Miami and Talawanda graduate starved himself so he could save the $2,000 needed to press the 1,000 CDs sitting on his living room floor.
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"There were times where I thought I wasn't going to have enough money or have enough CDs," said Milholland, who was sporting a T-shirt embroidered with his stage name — Mission Man. "But there were also times that were so amazing, like when I finished recording and paid for the CDs."
For 14 years Milholland has had one dream, and he has been living it inside his apartment. Between working 40 to 45 hours a week delivering pizzas for Papa John's, Milholland found time over a two-year span to record the rap album Indiependent inside his residence. It's the rapper's third full-length album.
Before Milholland had dreams of being a rapper, he was skipping grades and taking classes at Miami University when he was 16 years old.
"When I started high school, I never would have figured I would be delivering pizzas and making music," said Milholland, who graduated in 2002 with a business degree from Miami. "I figured I would have had my Ph.D. by now."
For the first five years of Milholland's journey as a rapper, he did not perform. He first played at a music store in Colerain in 1997. Though only three people actually showed up to listen to the struggling musician, the experience only motivated Milholland to work harder.
Over the last few months, the rapper has mailed hundreds of demo CDs to clubs and bars around the country in an effort to book shows promoting his new CD. The results of the 27-year-old's efforts landed him shows in such areas as Chicago, Boston, Cleveland, Columbus and Burlington, Vt. His tour kicks off in Oxford at the Balcony Oct. 10.
Milholland's style of rap is an eclectic blend of bass, keyboard and guitar that some times leans toward the experimental side of the spectrum. Performing on stage in small venues can sometimes be difficult for the rapper when crowds are sparse.
"There are some shows in Cincinnati specifically where I play and there's no one there, and it drains me," Milholland said. "But when then I have a great show in Oxford, and that keeps me going long enough to get to the next show."
It's sometimes tough for the college graduate to work 40-plus hours delivering pizzas and dedicate time to a music career. In his song "Chillin' at the Papa," Milholland vents about delivering pizzas.
"I think people relate to my songs because I'm completely honest in expressing myself," he said. "(The songs are) easy to relate to. There's nothing fake about what I do."
While working at Papa John's may not seem like the most glamorous gig in the world, Milholland said it does have its perks. On one delivery for a $9.99 order, two young women requested Mission Man deliver the pizza. When he arrived at the house, the women showered him with camera flashes, hugs and even kisses. In spite of all the love Milholland received, the two girls only tipped him one cent.
"It was worth it," he said. "It's one of those experiences I'll never forget. They were like, 'Wow Bruce Springsteen just delivered a pizza.' It was such an odd experience."
Oxford rapper on a 'Mission'
He's white. He's a rapper. And he's not Eminem. Oxford rapper "Mission Man," otherwise known as Gary Milholland, 26, is trying to make his way into the spotlight. Proclaiming his music type on his Web site as "very self-expressive hip-hop from a nerdy straight-edged nice guy," Milholland has released fifth album Antis Trype, which includes his most popular song "Chillin' at the Papa."His name of Mission Man originated in 1996 from his desire to show he was trying to accomplish something through a quest or mission."I also liked it because it fit between Method Man and Mo Thugs in the alphabet," Milholland added. "They were both big at the time when I actually came up with the name."Mission Man has played at uptown locations, including several open-mic nights at Stadium and three full shows at Hole in the Wall.He began rapping at 13 when his friend B.J. Fuller told him to "kick a rap" during a basketball game. Milholland and his friends then formed a rap group in late 1992 called the Multi-Culturals, but when his mom developed cancer in 1994, Milholland moved back to Ohio from Orlando, Fla. and the Multi-Culturals broke up. Milholland used his rap as a way to help him through his mother's death in Sept., 1994. His mother, Amy Milholland, had four children, worked three teaching jobs and attended school full-time for her Ph.D. She is an inspiration to her son and is mentioned in number of his songs.Last year on the 10th anniversary of her death, Milholland organized an event called Playing for the Cure, a concert at Madison Theater in Covington, Ky. to raise money for the American Cancer Society. Although he organized promotions through 30,000 flyers, ticket giveaways at three radio stations, coverage in CityBeat and CinWeekly, and advertisement on CincyMusic.com, only 31 people purchased tickets to attend the event. Milholland ended up losing $1000."I just dismissed as being the Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky area," Milholland said. "Even though I have a following here in Oxford and Dayton, nobody came. In general, if I have a show where there's no turn out, it's still fun. I'm doing what I love to do and that's ultimately what keeps me going."Mission Man has written an unreleased song called "My Heroes" about the role models in his life ranging from his parents to siblings and grandparents. Though his family has inspired him greatly, he has other influences as well."My biggest influence is Tupac," Milholland said. "My content is nothing like his, but my life is nothing like his. His level of self-expression and depth of poetry make him, in my opinion, the best rapper ever, and one of the best musicians ever."By the time Mission Man was 17, he had recorded and released his first CD Into My Mind, funded by his brother. Between 1999 and 2000, he taught himself how to play the drums, bass, guitar and keyboard.His next show in Oxford will be uptown April 15 at 11:00 p.m. at Hole in the Wall. For more information on Mission Man visit his Web site at http://www.missionman.net.