Quinn XCII

Quinn XCII
Quinn XCII at Outside Lands, 2018
Born	Mikael Temrowski (1992-05-06) May 6, 1992 (age 32) Grosse Pointe, Michigan, U.S.
Other names	Mustard Mike
Occupations	Singer songwriter
Years active	2011–present
Musical career
Genres	Pop hip hop reggae EDM
Instruments	Vocals
Labels	Republic Columbia AWAL
Website	www.quinnxcii.com

Mikael Temrowski^[1] (born May 6, 1992), known by his stage name Quinn XCII (pronounced "Quinn ninety-two"),^[2] is an American singer-songwriter from Grosse Pointe, Michigan. He began his career in 2011 when he started writing and recording his own music as a sophomore at Michigan State University, before releasing his debut EP Change of Scenery in May 2015.^[3] On September 15, 2017, he released his debut studio album The Story of Us under Columbia Records,^[4][5] with whom he would release his second, third, and fourth albums, all in the following four years.

After signing to Republic Records, he released his fifth studio album The People's Champ in 2023; it was followed by three meal-themed EPs culminating in his sixth album Quinn XCII Presents Mustard Mike's Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner, released in December 2024.

Early life

Mikael Temrowski was born on May 6, 1992, in Grosse Pointe, Michigan.^[6] He grew up listening to the city's Motown musical history.

He met his primary producer and close friend Ayokay in third grade of elementary school and remained close friends throughout high school. Temrowski began attending college at Michigan State University, where he took an interest in writing and recording music as a sophomore.

Career

2011–2016: Early career and EPs

Temrowski originally went by the stage name "Mike T" and started performing and uploading videos to the video-sharing website YouTube.^[7] In college, he adopted the name Quinn based on an acronym used by a professor: "Quit Unless Your Instincts Are Never Neglected."^[7][8] Because of trademark issues, he later added the Roman numerals for 92, the two-digit abbreviation for 1992, the year of his birth.^[8]

Quinn XCII rapped over beats sampled from popular songs until 2011, when he released his own original song, "They Know", followed by his first extended play Old Fashioned, on November 5, 2012. During his attendance at Michigan State University, sometime around 2014, Temrowski started taking a more serious interest in writing and recording music. He and his longtime friend and producer, who has gone by the stage name Ayokay, began producing music together, with Quinn XCII rapping over beats Ayokay found on YouTube.^[9] Quinn XCII quickly became a college mixtape sensation, and he would travel frequently to Ann Arbor to record new music with Ayokay.^{[citation needed]}

During May 2015, Quinn XCII released his debut extended play entitled Change of Scenery, which garnered millions of online streams. His next single, "Stung", climbed to the #1 position on Hype Machine's Popular Charts. In January 2016, Quinn XCII was featured on Ayokay's own single entitled "Kings of Summer", which soared to #1 on the Spotify Global Viral Chart, where it stayed for three consecutive weeks, in addition to 25 million streams on Spotify. His collaboration with producer Illenium on a track entitled "With You" reached #1 on the HypeMachine Popular Chart and reached #20 on the Spotify Global Viral Chart.^{[citation needed]}

On March 10, 2016, Quinn XCII released his highly anticipated second EP titled Bloom. Shortly after releasing the EP, Quinn XCII went on his first nationwide tour, where he performed in 24 cities for over 20,000 fans.^{[citation needed]}

2016–2018: The Story of Us

On December 9, 2016, Quinn XCII released his new single "Straightjacket", taken off of his upcoming debut album The Story of Us. A non-album single was released titled "Make Time", succeeded by two singles from the album that were released preceding the album's release in 2017, "Fake Denim" and "Worst". The Story of Us was released on September 15, 2017, under Columbia Records. A deluxe edition of the album was released on February 16, 2018, supported by the new single "Iron & Steel".^[10]

In April 2018, it was announced that Quinn XCII was added to the management roster of Visionary Music Group through a partnership with his manager Jesse Coren.^[11]

2018–2020: From Michigan with Love

Quinn XCII released his first single since A Story of Us titled "Panama" on August 22, 2018, on the music-sharing website SoundCloud and on all platforms on August 29.^[12] He wrote the song in honor of his four late grandparents.^[13] On October 23, 2018, Quinn XCII announced a new upcoming single titled "Werewolf" featuring Yoshi Flower, and was released two days later on October 25.^[14] A week later, he released another single "Sad Still" on November 1, centered around the struggles and feelings of dealing with anxiety.^[15] He soon announced his second album titled From Michigan with Love via social media on November 5, 2018, which contains the latter two singles. The album was teased for an early 2019 release date.^[16] On December 11, 2018, Quinn XCII announced the third single off the album, titled "Tough" featuring Noah Kahan, and was released on December 14.^[17]

On November 6, 2018, Quinn XCII announced his worldwide 2019 tour for From Michigan with Love, titled "From Tour with Love". The tour includes shows at 8 cities in Europe and then 30 cities in North America with Christian French and Ashe co-headlining the tour. The tour kicks off in Amsterdam, the Netherlands on February 3, and then the North American leg on February 19 in Indianapolis, Indiana, and ends on April 17 in Austin, Texas.^[18]

Quinn XCII announced via social media on January 7, 2019, that From Michigan with Love is set to be released on February 15. On February 15, it was released with 12 songs.^[19]

Quinn XCII teased his new single "Stacy" on June 18, 2019, on Twitter.^[20] The single was released that week on June 21, 2019.^[21]

2020: A Letter to My Younger Self

On January 10, 2020, he released a single titled "Two 10s".^[22]

On April 27, 2020, Quinn XCII announced his third studio album A Letter to My Younger Self, inspired by a lifetime of events and experiences. It was released on July 10, 2020.^[23] On April 28, 2020, he teased his new single titled "Coffee" with Marc E. Bassy that was released on Friday, May 1, 2020.^[24]

2021: Change of Scenery II

Quinn XCII released his fourth studio album on March 5, 2021. Abandoning his residence in Los Angeles, the album was produced at ayokay's family home in Rhode Island. He released two singles ahead of the release, "Stay Next to Me (with Chelsea Cutler)" and "My Wife & 2 Dogs"

2023-present: The People's Champ and Mustard Mike's

On January 27, 2023, Quinn XCII released his fifth studio album, entitled The People's Champ, via a deal with Republic Records. The album was supported by four singles ahead of the release, "Backpack", "Common (featuring Big Sean)", "Let Me Down (with Chelsea Cutler), and "The Lows".

Style

Quinn XCII has been known to blend several different genres of music, including hip-hop, pop, reggae, rock, electronic and soul. His early music had him focused more on rapping than singing. He has listed Kid Cudi, Kanye West, Mos Def, Jack Johnson, Jon Bellion, Michael Jackson, Sam Cooke, and Chance the Rapper as artists who have influenced him.^[25]

Discography

Studio albums

Title	Album details	Peak chart positions
		US [26]
The Story of Us	Released: September 17, 2017 Label: Columbia Format: CD, LP, digital download, streaming	—
From Michigan with Love	Released: February 15, 2019 Label: Columbia Format: Digital download, streaming	90
A Letter to My Younger Self	Released: July 10, 2020 Label: Columbia Format: Digital download, streaming	56
Change of Scenery II	Released: March 5, 2021 Label: Columbia Format: Digital download, streaming	69
The People's Champ	Released: January 27, 2023[27] Label: Republic Format: CD, digital download, streaming	180 [28]
Quinn XCII Presents Mustard Mike's Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner	Released: December 6, 2024 Label: AWAL Format: Digital download, streaming	—

Extended plays

Title	EP details
Old Fashioned (as Mike T)	Released: November 5, 2012 Label: Self-released Format: digital download, streaming
Shlup	Released: August 11, 2013 Label: Self-released Format: digital download, streaming
Change of Scenery	Released: April 28, 2015 Label: Self-released Format: digital download, streaming
Bloom	Released: March 9, 2016 Label: Self-released Format: digital download, streaming
Breakfast	Released: May 3, 2024 Label: AWAL Format: digital download, streaming
Lunch	Released: September 20, 2024 Label: AWAL Format: digital download, streaming
Dinner	Released: December 6, 2024 Label: AWAL Format: digital download, streaming

Singles

As lead artist

List of singles as lead artist, with certifications

Title	Year	Certifications	Album
"Full Circle"	2015		Non-album singles
"Stung"
"Good Friend"			Bloom
"Straightjacket"	2016	RIAA: Platinum[29]	The Story of Us
"Make Time"	2017		Non-album single
"Fake Denim"			The Story of Us
"Worst"
"Always Been You"[30]		RIAA: Gold[29]
"Iron & Steel"	2018		The Story of Us (Deluxe Version)
"Panama"			Non-album single
"Werewolf" (with Yoshi Flower)			From Michigan with Love
"Sad Still"
"Tough" (with Noah Kahan)
"Life Must Go On" (with Jon Bellion)	2019
"Stacy"		RIAA: Gold[29] MC: Gold[31]	A Letter to My Younger Self
"Two 10s"	2020
"Coffee" (with Marc E. Bassy)
"A Letter to My Younger Self"[32] (featuring Logic)
"Stay Next to Me" (with Chelsea Cutler)		RIAA: Gold[29]	Change of Scenery II
"Backpack"	2022		The People's Champ
"Common" (with Big Sean)
"Let Me Down" (with Chelsea Cutler)
"The Lows"	2023
"Pasadena"	2024		Quinn XCII Presents Mustard Mike's Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner
"Close Calls"
"Melt"
"Unconditional"

As featured artist

List of singles as featured artist, with selected chart positions

Title	Year	Peak chart positions		Certifications	Album
		US Bub. [33]	US Dance Elec. [34]
"100 Degrees" (KOLAJ featuring Quinn XCII)	2016	—	—		Non-album singles
"Sweet Talk" (Academy featuring Quinn XCII)		—	—
"Something from Nothing" (GRMM featuring Quinn XCII)		—	—		Scenes
"Kings of Summer" (Ayokay featuring Quinn XCII)		—	18	RIAA: Platinum[29]	4ft to Infinity
"Space" (Prince Fox featuring Quinn XCII)	2017	—	—		All This Music, Vol. 1
"Winnebago" (Gryffin featuring Quinn XCII & Daniel Wilson)	2018	—	38		Non-album singles
"Middle Finger" (Phoebe Ryan featuring Quinn XCII)		—	—
"The City" (Louis the Child with Quinn XCII)		—	24		Kids at Play
"Alive" (YOG$ with Quinn XCII)		—	—		Universe From Here
"Love Me Less" (MAX featuring Quinn XCII)	2019	1	—	RIAA: Gold[35] MC: Platinum[31]	Colour Vision
"Little Things"[36] (Louis the Child featuring Chelsea Cutler and Quinn XCII)	2020	—	14		Here for Now
"West Coast" (Dvbbs featuring Quinn XCII)[37]		—	—	MC: Gold[31]	Non-album single
"Daddy" (Tiny Meat Gang featuring Quinn XCII)	2021	—	—		Non-album single

Other charted and certified songs

List of singles as lead artist, with certifications

Title	Year	Certifications	Album
"Another Day in Paradise"	2015	RIAA: Gold[29]	Change of Scenery
"Flare Guns" (featuring Chelsea Cutler)	2017	RIAA: Gold[29]	The Story of Us

Guest appearances

Title	Year	Album
"You Should Get to Know Me" (Jeremy Zucker featuring Quinn XCII)	2015	Breathe
"With You" (Illenium featuring Quinn XCII)	2016	Ashes
"One in the Same" (Ayokay featuring Quinn XCII)		4ft to Infinity
"Giving Up Ground" (Chelsea Cutler featuring Quinn XCII)	2017	Snow In October
"Queen" (Ayokay featuring Quinn XCII)	2018	In the Shape of a Dream

Awards and nominations

Year	Nominee / work	Award	Result	Ref.
2020	From Michigan, With Love	Detroit Music Award for Outstanding Major Label Recording	Nominated	[38]

References

1. "Quinn XCII Releases His Highly Anticipated EP 'Bloom'". Verge Campus. Retrieved May 22, 2018.
2. @QuinnXCII (March 20, 2017). "XCII Pronounced Ninety-Two" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
3. "Quinn XCII biography". Last.fm. Retrieved May 22, 2018.
4. "Quinn XCII Releases Latest Album "The Story of Us"". Daily News Project. Archived from the original on May 23, 2018. Retrieved May 22, 2018.
5. "Making this album was one of the most fulfilling experiences of my life and getting to do it with a group of my closest friends made it that much better. Change of Scenery II is out everywhere now, I hope you enjoy it as much as we do. I love you guys". Twitter.
6. McCollum, Brian. "Quinn XCII makes musical house calls with fans in Detroit homecoming". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved 2023-11-12.
7. "Pseudonym Week: Quinn XCII". 2019-04-16.
8. "Quinn XCII Explains His Stage Name and How to Pronounce It".
9. Cohen, Sarah. "Exclusive: Get To Know Quinn XCII And Ayokay [Interview]". The Knockturnal. Retrieved 2018-05-23.
10. "Review: Quinn XCII delights on new radio single 'Iron & Steel'". Digital Journal. 12 February 2018. Retrieved May 22, 2018.
11. Rys, Dan. "Visionary Music Group Bolsters Management Division With New Partnership With Mutual Friends". Billboard.
12. @QuinnXCII (29 August 2018). ""Panama" is now available everywhere" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
13. @QuinnXCII (22 August 2018). "Today, my final grandparent & Nana, Beverly Temrowski, passed away. I figured today would be the best time to release the most personal song I've ever made. This song is for my four wonderful grandparents and for anyone who has lost someone dear to them" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
14. @QuinnXCII (25 October 2018). ""Werewolf" out now everywhere you listen to music: https://t.co/RXhDSN6teb…" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
15. @TeamVisionary (1 November 2018). "Part singing, part rapping. @QuinnXCII brings the best of both worlds together with a message many can relate to on his new "Sad Still" single available now. https://t.co/HEzC6Ft12l…" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
16. @QuinnXCII (5 November 2018). "My sophomore album, "From Michigan With Love" coming top of 2019" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
17. @QuinnXCII (11 December 2018). ""Tough" with @NoahKahan out Friday 💪" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
18. "Quinn XCII Announces 2019 Tour & Forthcoming Album 'From Michigan With Love': Exclusive". Billboard. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
19. @QuinnXCII (7 January 2019). "[image:MY SOPHOMORE ALBUM // FROM MICHIGAN WITH LOVE // COMING FEBRUARY 15]" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
20. @QuinnXCII (18 June 2019). "Out everywhere Friday" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
21. "Stacy - Single by Quinn XCII". Apple Music. Apple Inc. Archived from the original on 22 December 2019. Retrieved 22 December 2019.
22. "Two 10s - Single by Quinn XCII". Apple Music. iTunes. Archived from the original on 14 January 2020. Retrieved 14 January 2020.
23. XCII, Quinn (2020-04-27). "I spent the last year making my favorite body of work yet and it's finally yours this summer. My third studio album, A Letter To My Younger Self, coming July 10. New single this Friday.pic.twitter.com/ca8hwNoOQM". @QuinnXCII. Retrieved 2020-05-20.
24. XCII, Quinn (2020-04-28). "Coffee w/ @marcebassy coming Fridaypic.twitter.com/yMt3jY51nt". @QuinnXCII. Retrieved 2020-05-20.
25. "Hey Reddit, Quinn XCII here. AMA". Reddit. 22 September 2017. Retrieved May 22, 2018.
26. "Quinn XCII Chart History: Billboard 200". Billboard. Retrieved February 7, 2023.
27. "Quinn XCII – The People's Champ Album Reviews, Songs & More". AllMusic. Retrieved January 24, 2023.
28. @billboardcharts (February 6, 2023). "Debuts on this week's #Billboard200 (2/2)..." (Tweet). Retrieved February 7, 2023 – via Twitter.
29. "American certifications – Quinn XCII". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved May 1, 2022.
30. "Quinn XCII Shares New Single "Always Been You" Off Debut Album". This Song Is Sick. 26 August 2017. Retrieved 1 May 2022.
31. "Canadian certifications – Quinn XCII". Music Canada. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
32. "A Letter to My Younger Self (feat. Logic) by Quinn XCII". Spotify. 29 May 2020. Retrieved May 30, 2020.
33. "Quinn XCII – Chart History (Bubbling Under Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved July 13, 2020.
34. "Quinn XCII – Chart History (Dance/Electronic Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved April 7, 2021.
35. "American single certifications – Max – Love Me Less". Recording Industry Association of America.
36. Pereira, Natalie (April 5, 2020). "Louis The Child get the vocal treatment from Quinn XCII and Chelsea Cutler on 'Little Things'". Dancing Astronaut. Archived from the original on April 20, 2020. Retrieved April 20, 2020.
37. "West Coast (feat. Quinn XCII) - Single by DVBBS on Apple Music". Apple Music. 16 October 2020. Retrieved October 16, 2020.
38. "Detroit Music Awards Foundation - 2020 Nominees". www.detroitmusicawards.net. Archived from the original on August 9, 2020. Retrieved June 5, 2020.