Born Kiki Ceac and originally from Cambridge, MA, he cites science fiction, video games, and psychedelic rock among his influences, along with the experimental rap of Company Flow and Madlib. K-the-I??? made his recording debut in 2002 with "Nova Solar Search," a self-produced contribution to the Beta One compilation released by the Canadian label GigCity Records. A 12" release followed, Teletron 1 (2003), along with a CD-EP, Fair Weather Under the Surface Negative (2004), on other labels before K-the-I??? was signed to Mush, a well-regarded independent label with an eclectic roster of acts including experimental rappers cLOUDDEAD, Aesop Rock, Awol One, Busdriver, Daedelus, and Bigg Jus. K-the-I??? made his full-length solo album debut on Mush with Broken Love Letter (2006), which he produced primarily himself. His follow-up album on Mush, Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow (2008), was produced entirely by labelmate Thavius Beck and was released overseas by Big Dada Recordings. By this point, K-the-I??? had relocated to Los Angeles. In support of Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow, he toured with Thavius Beck, including a leg of dates in Europe. ~ Jason Birchmeier