Cincinnati-born singer-songwriter and modern Americana practitioner Michael Marcagi specialises in shout-along choruses, backed by vigorously strummed acoustic guitars. His musical life began with his playing in rock bands in his hometown, most notably The Heavy Hours. In the fall of 2023, he found the limelight unexpectedly with his viral hit (and the first song ever released under his own name) “The Other Side”, a depiction of the claustrophobia of small-town life that mixed the raconteur lyricism of John Prine with the cinematic pop sense of The Lumineers. However, it was his cinematic tribute to taking a leap of faith—“Scared To Start”—that pushed his social-media view counts toward the billions and landed him on the U.S. charts. After signing to a major, Marcagi released the five-song EP American Romance, a collection of character studies compiling and expanding on the promise of his early singles.