Michael is from the small town of Waxhaw, near Charlotte, North Carolina. Waxhaw is where he grew up, except for two years spent in Nairobi, Kenya. He earned his Bachelor's Degree in Music Education from Western Carolina University in Cullowhee, NC in 2016, and earned his Master's Degree in Percussion Performance at Appalachian State University in Boone, NC in 2018. He now lives in Alexandria, Virginia, and is currently working on his Doctorate of Musical Arts (DMA) in Percussion Performance at George Mason University.

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He is a versatile percussionist, and has been playing since he began in band at age 13. His favorite instrument and first love is the marimba, followed closely by funk and metal drum set, but he enjoys playing any kind of percussion he can get his hands on, including tabla. He also plays guitar, bass, and sitar.

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Michael was the drummer for Depot Street, a funk-rock band based in Boone, NC. He was instrumental in releasing their album Home, Sweet Home, which was recorded entirely in his home studio. He contributed five original songs to the album. He is currently recording his solo debut album, a funk-rock album titled Out and Forth featuring 13 original songs, due to be released in 2024.

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As a music teacher, he has been teaching in a breadth of capacities since 2012, primarily teaching individual lessons and working with the percussion sections of marching bands, including serving as the Front Ensemble Instructor for the Marching Mountaineers at Appalachian State. He now serves as a Graduate Teaching Assistant at George Mason teaching Musics of the World, and as Front Ensemble Instructor at West Potomac High School.

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As an arranger, he has written front ensemble and full percussion books for a variety of marching band and indoor percussion ensembles. Most recently, he composed a show of entirely original music for West Potomac High School Indoor Percussion.

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He loves serving the Lord and others by leading in worship. In all things, soli Deo gloria.