The Founders
Two friends who found each other through pigeons nearly 40 years ago — a multi-platinum recording artist and the youngest heavyweight champion in boxing history — who came back together two decades later to build a real home for the sport that first connected them.
Steven and Mike met backstage at the Apollo Theater in 1988. Steven — then singing lead for the R&B group Troop — was introduced to Mike by singer Aaron Hall: “Hey Mike, this is Steve, from Troop.” Mike lit up — “I love Troop” — and gave Steven a hard, friendly slap on the back.
Then Aaron Hall added one more thing: “Mike, Steve's got pigeons too.”
The slap turned into a hug. As Steven tells it, it was instant — like meeting a brother. Two men from completely different worlds, bonded in a moment over the birds they'd both grown up keeping.
Mike started keeping pigeons around age 8, catching his first birds himself on the streets of Brooklyn. Pigeons were his first real love before boxing ever entered the picture — and they led directly to his first fight. At 12 years old, a bully grabbed one of his birds and broke its neck in front of him. Mike beat him badly. It was the first real fight of his life.
Mike went on to become the youngest heavyweight champion in boxing history, at 20 years old, and one of the most recognized athletes on the planet. Through all of it, the pigeons never left him — over the years his birds grew to include some of the finest South African bloodlines in the sport. When Mike discovered rollers specifically, and saw how deep Steven's own passion for the breed ran, it clicked — this wasn't just a shared childhood hobby anymore, it was something they both still lived.
Steven is a lead vocalist for the multi-platinum 1980s R&B group Troop, known for hits like “Spread My Wings” and “All I Do Is Think of You,” and featured on TV One's Unsung in 2014. Over a 25-year career, he has written and produced for artists including Chris Brown, Beyoncé, Jennifer Hudson, Tyrese, B2K, and Charlie Wilson — earning Grammy Awards in 2009 and 2012. His music also appears on major film soundtracks including Shrek, Kung Fu Panda, Shark Tale, and Dreamgirls. He is also a visual artist, filmmaker, and author of The Anunnaki Scrolls series.
Alongside his music career, Steven has been a competitive Birmingham Roller pigeon flyer since 2003.
Mike went on to become a world champion. Steven went on to sell millions of records. But every time their paths crossed over the following decades, the conversation always found its way back to pigeons.
When Steven told Mike he wanted to build a real platform and magazine for the roller pigeon community, Mike didn't hesitate. “Let's do it together.” RollersOnly is the result — built by two lifelong fanciers who want serious breeders and competitors to be able to actually acquire the bloodlines they need to compete at the highest level, and to keep this community alive for the next generation.
Tyson's Corneris home to Mike's own South African bloodlines — Hannes, Poen, and McKinney. D.O.T.S.is where you'll find Steven's own birds, bred and flown at his loft. Same mission, two lofts.
