Prison Escapee is the moniker of Erik David Hidde located in Long Beach, CA. After running the independent record label, Housewarming Records, out of New York from 2011-2013, Hidde has since decided to put all his focus into his original music.

Hidde was raised in Fort Hunter, a hamlet located in upstate New York by a Christian family, which is represented in his music. Fort Hunter is also a common subject in his music, which subject matter often includes reflecting back on his childhood. Other subject matter includes loss, which is centered around his close friend’s prison cell suicide. Hidde was brought up singing in his church, and all-county chorus in grade school.

After years of writing, recording and practicing production, he started Prison Escapee in 2014 and has since been releasing his melancholic, electronic, rock songs. Inspired by equal parts post-rock, electronica, lo-fi field recordings, and film soundtracks, all of his music has been written, recorded, produced, and mixed in his living room.

In the Autumn of 2020, Hidde signed with the legendary LA label, Cleopatra Records, home to Joy Division, Blink-182, Elton John, Nico (of The Velvet Underground), Bob Marley, Santana, Donovan, Everclear, The Ataris, Jimmy Page (of Led Zeppelin) among many others.

On New Year’s Day 2024, Hidde announced the end of Prison Escapee after ten years. He then went on to express that he had three goals, which were to release ten albums, to get signed by a respectable indie-label and to have music featured in a film, and he has been blessed to accomplish them all.