In Defense Of Macklemore

Just give him a chance

People seem to have a lot of strong opinions about Macklemore these days. And why shouldn't they? He also has very strong opinions, which are made clear through the lyrics to his songs. But are we at the point where people are hating Macklemore just for the sake of hating him?

After the Grammys, there was a lot of negative feedback first about how Macklemore won many awards that he "didn't deserve" and then even more negative feedback about his text to Kendrick Lamar after the fact.

This is the text that Macklemore sent to his rap colleague and then posted on Instagram, which many people took as a publicity stunt rather than a genuine act of admiration and respect.

I disagree with all of these negative sentiments of the musician. I choose to believe that Macklemore isn't some shallow rapper trying to get rich and famous just to be rich and famous. Maybe I'm naive, but anyone that listens to any of his music beyond his chart topping singles would know that Macklemore is so much more than just a rapper. He's an artist.

That's not to say that other rappers aren't artists, but Macklemore truly chose the path of "starving artist" to get to where he is today. Rather than writing raps about getting drunk or high and having sex with a plethora of women, his raps are about his struggles with addiction, his opinions on society, and his journey to becoming a successful rapper.

I've chosen several songs off his and Ryan Lewis' album "The Heist" that prove what a hardworking and talented artist he really is.

Ten Thousand Hours

In my opinion, this is his most inspiring and underrated song. An allusion to Malcom Gladwell's idea that it takes 10,000 hours of practice to become a "master" in a field, this song is the first track on the album, as well it should be. It gives an important message, that if at first you don't succeed try, try again, and if even then you don't succeed, keep trying.

My favorite line from this song (and one of my favorite quotes ever): "The greats weren't great because at birth they could paint, the greats were great because they paint a lot."

Starting Over

As stated earlier, Macklemore openly talks about his struggles with addiction. In fact, he rapped about these struggles even before he was famous, helping some of his faithful listeners battling their own problems with addiction through his uplifting lyrics. This song talks about his first, and hopefully only, relapse. He talks about how helpless and hypocritical he feels when someone approaches him and says that he's the reason she got clean. Overall, it's just a very moving song that shows everyone makes mistakes, but what's important is how we fix those mistakes and work past them.

My favorite line from this song: "If I can be an example of getting sober, then I can be an example of starting over."

Victory Lap

As the title implies, this song is literally just Macklemore recounting his rise as a rapper. It's just so upbeat, so catchy, and so inspirational. There honestly even isn't much to say about it, it just so perfectly captures what he's all about.

My favorite line from this song: "I know no limits, life can change in an instant. 8 people turn into sold out shows in a minute."

Gold

I could go on forever talking about Macklemore and this album in particular, but I'll leave you with this last song. This is my favorite song off the album because it's so damn catchy and so damn fun. I honestly can't pick out my favorite lyrics because I just love the whole song so much.

I warn you, once you listen to it, you'll never be able to stop.