Hey Macklemore, Can We Go Thrift Shopping?

Rockin’ cold ass honkies, releasin’ tear-jerking, heart-swelling videos and flat out killin’ it in every way possible, Macklemore and Ryan Lewis have been headlining the music world across the globe in the past month. With the release of their debut album The Heist on October 9 and subsequent cross-country tour, the duo has exponentially grew in fame and following. Almost every show of the tour, including those happening in over two months from now is completely sold out. On the day of its release the album reached the number 1 spot on iTunes; this is one hell of a CD.

The team took a number of steps to effectively reach this level of success. First of all, they have been working on this album for years and have had time to perfect it. Two of my favorite songs, (well, they’re all pretty much my favorite) “Wing$” and “Can’t Hold Us” have been out for years. As this is Maclkemore’s first album he was able to use two of his best songs to boost the record. Furthermore, he released the videos for “Thrift Shop” and “Same Love” weeks before October 9, which also helped increase excitement and awareness. The distinction between these two videos proves Macklemore’s cohesive and well-rounded skill set. “Thrift Shop” is amazing because it is a big ball of fur coated fun, hilarity and entertainment, yet is still lyrically brilliant. It’s arguably his most impressive rapping on the entire album and he’s talking about 99 cent gator shoes and broken keyboards. Most importantly, it shows his crew’s swag. Unlike many of his fellow celebrities, Macklemore maintains an incredibly down to earth mentality, proved in part by his style. “Same Love,” however, is amazing in different ways. The quality of video remains on par with all of his previous releases, but adds an entirely new dimension of tenderness and sentimentality. The video follows the life of a gay man, from his birth to his death, including a full celebration of his marriage to another man. “Same Love” is a beautiful proponent of legalizing same-sex marriage and advocating for gay rights. Macklemore drops intelligible, sensible lines throughout the song, for instance, “America the brave, still fear what we don’t know/And God loves all his children it’s somehow forgotten/ But we paraphrase a book written 3,500 hundred years ago.” He goes on to equate the fight for gay rights with the Civil Rights movement, saying until we are all equal there is no freedom.

Each song on the album (except perhaps “Jimmy Lovine”) is quality; this is an extremely deep record. Topics range from Macklemore’s very real struggle with drug addiction and relapse to his feelings of white privilege to, most frequently, his hometown of Seattle, Washington. Macklemore’s affinity for Seattle is representative of his modest attitude and love of the general public. By looking at any of the group’s social media sites (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, their blog.. anything) you can immediately tell the two musicians are not interested in fame, fortune or glamor. They believe they are making music for the benefit of their fans, not for the money or compensations. The team plays free concerts for those who couldn’t buy tickets to their main shows, they love meeting people on their tours and interacting with the public. This most likely is due to their pretty recent entrance into stardom; as Macklemore points out in “Victory Lap,” when he first partnered with Lewis they played shows for a total crowd of 8 people. While they have come a long way from those days (Macklemore can now launch himself a good 4 feet in the air into a sea of fans) they still remember how they started. Macklemore is quite literally glad to even be alive. It is this humility, this “music for the sake of music” attitude that separates the band from other Hip Hop artists. The Heist is one of the most impressive releases in the past year, both lyrically and in its production quality. It pairs intelligent, creative lyrics with beats that are simply enjoyable to listen to; no matter what type of music you prefer, I guarantee you can find a song on this album to play on repeat for the next few months. I for one haven’t turned off the entire CD since it came out.

(Find some tissues: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hlVBg7_08n0)