Macklemore
Macklemore
Ben Haggerty, known by his stage name Macklemore and formerly Professor Macklemore is an American hip hop recording artist from Seattle, Washington. His stage name originated from his childhood; it was the name of his made-up superhero. Since 2000, he has independently released one mixtape, three EPs, and four albums. He has significantly collaborated with producer Ryan Lewis as Macklemore & Ryan Lewis...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionRapper
Date of Birth19 June 1983
CitySeattle, WA
CountryUnited States of America
It's just way more fun making art, growing, grinding for a fan base, and traveling the world with a friend.
As a white male in America, I have privilege. As a white male who happens to be an artist with a fan base, I have a platform to spread awareness about that privilege. However, songs about race and privilege are very difficult to A) write and B) dissect as a listener. They're heavy.
Hip-hop was started as a very egocentric, testosterone, machismo-driven art form. The way that people are trying to take away that masculinity that is a such an intrinsical part of hip-hop music.
I put myself in the place of the listener when editing my writing. The last thing that I want to do is be preached at and told who to be or what to think when listening to an artist. However, I do want to be inspired. There's a fine line.
I just want to give the people 100% of myself as an artist.
For me, being transparent about every aspect of my life is what makes my music relatable and how I'm able to be an individual amongst the mass amounts of other artists.
I wanted to get clean. I knew that my highest potential, the place that I was most spiritual, the place that I was the most rich in terms of my life, and my livelihood, and my art and my creativity, was when I was sober.
A life lived for art, is never a life wasted.
I definitely use "smiling while rapping" as a tool in the booth. I want to have fun while recording. At times it can get tedious and stressful when it's not sounding the way you heard it in your head, but you've got to remember to just smile and appreciate the fact that you're even in the booth and there are people who want to hear your art.
I think people are enticed by indie rap and every time you have a group going against the grain, they're gonna be like, 'Wow, you did it yourself in 2012, that's impressive - how did you do it? What're you doing that's different? And how can I be a part of it?'
'Vote Love' means vote equality. It means vote change. It means vote what's right for humanity.
Its easy to view politicians as corrupt and voting essentially an act of picking the lesser of two evils. I understand that perspective and feel it's valid.
'The more expensive the better' is kind of the American way, and if you spent $600 for a sweatshirt, then that makes it better.
I like to be as diverse as possible. I think the humorous side and the serious side are both elements of my personality. It's what makes me who I am and if I was to neglect either one of those sides and just focus on one of them, it wouldn't be the full spectrum of my personality.