We Interview: Macklemore!

You mentioned going back to what you enjoy about the music. What exactly is that?
I enjoy those long nights in the studio. I enjoy feeling the beat and immediately getting that feeling that whatever sort of higher power you believe in, it's flowing through you. You don't even have to think, it just moves… that's on a level that is really rare. Those are the times that I live for. That's why I write this music. Those times when you have all these emotions just running out of you. You get these tears in your eyes and whatever it is you're writing about, it's that powerful and that intense. It doesn't really happen that often, so I think you should live a lifestyle that's conducive to those moments. You asked me what I love about this music, and I love writing something that you connect to on a deep level and that other people can relate to. When you write in a way that people feel what you're talking on a "that's my life" type of level, that's what I love about music. It's a high.

And do you feel like that’s happening in your new album?
Not really! No! I don't. I feel like I have songs but I'm not there. I've been really focused and I've tried to get there, and you sit down with a pen--and sometimes it's not there. Then you start thinking too hard, and you start thinking about all this pressure. It's been two and a half years since I put out my last album. There are a lot of expectations on me from the local community. That's funny to say as a local artist, but I get emails every day from around the country: "When's it coming out? Where's the new stuff?" And that's a lot of pressure on me. With The Language of my World that pressure didn't exist yet. You sit down and start thinking, "Okay, last time, I did this," and that's when you start thinking too much. All those expectations can really shut down your creativity. I mean… I have good songs. I have to tap into something deeper though.

What’s it like to be so well known in the community? You walk into Chop Suey and everyone knows you. Except for my housemate, who was like, “Who’s that idiot in the weird hat?”
Haha. I've heard that before. I have a lot of hats. Well, At first it was all exciting and weird, and now I don't really think about it. About a year ago, I started to realize that Seattle's really small. And just because people know who you are doesn't mean that they also like you or respect you. You always want to talk to people, but sometimes there's a point where you just don't want to be Macklemore, you know what I mean? Sometimes I want to go to a show with my hoodie on and just not do that whole thing. There are times when I wish that I wasn't this well-known, that people wouldn't know who I am. The first time I felt that was at Bumbershoot. There have been like two times in my life where I've felt that, so when I say there are times, it's really like twice. I like it and for the most part I love talking to people.

Tell me more about hiphop as a lifestyle, and what it’s like to be a white guy in that culture.
It's an interesting question. I would look at it in a couple different ways. You go to a show at Chop Suey, and you have been for years, and the majority, probably like 80%, are white. That's really how it is in a lot of places in this country. You have your top 40 artists that tend to bring out more of a diverse, black crowd, but in terms of the type of hip-hop that we have going on around here, it's mostly white kids. It wasn't always like that; when I first started about ten years ago, shows were a lot smaller and they were more diverse. It really hadn't caught on the way it has. And I'm sure there are people who've been around a lot longer than I have, who were listening to hiphop in the 80s, who will say, "It already happened, long before you," but in the last ten or eleven years I've been going to shows, it's really changed.

It's not hard to be a white person partaking in hiphop, but it's hard to see the culture really change in not necessarily the most diverse way. I know a lot of my people, my friends of color, they feel alienated from their own scene. They are the people that have made this city what it is and now they feel set apart from our city's hip-hop scene in a lot of ways. Of course as a white guy you're a part of that situation, and I think it's important to talk about it. There's not a lot you can do. I was just talking to one of the promoters in town and the promoter was saying what is he to do? He feels like he's a part of it, putting on these shows and contributing to the appropriation of the culture… but you can't really stop it, there's no way to stop it, and do you want to stop it?

In a lot of ways these white kids are supporting people's art form, and they are helping people eat and live. Are they the target audience these artists are going for? Probably not. They'd probably like to have a more diverse range of folks. But there's nothing you can really do. It's not necessarily a problem, it's just something to watch, and to have a dialogue about it. It's not a black and white issue, there's a lot of different levels to it. The biggest thing, the saddest thing, is the alienation of my friends from the community who are up on stage thinking, "there's none of us in the crowd." It's a different feeling when you walk in front of a diverse crowd, when you get a whole bunch of different faces and bodies in the crowd, different perspectives. It's a different energy than all white folks.

Let’s talk about shoes!
Hell yeah!

Hell yeah! I’m told you have a fondness for shoes.
I like shoes a lot. Too much. I'm getting good at not buying shoes so much. Actually, that's not really true. I just bought a pair of Vans, a size 10, and they are killing my feet. I got hooked up with 'em and couldn't really take them back, my pinky toe is just like… but yeah, I like shoes.

I was a product of the late '80s, early '90s Michael Jordan Syndrome. I will always have a place unique in my heart for Michael Jordan shoes. 90s, 91s, AirMaxes. I was on that, it was a part of growing up in this city. There was a time where I was traveling more in the Eastern part of the world and I thought, "Buying all these shoes is really not important in the greater scheme of this universe." But I came back here, and slowly but surely the shoe game came back into my life. I've really been trying to chill out. But I really love the 3s, the 4s, the 5s, the 6s of Michael Jordans. Airmax, 90's, 91s… Vans.

Do you have a shoe budget?
You know what? I don't. I've really gotten my shoe game up to the point that I only spend as much as I actually have. It's hard because you do a show and you get a certain amount of just, cash. And you're like, "Man… I could go buy some shoes!" That was where I spent a lot of my Language of My World money, kicking it and going to buy shoes. So I'm really trying to learn from my mistakes and adjust a little bit and save and make some smarter decisions. But I will always love shoes. I'm looking forward to the time when I get my money right and can go back to the shoe game. In moderation.

I heard that from Wizdom, that you like shoes.
Wiz. Oh man. Wiz is serious in the shoe game.

One of the things I’ve noticed about you is that you’ve done so many collaborations, and when you get up on stage there’s people with you. Not always, but frequently. Tell me about collaboration and what that means to you as an artist.
"Collab" is my least favorite word in hiphop. That usually means people hitting you up on Myspace, saying "I want to do a track with you, use your name and not pay you." If we're friends or have a mutual respect for one another's music, then great, let's do something. But overall, I believe artists should be compensated for their work. At the very least, buy someone lunch and a couple drinks. Time is money and it's important to acknowledge the time an artist is taking to record a verse/song.

I have friends who are nationally-known artists. I'd love to tap into their fan base. I could ask them to "collab" with me and they'd say sure. But it'd probably get finished in a year, if ever. If I offer them a little money, it gives them a different incentive. It makes it a priority for them. I can tell you right now, the features I've done in the town for free, every one of them I waited till the day before mixing/mastering to finish them. Every one. Part of that is my own lack of discipline and the other part is that it wasn't a priority. That's the problem with the "collab." If we're in the studio, the beat is right and the feeling is there, let's just create. People that are in my circle and I respect, let's do it. If you are just coming up, and we're not really friends and you're just trying to use my name, you gotta pay me.

What's it like to perform, and to perform the same songs so frequently?
It’s a nervewracking thing, getting up there. And it should be! It should be. You should be getting those anxious butterflies. If you’re not getting those, you’re not doing your job right. You want to walk out there thinking, “This is exciting, this is new, who knows what’s gonna happen in this moment…” You don’t wanna go out there going, “this is exactly what I’m gonna do, this is all laid out, I have a perfect picture of how this is gonna go.” I did so many shows for Language of My World, and there were times where I was doing the same sets most of the time, maybe a slightly different order. But you gotta always be thinking of new things to do. That’s a crucial aspect of performance.

Everybody can rap, everyone can learn the lyrics and do a good job, but there’s relatively few people who can get on stage and really engage the crowd. How do you engage the crowd? How do you give people an experience outside of just going to another hiphop show? I want to give people an experience where they connect with the message and the music. You have to find meaning in the words you’ve written. It’s hard, some of these songs I’ve performed hundreds of times, and how do you connect to a song you’ve performed and listened to hundreds of times?

You have to look into the audience and find the people who are hearing it for the first time, or maybe the song changed their life in a small or even insignificant way. Who knows? That’s something I really strive for. That’s extremely powerful. It’s like meditation or yoga. You can be just in a certain pose and in your head be having sex off in Utah, or you can really be in the moment and breathing into it, thinking about it. That’s what makes your presence on stage.

Are there any themes in your new album that have emerged yet?
It's really gonna document what I've been going through and what's been happening in my life. I'm at a really interesting time in my life. I'm 25 yrs old, I've been fortunate enough to make music and support myself off it, and I'm at the point now where I could go one of two ways. I think this album is really gonna capture that moment, someone at the crux of their life. I feel like what I'm going through in my personal life is really like what's going on in the music industry itself… I'm at the quarter century mark. Where do you go? With the questions and the struggles and the fear and all that comes with it. Ups and downs, the relationships, the drugs and alcohol, that kind of thing. The new album is about me. My albums will probably always be about me.

What are your personal and artistic goals for this year?
I want to put out the album! This year! Yes. I could list specific small things, but really what I want is to make the best music. What that really means is being the best person possible that I can be right now. Being the best human I can be. When you look at the things in your life that you know aren't conducive to health and start cutting things out… that's what I really want this year. I've been doing it for the first time in a really long time. Staying mentally focused and doing yoga and exercise, cutting out the relationships that I have in my life that are toxic to me. Really staying healthy and focusing on the music… that's where I need to be.

Seems like a lot of music comes from unhealthy people. On the other hand, a lot of good music also comes from that introspection you’re talking about. Whatever that means for you.
There's a balance in it all. Most of us Americans are unhealthy in numerous ways. A lot of us can identify our struggles through others. We're truly reflections of one another. An artist at one's highest self can capture that moment. They put it on paper, record it and if the artist is doing his/her job the listener will feel like they're living through it. Like they can see themselves in the artist's struggle or breakthrough, whatever subject matter it may be. I strive for that every time I write. It's taken me immense lows to write songs about drug addiction. The utmost love to capture a full heart. All situations, good and bad, can be turned into music. And that's why I love it.

Your favorite place to get a sandwich?
Tubs. Tubs. That place is really good. And I don’t know if this counts as a sandwich, but I love Philly Cheesesteak.