Lyrical genius level: Macklemore

"Claimed a culture that wasn't mine - the way of the american"

Jeg havde et vaskeægte hipster-moment for et par dage siden, I can't lie! Der var blevet slået en post op på RapSpot-boardet, hvor en bruger ville informere de andre brugere om "den her nye rapper" han lige havde opdaget, ved navn Macklemore. Han linkede til de obligatoriske "Otherside Remix" og "Wings" og sagde at folk "helt klart skulle checke ham ud". Der sad jeg og tænkte "jamen ham har jeg sgu da snakket om i evigheder! - Læser I ikke min blog?!". Som sagt ægte hipster-stil á lá "I was hyping Macklemore before it was cool"! På den anden side blev jeg næsten helt glad, for hvis det er lykkedes hiphop-interesserede, der synes Macklemore er fantastisk, at undvige min The Language of My World anmeldelse fra 2009, to track-reviews der er halvandet år gamle og et gratis mixtape hvor han var på, så må det betyde, at der stadig er mange "derude" der endnu ikke kender til min blog. Sådan vælger jeg i hvert fald at tolke det, og det er en god ting.
     Endvidere synes jeg det er alletiders at se og høre rundt omrking, at Macklemore er ved at blive et halv-kendt navn herhjemme. Det som jeg dog synes er lidt ærgerligt er, at det hver gang er "Otherside" remixet og "Wings" der bliver snakket om. Ikke fordi de ikke er fænomenale - det er uden tvivl to mesterværker der er tale om - men i forhold til hvor meget fantastisk musik Macklemore har udgivet, så begrænser folk virkelig deres horisont ved kun at lytte til de to numre.
Som dette indlægs titel antyder, så ser jeg Macklemore som en af de absolut dygtigste og skarpeste rappere pt. Han mestrer alt fra det alvorlige og yderst tankevækkende - som det er tilfældet på bl.a. "Otherside" og "Wings", men samtidig kan han være ufattelig morsom og vittig (en side af ham han måske ikke får helt nok kredit for) og så er han bedre end nogen anden til at bruge sig selv som hovedperson i problematiske fortællinger. Der er ikke mange plader, der har formået at ryste mit følelsesregister i lige så høj grad som The Language of My World, - det er ganske simpelt utroligt hvordan Macklemore kan røre en som lytter, både på den ene, den anden og den tredje måde. Jeg vil derfor tage en lille håndfuld numre fra denne plade for enten at udvidde jeres kendskab til Macklemore eller minde jer om hvor vild han faktisk er. Enjoy.

"White Privilege"

Efter min mening en af de bedste tekster nogensinde skrevet og rappet af en hvid MC

"I see so many people lost, who really try to pretend /
But am I just another white boy who's caught on to the trend? /
When I take a step to the mic is hiphop closer to the end? /
'Cause when I go to shows the majority have white skin /
They marketed the windmill, the air flair and head spin /
And white rappers albums really get the most spins /
The face of hiphop has changed alot since Eminem /
And if he's taking away black artists profits I look just like him /
Claimed a culture that wasn't mine, the way of the american /
Hiphop is gentrified and where will all the people live /
It's like the central district, Beacon Hill to the south end /
Being pushed further away because of what white people did, now /
Where's my place in a music that's been taken by my race /
Cultural appropriated by the white face /
And we don't wanna admit that this is existing /
So scared to acknowledge the benefits of our white privilege /
'Cause it's human nature to wanna be part of something different /
Especially when your ancestors are european christians /
And most whites don't want to acknowledge that this is occurring /
'Cause we got the best deal; the music without the burden /
Of being black in a system that really wants you to rock /
'Cause all you need is a program and you can go and make hiphop /
And we hate the mainstream 'cause we're the ones that took it /
Now we listen to Aesop Rock and wears t-shirts that say Brooklyn /
But it's not about black and white right /
I mean good music is good music regardless of what you look like /
But when you don't give them props, isn't that selfish? /
That's like saying rock was actually started by Elvis /
So where does this leave me? /
I feel like I pay dues but I'll always be a white MC /
I give everything I have when I write a rhyme /
But that doesn't change the fact that this culture's not mine /
But I'm gonna be me so please be who you are /
This is something that's effortless and it shouldn't be hard /
I said I'm gonna be me, so please be who you are /
But we still owe 'em 40 acres now we've stolen their 16 bars"

Hiphop started off on a block that I've never been to
To counter-act a struggle that I've never even been through
If I think I understand just because I flow too
That means I'm not keeping it true, nope
Hiphop started off on a block that I've never been to
To counter-act a struggle that I've never even been through
If I think I understand just because I flow too
That means I'm not keeping it true, not keeping it true

"Now I don't rap about guns, so they lavel me "conscious" /
But I don't rap about guns 'cause I wasn't forced into the projects /
See I was put in the position where I could choose my options /
Blessed with the privilege that my parents could send me to college /
Now who's going to shows? The kids on the block starving /
Or the white people with dough that can relate to my content? /
Marketed the music now adapted to the lifestyle /
What happened to jazz and rock'n'roll is happening right now /
Where's my place in the music that's been taken by the media /
With white corporations controlling what they're feeding ya /
I brought up Aesop Rock but I'm not even dissing dude /
We love hiphop and what do you think the caucasians are listening to? /
And I speak freely when I write this /
If a black MC examined race - there goes half their fanbase, white kids /
And this is so true, and we didn't even have to fight the system /
We just went and picked up the microphone too /
And we got good at it, so we should be rapping /
But only supporting them is like burning Jimmy and buying Clapton /
Now Clapton's incredible, but no Jimmy no foundation /
So here comes history and the cultural appropriation /
White kids with do-rags trying to practice their accents /
From the suburbs to the upperclass mastering a language /
But hiphop is not just memorizing words /
It's rooted in authenticity, something you litterally can't learn /
But I'm gonna be me, so please be who you are /
This is something that's effortless and it shouldn't be hard /
I said I'm gonna be me, so please be who you are /
But as I'm blessed with the privilege, they're still left with the scars"

Hiphop started off on a block that I've never been to
To counter-act a struggle that I've never even been through
If I think I understand just because I flow too
That means I'm not keeping it true, nope
Hiphop started off on a block that I've never been to
To counter-act a struggle that I've never even been through
If I think I understand just because I flow too
That means I'm not keeping it true, not keeping it true

"Penis Song"

produceret af Macklemore selv. Producer-Macklemore har heller ikke fået nok kredit

Ladies and gentlemen
introducing, the penis song (oh no he didn't)
(honkey dick!)

This is my penis song
I wish that I had a bigger shlong
One that was quite a bit more thick and way more long
One of those porno King Kong dongs

Haha, check it out, yo, uh

"I was my dick was bigger, yep I can admit it /
I'm above average on inches but I want a damn double digits /
If I had a big ol' cock what would I do? /
I'd probably go to Florida and show it to Trina and screw /
Get buck naked and start streaking at my school /
And get arrested but at least the girls would be impressed with /
my third leg and, and then I'd go to a keg and /
Do a keg stand, get drunk and do the running man /
With no clothes on just to show off /
My dick's bigger than yours when mine is cold and soft /
Haha, oh yeah, I forgot, that's not really the cock that I have /
I went out and party-bagged 'em and quickly opened the package /
And it fit me like Kriss Kross's old-school starter jackets /
Trying to convince myself, like "size doesn't matter" /
Anyways I'd probably just put it on backwards 'cause I mean /
I know that God made us all different ans special /
But shit, did he really have to invent lopsided testicles?!"

I don't have them I just feel bad for, like, you know, the guys with like, you know their left one hangs like lower than the right one, kinda like a, kinda like a lazy eye, like on your, on your balls - I mean I don't know I just heard, and I feel bad


This is my penis song
I wish that I had a bigger shlong
One that was quite a bit more thick and way more long
Fellas if y'all feel me sing along

Yo ladies! (yeah?)
Ladies! (yeah?)
Do you want a guy with an average dick? (Hell no!)
Then......
..Wait, you don't?! (I don't want yo honkey dick!)
Okay that's cool, no, that's fine

"I promise, I'm so self conscious /
That's why you never see me skinny dippin' in August /
Always walkin' around with my hands in my pockets trying to pump blood into my guy Alfonso /
I mean goddamn, I don't think you girls understand /
I've had a complex since that song "Short Short Man" /
And even though girls have told me that I'm big /
When I watch a porno I feel like a little kid /
I mean, let's take Ron Jeremy /
Now if a girl sees him she'll compare him to me /
And every MC in hiphop has got a huge cock /
Or at least talks about it in every song that they drop /
I mean shit /
If I was really hung I'd make a whole album called Me and My Dick /
With interludes of all the girls that I'd been with /
And talk about my package and multiple orgasms /
'Cause all that I see is that size does matter /
We got Enzite, penis pumps, surgery to Viagra /
But when it all adds up you can't reallt change it /
I'm not a porno star, I just gotta face i"

You know, what can I do, nothing right
This song goes out to, like, all the, like, little bit above average dudes, to, like, the small dudes, medium dudes, but all you big guys, STOP"


This is my penis song
I wish that I had a bigger shlong
One that was quite a bit more thick and way more long
Fellas if y'all feel me sing along

"Fake ID"

Ligeledes produceret af Macklemore selv. Læg mærke til hvordan han går fra at mindes de gode dage med falsk ID til at stor-svine samtlige dørmænd på bedste skolegårds-manér, fordi han "kommer til" at minde sig selv om hvor surt det var at få sit falske ID konfiskeret. Det er simpelthen rent guld!

Ladies and gentlemen! My name is Macklemore, this is my music and it feels so damn good right about now. Check it I got a story, yo it goes a little something like...

"When I was 17 I was staying in NYC /

And my homie told me where I could get a fake ID /

"Ayo son, you better get that shit when you in NY" /

So I hopped on the subway and I gave it a try /

To me pleasant surprise, the ID looked fine /

5'9'', blue eyes, born in 1979 - that's right /

Nervous as hell I went to the store with my homie /

Came out and yelled "DAWG THEY SOLD ME 40!" /

You know that I was the man /

Buying liquor contraband with a fake ass hologram /

No more looking for bums, standing in the rain /

Stranded on Broadway and giving 'em all my change /

For the rest of the summer, man I was on fades /

17, had it made, getting drunk everyday /

Ay, I got treated a whole new way /

Because of a piece of plastic that proved I was of age"

You know what I'm saying, all of a sudden you get this little piece of plastic... and you're in the club! 17 like BWAA! Check it out, it's like this yo

"For the next three years I had so much fun /
Getting drunk at hiphop clubs where you had to be 21 /
'Till one day I was walking and I saw a sign /
It said KRS-One, 21 up and live /
That's hella tight /
Ayo I heard he always ripped it /
So I hopped up in my civic and went out to bye a ticket /
When I got to the doors the bouncers checken ID's /
Looks at mine and he's like "Nah, we don't take these" /
I tried to reach and grab my shit back /
But that motherfucker was tougher than Shaq, on crack /
I should have punched him but I would've reached his kneecap /
And that probably wouldn't have hurt him very much /
He kept laughing and smiling and he called me a dumb shit /
And if I would've let myself I would have cried in public /
Oh no, I'm like "give it back bro" /
But no, my ID was jacked by the caucasion Deebo"

Haha, I'm laughing right now, but at the time, it really was not funny..... and it still not very funny....
Fucker!

"BITCH why you gotta take my ID?! /
Why do I gotta be 21 to drink a long island icetea? /
I hate bouncers with their bald heads /
And ten foot tall legs and shirts that they outgrew when they were like 10 /
Get 'em! /
Your mother is dumb for having you /
You're a bouncer because you have a small dick and as a kid everyone laughed at you /
Get 'em! /
You're too big and you never seemed to listen /
You look injected with that shit they give to KFC chickens /
Get 'em! /
I don't like ya, at all, I despise you /
If I was tall I would fight you /
If I was a dog I'd bite you /
Every single day you make people cry /
And your job is to go an' ruin teenagers lives /
Okay, I'm going too far, bouncers aren't all bad /
I'm sure they make great husbands and really strong dads /
But hopefully you've learned a lesson from me /
Never take a MCs fake ID /
Yep, I said never take a MCs fake ID /
You can be buff and tough it don't matter to me /
'Cause you're gonna get burned if you step to MCs"

"As Soon As I Wake Up" feat. Step Cousins

Den sidste sang jeg vil spille for jer (!!) er måske ikke lige så lyrisk skarp som de tre forgående, men "As Soon As I Wake Up" var den første sang jeg hørte med Macklemore; den, der tilbage i 08/09 fik mig hooked på ham, og nok stadig min favorit sang med ham den dag i dag. Samtidig byder den indledende dialog virkelig på words to live by, om man er "artist" eller ej - inspiration når det er stærkest.

To really be a creator, you must ask yourself: "In the stillist moment of your night, if it were truly denied you to create, would you die?". And if your answer is "yes": you have no choice, that IS your choice. Because there's no euphoria in a different place for an artist. That's where you are; that's what you do. That's it and it's not an easy life, but that's your life

As soon as I wake up, I'm gonna change my ways
'Cause the music's my savior, no one can take my pain
Except for this paper, the page it flows like rain
As soon as I wake up, I'm gonna change my ways

"Instead of staying the same /
Because I see better days ahead of me /
I paint them on the page /
Then I save them for the rainy ones /
When anger and the anguish want to hang around /
I say 'em out loud and complain to them /
I figure I'm made to live and haven't gone that far /
But I made it here, so if there is a God I give thanks to him /
Then I take a pen and make amends again /
The only way I know to repent /
I know somebody listenin'"

"Dear God I'm so thankful for you keeping my plate full /
The struggles, heartache, pain, the progress and the breakthrough /
Every single track has made who I am to this day /
Prove this page is the only way to paint you /
But lately, it's like my soul feels coutnerfeit /
Scared to pick up the pen to see what the hell might come out of it /
So God grant me the serenity without giving me the christianing /
Because all I ever needed was a beat and people listenin'"
Step Cousins

As soon as I wake up, I'm gonna change my ways
'Cause the music's my savior, no one can take my pain
Except for this paper, the page it flows like rain
As soon as I wake up, I'm gonna change my ways

"Instead of rotting away and plotting my grave, hiding in a bottomless shame /
I found a way to fight my way out and see the light of day /
And proud to say I took the safe route but there's a price to pay /
They like to keep my name in they mouth and tell lies on me /
What you see is what you get, truth in the flesh homie /
You can do the rest, I'm through with trying to prove myself to you /
I'll see you when you wake up, hope the feeling is mutual"

"Now for artists and musicians you see the target's to list /
To the heart inscripts with no margins, no limit /
To make to pain, strengths, sun rays a part of the picture /
And can bathe in every shade and take it farther and vivid /
They're going to say what they say /
Abrasion the vision and whatever the dj plays, they mark and they gimmick /
But I've got a path to follow and along with the distance /
I realize I'm already awake, I'm just startin' to live it"
My language

As soon as I wake up, I'm gonna change my ways
'Cause the music's my savior, no one can take my pain
Except for this paper, the page it flows like rain
As soon as I wake up, I'm gonna change my ways

Nu har I fået fire "startere", resten må I selv finde. Jeg har det i hvert fald selv sådan med musik, at en del af glæden ligger i selve opdagelsen af "det nye", så selvom jeg sagtens kunne poste samtlige Macklemore sange her for jer, så synes jeg at I selv skal gå på opdagelse i hans katalog - hvis I da blev fanget af det I har hørt her. Mange af jer kender med garanti det hele, men for dem, der endnu ikke har bevæget sig hele vejen ind i Macklemore-land, så ser hans katalog sådan her ud:

Professor Macklemore - Open Your Eyes (mixtape)(2000)
Macklemore - The Language of My World (2005)
Macklemore - The Unplanned Mixtape (2009)
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis - The Vs. EP (2009)
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis - The Vs. Redux EP (2010)

- Som en sidste bemærkning: Skal man på Roskilde Festival i år, så husk endelig at fange Macklemore & Ryan Lewis' første koncert i Danmark. De skulle efter sigende være forrygende live. Not to be missed!

- Jeppe "hipster" Barslund