macklemore//

Ben Haggerty mostly known as Macklemore is an independent American hip hop artist. He has won many awards including four grammys. (Best rap song, best rap album, best rap performance and best new artist) He has significantly collaborated with producer Ryan Lewis as Macklemore & Ryan Lewis.

Why choose hip hop as your platform in the music industry?

I’ve been into music since I was young. I’ve listened to different artists from different genres but there was a point in my life, I think I was six at that time when I discovered this alternative hip hop group called Digital Underground. Since then I started to become more interested in hip hop and by the age of 15, I started to write my own lyrics. From then on, I started to sing and I started to listen to a lot of East Coast underground hip hop. So yeah, basically I’ve lived my whole life listening to hip hop which is why I decided to choose hip hop despite knowing that I would receive a lot of criticism because I’m white.

How can you differ yourself from all the other hip hop artists or rappers?

I make real music. I make music which people can relate to, music that means something. Nowadays, most rappers make music which people don’t relate to. Talking about how much girls they get, how much drugs they take, how much money they have. None of that matters you know. Their music might have a good beat, good tempo but music is not just about that. I write music on behalf of those who are afraid to say something. My song “Same Love” talks about having equal rights and not all people who believes in having equal rights has the courage to stand up for what they believe in. As an artist who makes real music, I want to make my audience feel that they’re not alone. I want them to listen to my music and feel good about themselves after, you know what I mean? It’s hard to find good, real music in today’s generation because some artists think that talking about their own wealth would make people respect them more. I want people to respect me because of the music that I make and not because of how much money I earn or how many girls I get.

What can you say are some of the criticism that you’ve got which had an impact on your career?

Um. One of the main criticism I have gotten and still getting is me being a white hip hop artist. We all know that being a white rapper isn’t something new to the music industry but it is definitely something not all people can accept. You know me and Ryan were rejected by record labels when we first entered the music industry because we're white. Which clearly shows how the industry separates the artists based on their skin color. Since me and Ryan weren't "accepted" in the industry, we decided to go as independent artists. And after gaining some success, these record labels started chasing after us and some artists started to think twice about being in a record label. I was actually deemed as the poster child of cultural appropriation and white privilege. Especially after winning some grammys last 2014 people started asking how white people, me and Ryan, got an award for best rap album, best rap song and best rap performance. For me, I’ve learned how to understand the criticism as my career goes by. I’ve learned how to accept them but at the same time not let them get through what I’m doing and that is making real music.

What kind of impact do you want to make from your music?

Just like what I said, I want my audience to relate to my music. I want them to listen to my music and get something out of ‘em. I make music with moments in it. I don’t make music to win hip hop’s approval. I don’t worry too much on how I’ll get other people to like me, I don’t care if they don’t think I’m a rapper or whatever you know. I’ll let the music speak for itself.