As a big fan of rap music since the early 90’s, I’ve unfortunately seen some of my favorite rappers pass away at a very young age. And calling these artists only “favorite rappers” is a large understatement as they meant so much more to me. They were there for me in my headphones when nobody else could get to me. They helped me escape the things that I didn’t want to deal with and they took me inside their lives through their stories over instrumentals. They made me see other parts of the country that I wasn’t aware of through school text books and TV shows. What did a young white kid growing up in the 90’s know about the hood? NOTHING! What did I know about girls? NOTHING! What did I know about making money? NOTHING! These rappers introduced me to a lot of things at an early age and taught me a lot about love, emotion, struggle, and just life in general. These rappers were my teachers so when I started seeing them taken away from the world so early I really didn’t understand how it would affect me.
Our parents tell us stories about where they were during monumental historical moments in their lives. They can tell us in such detail what they were doing when JFK was shot or when Neil Armstrong walked on the moon for the first time. But when I get older what am I going to remember? The Twin Towers falling is one for all of us but that is one we’d all rather just not think of ever again. For me, the ‘92 LA Riots and OJ on the run from the police in the White Bronco are two that I can remember vividly. But remembering the exact moment when I heard the news that some of my favorite hip hop artists had died are moments that have been tattooed in my memory forever. In my teenage years, the great Eazy-E died from AIDS in 1995 and then both 2Pac and Biggie get murdered in the 2 consecutive years after. While Eazy was no longer on top of the rap world in ‘95, he was still a huge name for his work with NWA and helping to put West Coast Gangster Rap on the map. But 2Pac and Biggie? Damn! They were the biggest in the rap game at the time and 2 of the biggest artists in the whole music industry. They helped push the genre of rap music into the mainstream where it still lives today. Big and Pac were taken from us way too soon and their deaths crippled the rap world in the late 90’s. Pac and Biggie had many more classics to drop and their impact was felt by all true fans of rap music including me. Over the past couple of decades we’ve also had to say goodbye to more important hip hop artists like Big L, Guru from Gang Starr, ODB, Big Pun, Phife Dawg from A Tribe Called Quest, the West Coast crooner Nate Dogg, Jam Master Jay, Mac Dre, Prodigy from Mobb Deep, Pimp C, Sean Price, Mac Dre, and one of the most well respected beatmakers ever in the game, J Dilla. The same story here… All gone too soon.
Shout out to Alex Gaston and Drez William on the dope piece!
But, of all those in the hip hop world that have been taken from us too soon, it was Mac Miller’s death in 2018 from an accidental overdose that hit me the hardest. Mac’s ascension continued year after year as he expressed himself creatively through his music and then all of a sudden he’s just gone? Mac had just dropped his beautiful Swimming album a month before his death and he was getting ready to hit the road to support the album. Both fans and critics gave the album positive reviews and this tour was going to be a big one for Mac. Through Mac’s lyrics on Swimming you could tell that he was in a better place than he had been with some of his past albums. Mac sounded as if he had started to find a peace of mind on the Swimming album and for those that followed Mac through his ups and downs, this was great progress for the young talent.
I can’t claim to have been a Mac fan since day 1 like but I became hooked with his outstanding 2013 album Watching Movies with the Sound Off where he collaborated with a lot of great rappers and producers out in Los Angeles which culminated in a great piece of music for Miller. After this album, Mac dropped his 11th mixtape, Faces on Mother’s Day of 2014. Faces would be his final mixtape and it was recorded in his home studio out in California with a lot of the psychedelic and jazzy production being handled by Mac himself. This project was where I first recognized Mac’s greatness. This piece of art just struck a chord with me and where I was at that point in my life. In this streaming era we live in now, we no longer listen to full albums on repeat but that Faces mixtape owned my headphones in 2014. Faces was just so raw. In listening to his lyrics you could tell that Mac was going through some sh*t during the recording of this mixtape but of all of Mac Miller’s releases, it’s the Faces project that I personally feel is his best work.
Malcolm James McCormick’s lyrics connected with me in a way that not many artists had. Mac rapped about his battles with his inner demons through his music and he laid out all of his inner problems in his songs for listeners to connect with. Mac described his mental health state constantly on his songs and if you were going through a rough patch in your life, Mac was there for you to relate to with his lyrics. For some, dark thoughts are something that you bury deep inside yourself but for Mac, his writing was his therapy. And on the flip side, listening to his music was therapy for all of his fans too. We are all going through things that close friends and family don’t even know about and with Mac I felt I had a homie that I could connect with during tough times. I didn’t have that type of connection with other artists. Losing Mac at the age of 26 was devastating. Over the last several years, Mac dropped a string of solid releases with GO:OD AM, The Divine Feminine, and Swimming. And now, we have the posthumous release of the album Circles that was recorded before Mac’s death and was meant to be a companion album to 2018’s Grammy nominated Swimming album. While Mac is another rap artist that’s simply gone too soon, it’s wonderful that we have another album in Circles for all of his fans to hear new music from him one more time.
I know that there are many music fans out there that still have probably not given Mac their undivided listening attention to realize how special he truly was. And while his new album release should bring more listeners to explore his back catalog, I wanted to pay my respects to the greatness of Mac Miller through some of my favorite songs of his. These are in no particular order but I hope you enjoy what I’ve included. And if I can get a new listener of his music through my words then my mission will be accomplished. While Mac Miller is gone too soon, his legacy will continue to live through his art. RIP Mac!
“Diablo”
“Diablo” is off the brilliant Faces mixtape from 2014 and it is produced by Mac’s alter-ego Larry Fisherman. It’s the paino and sax sampling from John Contrane and Duke Ellington’s “In a Sentimental Mood” that catches you from the very beginning and the confidence and braggadocio Mac carries with his delivery makes this one of my favorite songs of his.
“Best Day Ever”
From Mac’s 2011 mixtape from the same name, Mac’s track “Best Day Ever” came early in his career but you can see his star shine through the song. The throwback family video footage of a young Malcolm shows you the kind of spirit he was. This is just one of those songs that puts a smile on your face and the video puts it over the top. One of the best songs to start with if you don’t know much of Mac’s music.
“Kool Aid and Frozen Pizza”
In Mac’s music you can tell that he’s an old hip hop soul and rapping over Lord Finesse’s “Hip 2 Da Game” proves just that. Many young rappers today don’t respect the classics but Mac was a clear student of the rap game and was very much in tune with the golden era of hip hop. Lord Finesse tried to sue Mac for 10 million for using his beat (!!!!) but the 2 rappers later settled on an undisclosed amount. “Kool Aid and Frozen Pizza” can be found on Mac’s 2010 mixtape K.I.D.S.
“82 - 92”
If you’re a fan of emcees rapping their a**es off then this is the track for you. Over a bangin’ Statik Selektah beat, Mac and Termanology spit lethal bars changing their flows and cadence and the spirit of competition is clearly alive on this track. These 2 rappers were trying to 1 up each other with every verse and that is why it makes this list. Fire!
“The Star Room”
The album Watching Movies with the Sound Off dropped in 2013 and this was the dark psychedelic intro to the album that did a wonderful job of setting the tone for the album. Mac was living out in LA at the time and spent a lot of time recording with other rappers like Earl Sweatshirt, Vince Staples, Ab-Soul, and ScHoolboy Q which helped push Mac to creatively explore new styles. The album featured a who’s who of independent rappers of the time included a star-studded cast of producers like Flying Lotus, The Alchemist, Pharrell, Earl Sweatshirt, Clams Casino, and Mac himself.
“Weekend”
The GO:OD AM album was full of heaters and this one with Miguel on the hook is just that. A certified banger. Mac kicks lyrics about life’s stresses while Miguel comes in crooning about everything being all good by the weekend. It’s a great anthem for all my corporate 9-5ers out there!
“Programs”
Mac had been pretty quiet on the music scene leading up to the 3 songs he dropped in May of 2018 that support the upcoming release of his Swimming album. Mac’s name was all over in the news leading up to the release of these 3 tracks due to his well publicized breakup with Ariana Grande along with his DUI arrest after he crashed his Mercedes G Wagon into a utility pole. Nobody knew what state Mac was going to be in with these 3 songs but with “Programs” you could tell he was as focused as ever. The flow is on point and so is the beat. Mac was back!
“Here We Go”
The triumphant horn sample pulled from an old soul track from The Delfonics give Mac ample room to talk his sh*t. This is the first actual song where Mac is spitting on the Faces mixtape and you can just tell the kid is hungry. He feels that nobody else on the mic is really on his level and I can’t argue that. Faces is one of the albums that truly set Mac apart from the rest. And he doesn’t hold back from letting listeners know…. “I did it all without a Drake feature!”
“Objects in the Mirror”
Mac was very comfortable floating through different styles and genres with his music and on “Objects in the Mirror” you find him singing on an entire song over a Pharrell beat. And it just works. The video below captures the song even better where Mac performs with The Internet as his backup band.
“I’ll Be There”
“I’ll Be There” is off the Best Day Ever mixtape and it’s a song dedicated to his mom. It is easily up there with “Dear Mama” from Pac and “Hey Mama” from Kanye as the best dedications to moms from rappers. This is one of those songs from Mac that just puts a smile on your face and makes you think about your mom and everything she’s done for you. Mac’s verses are broken up with a great hook by a singing Phonte Coleman from Little Brother which really adds to the song. This is a rare rap song that you can actually play for your mother!
“2009”
There were so many deep cuts on Swimming but I keep coming back to “2009” as my favorite from that album. “2009” is an emotional song where Mac takes listeners back to a time before all of the fame and the accolades he had garnered. He touches on his struggle with anxiety and depression in the song but Is his words it seems as if he had found a way to manage it better. From the opening strings, slow piano, finger snaps, and kick drum this beat is so melodic. Throw in Mac’s sing-song delivery on the track and this instantly becomes an outstanding piece of art that will stand the test of the time and hold as one of Mac’s best songs that he has ever created. If you’re a fan of NPR’s Tiny Desk Concerts be sure to check out Mac perform “2009” along with a couple of additional tracks from Swimming. Well worth the 17 minutes of your time and it helps bring Mac to life and show you the kind of soul he was.
“Dang!”
Mac Miller and Anderson Paak were a perfect fit together on “Dang!” off of Mac’s album, The Divine Feminine. Paak had dropped his classic Malibu album earlier in the year so the timing of having him on the new single was perfect. Mac is in the zone with the flow and slowing things down to sing a bit and Paak kills the chorus. The video equally matches the vibe of the song and all around this was simply well done. I don’t think it’s possible to listen to this song and not dance or nod your head just a little bit.
“In the Morning”
Most of the songs I’ve listed here would appear on many playlists of Mac’s greatest hits from fans but I feel that “In the Morning” is completely slept on. He’s joined by bassist Thundercat and Syd from The Internet on this cut that was included at the end of his live album with The Internet, Live from Space. It’s apparently an unreleased song from the Watching Movies album. Not sure how this track missed the cut because this is just smooth.
If you’re new to Mac Miller and like what you’ve heard so far, check out my Mac Miller playlist on Spotify which I’ve embedded below. This is a long playlist containing my favorite songs off of his albums available on Spotify along with some of his guest features. Still can’t believe he’s gone but I’m so thankful that he left us with so many great songs and albums to listen to. Mac was a very special artist! I hope you enjoy!