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What genre does Seattle rapper Macklemore belong to? Indie hip-hop, yes, but in 2012 that term could describe any rapper besides the approximately eight lucky MCs who have major label contracts. His penchant for self-effacement and irony could land him in the nerdcore camp, except that his breakout hit “Thrift Shop” doesn’t contain a single shout-out to “Weird Al” Yankovic. Maybe we can settle on “hipstercore,” because who else but a hipster would pen a ode to Cosby sweaters and footie pajamas?
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It’s appropriate that producer Ryan Lewis gets co-headliner credit for “Thrift Shop,” since for all Macklemore’s wit and charisma, the song would be a mixtape throwaway if it weren’t for the killer sax sample that makes the song the best US3 track that never was. With an irresistible singalong chorus (“this is fuck-ing awe-some”), the track stutters and struts in perfect complement to Macklemore’s confident flow. It’s as true of rap as any other genre: write what you know.
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The video, directed by Macklemore and Lewis with Jon Jon Augustavo, has the duo making hay at their local thrift shop with a posse as diverse as the audience the song has been finding on YouTube and, now, on radio. Now when the 30-year-old artist visits thrift shops, he tells City Pages, he gets recognized as the industry’s best evangelist. He’s not letting success go to his head, though: “Just because we’re making more money now than we had a few years ago, doesn’t mean thrift shops aren’t still the main place where I buy clothes.”
Words by Jay Gabler, a co-founder and co-editor of The Tangential.
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The post Guilty Pleasures: Macklemore Ups The Ante With “Thrift Shop”; Is He The Ultimate “Hipstercore” Genre Artist? appeared first on Portable.tv.