Source: Rolling Stone / Getty
The passing of
Mac Miller has left a large void in the Hip-Hop landscape, and the fact is made all the more frustrating because it was apparent he had more music to give. Today (Jan. 19) would have been the Pittsburgh rapper’s 32nd birthday, and fans on Twitter are joined in remembrance.
Malcolm James McCormick was born January 19, 1992 in the Point Breeze neighborhood of Pittsburgh. As evidenced by shared home videos and accounts from those who knew him best, Miller was a studious fan of all forms of music but took to the art and practice of Hip-Hop overall. Miller’s career as a rapper kicked off when he was 15 years of age, and by the time he turned 15, Miller was recognized as one of the top young acts from his hometown.
As one of the more notable “Blog Era” artists, Miller began to gain traction with the release of his
K.I.D.S. mixtape in 2010 after signing with local label Rostrum Records, which was partly influenced by fellow Pittsburgh rapper Wiz Khalifa’s involvement with that outfit.
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Miller continued his hot streak in 2011 with a follow mixtape
Best Day Ever, with production from the likes of Just Blaze, Chuck Inglish of The Cool Kids, Khrysis, and ID Labs among others. That same year, Miller landed a coveted spot on the XXL Freshman Class list joining the likes of Meek Mill, Big K.R.I.T., CyHi Da Prince, Lil Twist, Yelawolf, Fred the Godson, YG, Lil B, Kendrick Lamar, and Diggy Simmons.
That same year, Miller released his proper debut album
Blue Slide Park and it established him in the eyes of some although a handful of critics believed Miller was yet to find his sound. That proved to be a correct assessment as Miller began to evolve sonically and delving into the production side of things under his alter-ego, Larry Fisherman.
Leaving the confines of his hometown and heading west, Miller aligned himself with the sprawling Los Angeles music scene, signed with Warner Records, and released his major-label studio debut
GO:OD AM in 2015. From this point, Miller finally found his footing as an artist, culminating in the underappreciated
The Divine Feminine album in 2016, and 2018’s
Swimming, Miller’s final project while he was alive.
Circles, released just over a year ago, was the first posthumous release from Miller and retained more of a focus on melody and singing vocals. The direction in sound was to be expected as Miller, who once dreamed of being a singer, toyed with these textures for much of his career.
Hip-Hop Wired took a look across Twitter and listed some of the responses we’ve found below.
Rest Powerfully in Peace, Mac Miller.
