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144 pages

English

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The first biography of rapper Mac Miller, the Pittsburgh cult favorite-turned-rap superstar who touched the lives of millions before tragically passing away at the age of 26-now in paperbackMalcolm James McCormick was born on January 19, 1992. He began making music at a young age and by 15 was already releasing mixtapes. One of the first true viral superstars, his early records earned him a rabid legion of die-hard fans-as well as a few noteworthy detractors. But despite his undeniable success, Miller was plagued by struggles with substance abuse and depression, both of which fueled his raw and genre-defying music, yet ultimately led to his demise. Through detailed reporting and interviews with dozens of Miller's confidants, Paul Cantor brings you to leafy Pittsburgh, seductive Los Angeles, and frenzied New York, where you will meet Miller's collaborators, producers, business partners, best friends, and even his roommates. Traveling deep into Miller's inner circle, behind the curtain, the velvet ropes, and studio doors, Most Dope tells the story of a passionate, gifted young man who achieved his life's ambition, only to be undone by his personal demons.Most Dope is part love letter, part cautionary tale, never shying away from the raw, visceral way Mac Miller lived his life. Praise for Most Dope "A tender, studious remembrance." -The New York Times Book Review "An insightful exploration of his life . . . painstakingly reported by Cantor, who interviewed more than 100 people during a three-year process." -USA Today "An inside look at Miller's life through the eyes of his friends and industry peers, tracking the musician's life journey as he quickly ascended the ranks." -Daily Beast

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Publié par	ABRAMS BOOKS
Date de parution	18 janvier 2022
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9781647005221
Langue	English
Poids de l'ouvrage	2 Mo

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,0932€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

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Copyright 2022 Paul Cantor
Cover 2022 Abrams
Conversations in the book have been reconstructed based on the author s reporting. Where dialogue appears, the intention was to re-create the essence of conversations rather than verbatim quotes.
Published in 2022 by Abrams Press, an imprint of ABRAMS. All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, mechanical, electronic, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission from the publisher.
Library of Congress Control Number: 2021934858
ISBN: 978-1-4197-4800-4
eISBN: 978-1-64700-522-1
Abrams books are available at special discounts when purchased in quantity for premiums and promotions as well as fundraising or educational use. Special editions can also be created to specification. For details, contact specialsales@abramsbooks.com or the address below.
Abrams Press is a registered trademark of Harry N. Abrams, Inc.
ABRAMS The Art of Books 195 Broadway, New York, NY 10007 abramsbooks.com
For my wife and daughter, my extended family, and most importantly, you.
AUTHOR S NOTE
In 2009, long before anyone really knew who Mac Miller was, I received a message from a gentleman named Arthur Pitt, who was working as a publicist for an up-and-coming independent record label out of Pittsburgh called Rostrum Records.
The label was the brainchild of Benjy Grinberg, a former assistant to legendary record exec L.A. Reid, and had endured some early struggles with an artist they were trying to break-his name was Wiz Khalifa.
Very early in Wiz s career-August of 2006-I interviewed the baby-faced rapper for a short profile that was to run in a forthcoming issue of XXL magazine, at the time hip-hop s most important publication. Capable of minting stars overnight, XXL was initially enthusiastic about Wiz, but after my article was written, they changed their mind and declined to publish. He just wasn t popular enough yet.
But there I was that day some years later, sitting alone in my Staten Island apartment, when my AOL Instant Messenger alerted me to a new message from Arthur, whom most everyone colloquially referred to as Artie. Rostrum had gone to the mat with Wiz, and after numerous independent releases and a botched deal for him with Warner Bros. Records, Wiz was beginning to experience real success.
Artie wanted me to check out a new artist he was working with. He sent me a YouTube clip; in it, a young rapper-a white kid, no less-sat with the camera close to his face, freestyling aggressively in a pained effort to impress anyone who might be watching.
I m thinking of working with this kid, Artie said. Tell me what you think.
Back then, I was already half a decade into writing about rap music; with a popular blog that I penned on XXL s website, and freelance work for outlets like Vibe , Complex , and MTV-to say nothing of my work as an aspiring record producer-music industry people were always asking me to check something or someone out.
A tough critic who had been a hip-hop obsessive since the early nineties, I was often let down by what I heard or saw, and I expected very little from what Artie had sent me. I considered Artie a friend, and I liked Wiz Khalifa, but wasn t terribly impressed with some of the newer artists Artie was working with.
That day, though, when I pressed play, I immediately thought the rapper before me-Mac Miller-had bars, that at a time when being super-lyrical was not trendy, he was clearly an above-average lyricist using the most time-honored tool of the hip-hop trade, the freestyle, to make his name known. Moreover, there was a kernel of something there. He was young, still in high school, but you could see a spark, the undeniable and indefinable it factor that the music industry is built on. I told Artie he should work with him, and while I m certain I wasn t the only person he consulted for advice, he wisely decided to do so.
Unlike Wiz, Mac took off quickly. It seemed that as soon as Rostrum began working with him, he was everywhere. I couldn t help but feel that so much of the work the label had done with Wiz had helped Mac out-in the end, though, a label was only as good as the artists on its roster. And Mac was an unbelievable talent. He could write, produce, perform, and so much more. But even that is often not enough to turn someone into a star, let alone a legend.
What set Mac apart, I think, is that he was genuinely interested and enthusiastic, perhaps to an unhealthy degree, about what he did. He seemed to be unflinchingly nice and charismatic, a genuine human who endeared himself to everyone he met. But the thing that made him truly great, the thing that allows his name to echo from this generation to the next and beyond, is that he just wanted it more.
He wasn t afraid or embarrassed or too cool to say he wanted to be great. And he didn t just want to be great for himself, he wanted to be great for you, for me, and for everyone else. He also saw greatness in other people, wanted it just as badly for them, even when they did not want it bad enough themselves. Life, to him, was something you had to live to its fullest potential.
I met Mac a few times. We didn t have a close relationship, though I have no doubt that between our mutual friends and my profile as a writer, he was aware of me in some regard. He was complimentary when I reviewed his second album for VIBE , which I appreciated (especially because it wasn t the most flattering review). And since he seemed to have a long career ahead of him, I always assumed I would one day write something substantial about him. I certainly didn t know it would be this.
Working on this book was an unbelievable challenge. Mac was an endlessly fascinating character, someone whose perspective on life interested me as much as his art. He seemed to have grown up in public, and was open about many of his struggles. But when he died on September 7, 2018, I-like many others-felt it was a terrible tragedy. He had just released the best album of his career, Swimming , and there were still so many questions unanswered.
Still, while I thought I was familiar with his story, it wasn t until I began traveling back and forth to Pittsburgh, spending time walking the very same streets he grew up on, and talking to his close friends, that so much of this book started to come together. Even then, though, it was difficult; the pain of having lost him was still so raw for many, and the challenge of asking people questions was something that I, for one of the first times in my life, had moral concerns about. Too soon , I seemed to keep telling myself, it s too soon .
But then I noticed something. Despite what my inner voice was telling me, the people I had reached out to for interviews kept wanting to talk. The pain of losing their friend, Mac Miller, was still fresh. But they wanted to share. They had all these memories, all these experiences, all this life that they had lived with him. Not all of it was good, some of it was bad, and, of course, some of it existed in that vast space in between.
However, the thing that really drove home how important this book was to write, how essential this was book was to write, came on the one-year anniversary of Malcolm s passing. That night, there was a party held in his honor; it was in Pittsburgh, and his longtime DJ, Clockwork, was manning the decks. All proceeds were being donated to the Mac Miller Fund, a charity that supports programming, resources and opportunities to youth from underserved communities, helping them recognize their full potential through exploration in the arts and community building.
After spending the duration of the party inside the venue, enjoying the music, as one is wont to do, I ventured outside, and began interviewing many of Mac s fans. These were Mac Heads-as they are colloquially known-some new, some old, but all of them sharing between them an undying passion for Mac Miller and his art. Perhaps because of the date, it being the anniversary of his death, emotions were running high, and the stories being shared moved me to such a degree that, till this day, still reverberate.
These were stories about how Mac s music had saved their lives, how at their lowest moments, when they felt that they were at the end of their rope, they heard his voice, something he said, something he, too, seemed to be going through-and felt a sudden urge to keep on living. I, too, knew what those moments felt like, and I, too, knew what it felt like to receive a sign.
I made the decision that night that I would continue working on this book, writing this book, finishing this book, and ultimately publishing this book, because I knew what stories and biographies did for me once, how-even in the moments when they became uncomfortable-they provided a third dimension of understanding about the lives and times of whomever, in that moment, I was reading about. That understanding brought so much to my life, and helped me in times of need just as, I know, Mac Miller s music had done for other people.
A quick note: Before you move on to the story itself, let it also be known that this book was written without the participation of Mac Miller s family and estate. With respect to their grieving process, they were approached very early on, with the hope that-at least on my behalf-they would ultimately contribute. They opted not to, and I respected that. Nevertheless, many people close to Mac chose to participate. And I appreciate them for it.
So, although as the author my name is on the cover, this book is not for me-this book is for you. You are a Mac Miller fan, or you are a music fan, or maybe you are simply an inquisitive person who wants to read more about a dynamic individual. Know this: Mac Miller was a complex guy, a rapper who spent his life using his art to explore the space between his own madness and genius; all the while, he battled untamabl