S. Samuel
Pittsburgh rapper Mac Miller has listed his top five rappers he hopes to see takeover hip-hop's reigns for 2012, ranging from Harlem newcomer A$AP Rocky to The Cool Kids' Mikey Rocks.
Miller also gave props to fellow Pennsylvania rap rookie Meek Mill.
“I wanna see A$AP Rocky have a big year, ’cause that’s the homie. I wanna see him doing big things,” Miller said. “[Kendrick Lamar], I’m a huge fan. Section 80 is a great album. I listen to it all the time and I just think he’s real creative and he definitely has something to say. I wanna see Mikey Rocks have a big year too because, I mean and Chuck [Inglish] too, but you know like Mikey, he put out these two mixtapes that have been just real ill and he’s doing his thing. … I wanna see Casey Veggies have a big year. That’s the homie and I’m always supportive of him. I wanna see Meek Mill have a big year too. That’s Pennsylvania love and he’s real good peoples.” (VIBE)
In December, West Coast rapper Nipsey Hussle spoke about the inspiration he experiences while watching Meek Mill’s career blossom.
“You know Mac Miller he a cool cat and I had been conscious of what he was doing from a distance. But I was walking through the mall or something or the airport one day and I see a Billboard [magazine] […] I see who’s on the cover of the Billboard and it was Mac Miller, and me knowing him as being independent and not having a huge radio presence, that was big to me […] when I saw that I twipic’d it and I put it on Twitter,” Nipsey explained. “I just gave him his props on that and was just like ‘That’s big.’ You know, it’s a sign of the times that we living in and you know he hollered back. … It was you know just kicking it and played some music and all that and was just talking about the industry and I was just telling him how I really respect what he’s doing and it’s motivation for an artist like myself that’s doing it independent right now to see somebody even before he put out a No. 1 album he was… so I just wanted to give him his props on that… so he’s cool and we hit it off and knocked a couple records out.” (BET)
Over the summer, renowned real estate celebrity Donald Trump compared Miller to Grammy-winning rapper Eminem.
“A lot of people are calling me about the Mac Miller rap song,” Trump said in a video. “Now, it’s named ‘Donald Trump.’ Maybe you should pay me a lot of money, but it just did over 20 million people, tuning into Mac Miller. So in one way, I’m proud of him. I haven’t actually seen the , it’s a little hard to understand on the song itself. Probably, it’s not the cleanest language you’ve ever heard, but this kid is the new Eminem. Everybody says he’s fantastic. Let’s see what it is. But the ‘Donald Trump’ song just hit over 20 million, that’s not so bad. I’m very proud of him.” (From The Desk of Trump)
After his long-awaited studio debut Blue Slide Park debuted atop the sales chart in November, Miller spoke on his seemingly overnight success.
Rest is definitely something Mac can use. It’s been a meteoric year for him, one that has taken him from his local public high school’s graduation to the verge of international stardom. He just got back from a two-and-a-half-week stint overseas in September, which included shows in Paris, Amsterdam and London. “It’s just a journey,” Mac says, a hint of accomplishment in his tone. “We started out last year driving eight hours to Indiana in a Volvo station wagon packed up with all dudes in there, just to perform for some people who didn’t know who I was. And to see that grow to, I have two buses. And I’m independent… Went in my pocket, pulled out 200 stacks and got two buses.” Mac reportedly pulls in between $20,000 and $25,000 per show. Not bad for a kid who still lives at his parents’ house. (XXL Mag)
Check out some recent Mac Miller footage down below:
