7 Reasons Why You Should Be Listening To Macklemore If You Aren’t Already:

1. He’s sees himself as an artist, and is clearly changing the way people think about rap as an art form.
2. He’s a Seattle boy. ‘Nuff said.
3. Instead of rapping about ‘niggas’, ‘making it rain on strippers’, and ‘the thug life’, his songs talk about the struggle of being an independent artist, legalizing gay marriage, anti-consumerism, and overcoming an alcohol addiction.
4. When you listen to his songs, it sounds like he’s speaking to you. Not screaming or throwing around incessant slurs, but like he’s right there talking to you about his life. His raw vulnerability is overwhelming and powerful.
5. He’s a heartfelt and multidimensional performer, putting out tracks that are both serious ("Same Love", “Neon Cathedral", “Starting Over") and fun ("Thrift Shop", “And We Danced").
6. He basically said ’screw it’ to the man and chose to handle the business side of his music the way that he wanted to. He ended up creating his own independent record label with his buddy Ryan Lewis, aka the super badass music producer that created the seriously sick beats on their album The Heist.
7. He is an inspiration to artists everywhere, and living proof that if you want to create your own work and are willing to work your butt off, you will succeed.