It also earned Macklemore and Lewis an invitation from the Mariners to perform the song on Opening Day 2011 at Safeco Field, where they were given customized jerseys. ![]() The video, which premiered two months after Niehaus' passing, quickly went viral. ![]() Ending with "It's my city my city childhood my life Niehaus my oh my rest in peace," it has all the elements that made Macklemore popular: his raspy voice, pent-up energy and, of course, great storytelling. But with lines like "fight until the day that God decides to wave us in," it's clearly about more than baseball. A new-school tribute to an old-school broadcaster, the track evokes the Mariners' 1995 season with such names as Joey Cora, Edgar Martinez and Junior Griffey. Channeling his childhood memories of listening to the Mariners on the radio with his father, he titled the song "My Oh My," after Niehaus' signature call. The inspiration came from, of all things, the death of Dave Niehaus, the Mariners' beloved 75-year-old play-by-play man, in November 2010. His career didn't really take off, though, until he found the perfect marriage between his two loves. Shortly thereafter, he joined forces with Lewis, whose orchestrations added a new dimension to Macklemore's sound. After graduating from college, he taught music at a juvenile detention facility while continuing to perform and make a name for himself in Seattle.īut Macklemore's music career stalled periodically as he struggled with substance abuse until he finally cleaned himself up in 2008. At the time, the Mariners' second baseman was Mark McLemore, but Haggerty swears he didn't borrow the name, "at least not consciously." Regardless, he became popular on the club and college scenes. (He watched the Seahawks' playoff loss to the Falcons with his grandmother.) When he was 14, he formed a rap group called the Elevated Elements, and later, while in high school, he recorded an EP under the pseudonym Professor Macklemore. He grew up in a close-knit, sports-loving family, which he often references in his songs. "What I love about them is the stories, and that's what I do for a living - I'm an emcee telling stories." He would not have been atop the Space Needle - or the music world, for that matter - were it not for his passion for games. There is another delicious irony to Macklemore's hoisting that flag for the home team. "It's been a crazy year," he said recently while on a break from his worldwide tour. But nobody could have predicted the incredible success of Macklemore and his producer, Ryan Lewis - not even Haggerty. Pretty close: The final score was Seahawks 24, Redskins 14. We're taking it this weekend! 21-7, my prediction." Lindsey Wasson/ I'm here on top of the Space Needle to come out and support the Seahawks. Haggerty, smiling as if he'd just pulled off a second unlikely heist, stepped up and said, "My name is Macklemore. He and some of the city's other famous musicians were invited by Mayor Mike McGinn to raise the 12th-man flag. That's how Haggerty found himself at the top of the Space Needle in January, two days before the start of the Seahawks' unlikely postseason adventure. 1 on iTunes, then watch in amazement as one of the tracks, "Thrift Shop," gets more than 71 million YouTube views. Or you can take Ben Haggerty's more roundabout path: Grow up on Capitol Hill devoted to sports and rap, start a hip-hop group when you're 14, start performing under the stage name Macklemore, overcome substance abuse, break through with a couple of sports-themed videos, throw pizza parties for your fans, record an independent album called The Heist that goes to No. TO GET FROM Capitol Hill in Seattle to the Space Needle, you just head west on Denny Way, then hang a right at Fourth Avenue North. This brilliant singer and rapper once grappled with drug addiction though he is now clean after attending a rehab program."Sports are part of who I am," says Seattle-based Macklemore. He began his full-fledged musical career in the 2000s and gained international stardom within a few years. ![]() During his high school years he teamed up with some other students and started a hip hop group called Elevated Elements. Interested in music from a young age, he started writing lyrics as a teenager. Macklemore has also independently released a mixtape, three EPs, and four albums. Macklemore and producer Ryan Lewis officially started collaborating in 2009 and became known for the hits ‘Thrift Shop’ and ‘Can't Hold Us.’ Over the course of their successful collaboration, the duo won several awards, including Grammy Awards for Best Rap Album for ‘The Heist’, Best New Artist, Best Rap Song and Best Rap Performance for ‘Thrift Shop.’ However, after more than eight years together, Macklemore and Ryan mutually parted ways as both decided to have some individual creative space. Macklemore is an American singer and rapper who rose to fame as a part of the well-known hip hop duo Macklemore & Ryan Lewis.
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