This week in the hip-hop Twittersphere, friends and collaborators reacted to the death of Andre 3000′s mother, Ab-Soul and Waka Flocka Flame reached out to Amanda Bynes, and Gucci Mane and Freddie Gibbs teased their new albums. At the same time,  Wiz Khalifa gets confused for an impostor and Tyler, the Creator talks about Mac Miller’s sophomore album. And then Kanye West let loose his album cover…

The post Best Hip-Hop Tweets Of The Week, 5/26-6/1 appeared first on XXL.

Clinton Sparks drop the video for “Gold Rush” featuring 2 Chainz, Macklemore and D.A. The video is very creative,shot as if the scene is in 1849. It has a O Brother, Where Art Thou? feel, as we watch a young whippersnapper try to strike big by finding gold. This video is inspired by the California Gold Rush. You can watch the video above.

The post Watch Clinton Sparks “Gold Rush” Video Featuring 2 Chainz, Macklemore And D.A. appeared first on XXL.

After being one of the lesser-known faces of XXL‘s 2012 Freshmen Class, Seattle native Macklemore and his partner Ryan Lewis have had the best year ever. The duo has smashed charts with catchy and provocative singles like “Thrift Shop,” “Same Love” and “Can’t Hold Us,” as their independently released debut album, The Heist, continues to inch toward platinum status. This is a huge moment for independent hip-hop, but it’s an even bigger moment for Mack’s proud hometown of Seattle, locally known as The Town.

A disclaimer: Seattle’s hip-hop scene is a weird place. While some of its most well-known vets (Common Market and Blue Scholars) are alternative acts who embraced a melodic boom bap sound, the scene today is really a hodgepodge of ideas and influences, more unified by a mutual love and respect than by any one sonic identity. Some have said it’s that lack of identity that’s been the reason for Seattle consistently getting overshadowed by movements—marked by one specific sound or production style—out of Atlanta, Houston and the Bay Area. Knowing this, Seattle rhymers have still continued to experiment and explore different sounds, so even with a Macklemore-approved spotlight on them, chances are The Town’s rhymers aren’t going to change now.

With the New New, XXL tries to spotlight burgeoning acts who we feel haven’t gotten the shine they deserve, but what makes this edition special is that we feel the entire city of Seattle hasn’t gotten the attention it deserves. Speaking on the talent coming out of his city, Seattle mainstay producer Jake One had this to say: “As an elder statesman, a.k.a. old head, of the Seattle rap scene, I’m extremely happy to see the spotlight finally coming to our city. We have an extremely diverse group of artists that are primed for national exposure.”

With that said, it’s Seattle’s time to shine, so click through our staff-compiled guide to the Town’s up-and-coming rappers you need to know. This is The New New.

The post The New New: 15 Seattle Rappers You Should Know appeared first on XXL.

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  Jay-Z and Drake in the studio.
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  Jay-Z signs Geno Smith to the Roc.
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  DJ Khaled teases a possible collab with Jay-Z.
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  Lil Durk joins French Montana's Coke Boys imprint.
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  Virgil Abloh teases Kanye West's new album cover.
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  Chief Keef Instagrams his own arrest.
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  French Montana shows off his billboard.
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  Juicy J literally burns through his money.
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  2 Chainz shows some love to the Master of Suspense.
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  Raekwon takes you inside the meeting room.
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  Drake updates from <em>Anchorman 2</em>
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  Macklemore shows support for French Montana.
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  Ab-Soul live at the Los Angeles <em>XXL</em> Freshmen show.
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  Danny Brown - a fan of <em>Rocko's Modern Life</em>
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  Travi$ Scott shows Timbaland <em>Owl Pharaoh</em>.
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  Pusha T teases his new store.

This week in the world hip-hop Instagrams, Jay-Z links up with a litany of collaborators, French Montana celebrates the release of his studio debut Excuse My French, Drake kicks it in Hollywood and more. At the same time, Ab-Soul shows off his performance at the Los Angeles leg of the XXL Freshmen Live 2013 tour, while fellow Freshman Travi$ Scott shows of his new project Owl Pharaoh.

Click and scroll through all 16 of the best Instagrams of the week.

The post 16 Best Hip-Hop Instagrams Of The Week appeared first on XXL.

Clinton Sparks gets a dope assist for “Gold Rush” featuring 2 Chainz, Mackelmore and D.A. Sparks is currently at work on a tentatively titled project, Disco Ball & Chain. This is the first single from the project and the track will be released digitally on June 4. This adrenaline pumping record just makes you want to get up and dance. You can listen to the record below

[via FADER]

The post Clinton Sparks Featuring 2 Chainz, Macklemore And D.A. Wallach “Gold Rush” appeared first on XXL.

It’s been a whirlwind of a year for Seattle’s Macklemore and Ryan Lewis. After appearing on XXL‘s 2012 Freshmen Class cover, Macklemore set out to release the duo’s studio debut, The Heist, independently. The album enjoyed a successful debut, pushing nearly 80,000 units in its first week thanks to Mack and Ryan’s years of building a widespread and ardently devoted fan base. But then something unexpected happened: Macklemore and Ryan Lewis blew up.

Heist‘s fourth single, “Thrift Shop,” picked up momentum six weeks after its official release in August 2012 and quickly (thanks to an extremely catchy beat and viral video) began climbing the ranks of the Billboard Hot 100. By early 2013, “Thrift Shop” was dominating the charts, holding onto the No. 1 spot for 16 weeks straight and selling 6 million copies. The single’s success helped The Heist sell upward of 700,000 copies to date, making it one of the most successful independent album releases in hip-hop.

At a recent performance at Pennsylvania’s Lafayette College—the last stop on the pair’s lengthy college tour—Macklemore and Ryan Lewis sat down with XXL to catch us up on their blur of a year. After an exhausting hour-long performance that was nearly cancelled due to turbulent weather conditions, the duo chopped it up about the success of “Thrift Shop,” maintaining their creative independence and dealing with criticism about their ubiquitous crossover single.

XXL: Since the release of The Heist, you guys have charted two No. 1 singles with “Thrift Shop” and “Can’t Hold Us.” Has your success made you have a “See, I told you so” feeling toward the industry? 

Macklemore: That’s exactly what it is, like, “See? I fucking told you!” [Laughs] No, for us, it was more like, “Damn, that happened?” All of this was an extreme surprise, so we haven’t really had that moment. It’s cool that somebody could even look at it that way, but I think the thing that’s been underestimated with our music is its connection with people. The connection it has on a personal level, people just don’t value that. I read shit, and people don’t get it. They don’t understand that it’s resonating with people on a personal level, and when music infiltrates the spirit it has a power way beyond any normal club record or flavor of the month. It has lasting power, and that’s why The Heist is still selling 30,000 records a week seven months after it came out, which is more than I thought it was gonna do its first week.

One of the songs that really stood out to me on The Heist was “Jimmy Iovine.” How true is the story behind that song?

Macklemore: Since releasing the song, we met with Jimmy Iovine to chop it up. Me and my manager went in and kicked it with him for a couple hours, but for the song we didn’t meet with him. We’d met with numerous other people in the industry who were offering us deals, and we did the shake hands, eat a meal, play records, awkward situations. All of those experiences kind of accumulated into the song “Jimmy Iovine.” And my whole life I was like, “I want to get a deal. That’s the only way you can be on and be famous is sign a deal.” That was the epitome of success for me, but I think that as Ryan and I continued to put out music and really set our own lane, it became obvious that we didn’t need what a label had to offer. That’s really what the story of that song is: me stealing this record deal, this kind of fictitious record deal, and realizing that I don’t even want it now that I’m here. But Jimmy was super cool. He had a lot of great things to say. The reason we picked him was because he’s like that dude in the industry, but he turned out to actually be a good person.

You guys have created a unique brand. What advice would you give to up-and-coming artists who are hoping to create a brand of their own? 

Ryan Lewis: I would say, first and foremost, even if it’s a cliche, to work extremely hard. I don’t think you get anywhere without logging hours and becoming extremely good at your craft. I also think that if you’re going the independent route, there’s so many different things to fulfill to operate your camp, from the design of your album to your visuals, your photography, your merchandising. All of those different things are reflective of your artistry beyond the music, and that’s where I think labels often times fall short. You might have a great record and then you bring it to a label and it goes to their graphic design department and your whole branding and the way that you visually look sucks. I would tell independent artists to start filling in those pieces that make a huge difference in terms of your general impression on listeners.

The post Macklemore & Ryan Lewis Respond To Critics: “It’s Bullshit” appeared first on XXL.

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Photographs by Sean Ryon (@wallysean)

Macklemore and Ryan Lewis hit Lafayette College in Easton, PA for the final leg of their college performance tour. Although the show was nearly cancelled due to inclement weather, the fates aligned in fans’ favor and after a half-hour delay, the Seattle duo took stage and rocked a frenzied performance.

Take a look at XXL‘s 34 best pictures of the show. You have to check out his coat, cape, shoes, crowd walking and more.

The post Thirty-Four On-Stage Photos of Macklemore & Ryan Lewis At Lafayette College appeared first on XXL.

• Macklemore FB4
  Earlier this week, Seattle reppers (and homies of <em>XXL</em>) Macklemore and Ryan Lewis made Billboard history by having their second-ever single&mdash;the riotous "Can't Hold Us"&mdash;hit No. 1 on the Hot 100, replacing their stronghold atop the charts with previous single "Thrift Shop." While Mack's been in the game for a while, the duo's debut was released late last year, and it's been truly incredible to watch their rapid growth and ascent to the top. And remember: They did this without a major label. If there's ever been a discussion that major labels aren't necessary to an artist's success in a modern market, Macklemore and Ryan Lewis are that argument's thesis statement. But, they're not the first independent artists to find impressive success without major-label backing, so here we've compiled a list of other hip-hop acts who were able to achieve great things (in terms of sales, placements and performances) without a major.
• mac_miller_50
  Mac Miller - "I'll Be There" <i>Best Day Ever</i> (2011)
  "I just hope she know I love her, the world's best mother/Yeah it ain't fair, so I'ma take care of her and her gray hair/When I get rich, I'll have her living how she should be/No stress, no worries."
• Childish_Gambino_Lead
  <h2>Childish Gambino</h2>
  Writer/actor/rapper Childish Gambino is clearly a very talented human being, and he artfully took an indie approach when it came to putting music out. After releasing a series of mixtapes in the late 2000s, he got his hit song "Freaks And Geeks" placed in an Adidas ad and eventually signed to indie Glassnote for the release of his debut album, <em>Camp.</em> The album peaked at No. 2 on Billboard's Rap Albums chart and at No. 11 on the Billboard 200.
• kid_ink_2
  <h2>Kid Ink</h2>
  The 2012 <em>XXL</em> Freshman has driven the web wild over the past few years, releasing singles to YouTube, all of which have garnered millions of views. His first proper studio album, <em>Up & Away,</em> was released via Alumni Music Group and peaked at No. 20 on the Billboard 200. He's since signed to RCA Records.
• Lil B
  <h2>Lil B</h2>
  The BasedGod, while not technically an enormous commercial success, made a huge impact on music with his incredible mixtape streak from 2007-2012. In that span, he released over 40 albums' worth of free music, all while bringing back "swag" and creating the cooking dance. His ascent peaked with the release of his 2011 LP, <em>I'm Gay,</em> which landed at No. 20 on the Billboard Heatseekers Chart.
• Hoodie Allen_Featured Image_Feature
  <h2>Hoodie Allen</h2>
  Hoodie, a former Google employee, exploded onto the hip-hop scene in 2009 with his debut <em>Bagels and Beats</em> mixtape and went on to prove himself as a crossover star. His most recent project, <em>All American</em> peaked at No. 10 on the Billboard 200 and debuted as the No. 11 album on iTunes.
• Tech N9ne*
  <h2>Tech N9ne</h2>
  The Missouri native and co-founder of Strange Music is no stranger to independent success. Throughout his illustrious career, he's put out thirteen studio LPs, ten of which charted on Billboard's album charts.
• 9. Atmosphere
  <h2>Atmosphere</h2>
  The Minnesota duo of Slug and Ant is a not only a perfect musical team, they've also paved the way for a lot of independent artists in their on-their-own-terms success. Their most commercially successful record came in 2008 with <em>When Life Gives You Lemons, You Paint That Shit Gold,</em> which peaked at No. 5 on the Billboard 200 charts.
• Dogg_Pound
  <h2>The Dogg Pound</h2>
  West Coast heroes Daz Dillinger and Kurupt formed The Dogg Pound in 1992. Their debut album <em>Dogg Food</em> hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart and went on to go Double Platinum.
• El-P_1
  <h2>El-P</h2>
  The Brooklyn-bred alternative rapper embraced independent success early on by co-founding Definitive Jux in 1999&mdash;a widely popular indie that's housed all-stars like Aesop Rock and Cage. His second LP <em>I'll Sleep When You're Dead</em> was his most commercially successful album, peaking at No. 78 on the Billboard 200.
• 14. Dom Kennedy
  <h2>Dom Kennedy</h2>
  The West Coast local legend's fame has slowly but surely grown since his 2008 debut, and he's amassed something of a cult following in his hometown of LA. His <em>From the Westside with Love</em> skyrocketed his notoriety, and its followup <em>From the Westside With Love II</em> peaked at No. 12 on the Billboard Rap Album charts.

The post Can’t Hold Us: Independent Rapper Success Stories appeared first on XXL.

The post Year-End Report Card: An Update On The 2012 XXL Freshmen appeared first on XXL.

Macklemore & Ryan Lewis isn’t slowing down their rapid ascent to the top. The duo’s second single, “Can’t Hold Us,” off The Heist also reached No.1 on the Billboard Hot 100. With their prior hit “Thrift Shop” featuring Wanz—which stayed at the top for six nonconsecutive weeks—the Seattle pair is the first to take two singles to No. 1 in Billboard’s five-decade history.

Previously, Lady Gaga was the last artist to send two singles—“Just Dance” and “Poker Face”—to No. 1 in 2009. Since then, Macklemore & Lewis are the first act to chart two singles on the Hot 100. In addition, the single has sold 262,000 copies this week.

[via Billboard]

The post Macklemore & Ryan Lewis’ “Can’t Hold Us” Makes Billboard History appeared first on XXL.

[photos courtesy of Chris Shonting]

F.A.M.E.: Macklemore Was Labeled The Most Obscure Pick For XXL’s Freshman Class Last Year, But He Wound Up Proving All The Haters Wrong. Really Wrong. 
By Kris Ex

There was that one time when a homeless guy jacked them for some merchandise, Ryan Lewis is explaining. About three years ago, Lewis and his partner, Ben “Macklemore” Haggerty, set up their headquarters in North Seattle, in a neighborhood known for big box stores, prostitution, motels, a casino and a cemetery. “It’s a really interesting place to be posted up for a long time,” says Lewis, a Spokane native, taking a pull from a USB-charged e-cigarette attached to his laptop computer. Wearing a cut-off denim vest over a sweater, he could pass for one of the co-eds at tonight’s venue, Occidental College—a private liberal arts college in Los Angeles with a 10:1 student-faculty ratio. He’s in a trophy room that may very well be bigger than the space he’s talking about; the large wood conference table before him is littered with jams, hummus, fruit, coconut water, Ezekiel bread, organic popcorn and computers, tablets, chargers, wires; Jansport backpacks, rolling and carry-on luggage is all over the room. Though their business—registered as Macklemore LLC, billed as “Macklemore & Ryan Lewis,” created for the sole purpose of controlling their own music careers—has outgrown the Seattle studio, they’ve been too busy to move out, mostly because they handle just about everything themselves.

(“It’s weird calling it a label, because it isn’t really a label,” says Lewis. “But at the same time, if you look at it on paper, we are pretty much an independent label. We’re being distributed through [Alternative Distribution Alliance]; who are ADA’s other clients? Not artists, [but] small independent labels.”) At 25, Lewis not only produces, engineers and mixes all of Macklemore’s music, he co-directs and edits most of their videos, and handles much of their graphic design. The Seattle studio they currently work out of is only 500 square feet, but it had met their requirements when they got it. First, it was cheap; second, they could make a lot of noise there. They recorded vocal tracks in there, they packaged and shipped CD’s from there, they had huge shipping containers in the front where they kept the wares they sold at performances. One night, at about 2 a.m., Lewis heard what he thought was a raccoon shifting through the containers. It turned out to be a homeless man, claiming he was looking for someplace to roll a cigarette. Ryan checked the guy out and sent him on his way. The next day, Tricia Davis, their product manager (who’s also Macklemore’s fiancée, who also runs their merch table at shows, who also sometimes serves as the press contact for interviews) discovered that about a dozen specialized sweatshirts were missing. “He got us,” laughs Ryan. “I think he was wearing it under his coat because he was bundled up. It’s hilarious that he jacked the ‘Macklemore Loves Minneapolis’ hoodies that we probably weren’t going to be able to sell anyway.”

Back then, Macklemore and Ryan Lewis had a handful of reliable markets they could revisit as performers. At least once, they wound up in Alaska, more often they would be in a room with maybe 20 people staring them in the eyes. But their fanbase had been growing and spreading beyond their Seattle grounds. Though they had released The Vs. EP (2009), their strategy was “putting an immense amount of time into content until it’s very good as opposed to just putting out a shit-ton of content,” Lewis explains. They would invest a lot of time into their music videos and play the singles game. “Going back and working on a song for two weeks, three weeks, four weeks, two months until it’s something that, once it’s out, it’s something we’re gonna be proud of for a long time has always made way more sense for how we’re wired than just cranking out mixtapes,” Lewis admits.

One of the songs they spent some time on was “Thrift Shop.” Before going on to break numerous performance records, topping worldwide charts and selling millions of records, “Thrift Shop” was a vocal performance tracked to drums that Ryan tried about eight different soundscapes on. The beats were either too clubby, too serious, or too sinister for the subject matter, until he found a collection of sample-based horns for a Pro Tools plug-in. He played out a saxophone performance on his keyboard, liked it and built out the song. “But neither of us thought it was going to end up being, like, a single,” he says. “By any means.” When Macklemore and Ryan Lewis released their debut album, The Heist last year, there was little attention, if any, placed on a seemingly throwaway track like “Thrift Shop.” The album, easily one of the most accomplished releases of 2012, was chock- full of possible hits and heady topics in equal measure—high concept send-ups of the sneaker industrial complex, major label revenge fantasies, and transparent admissions of drug relapse hung next to a Lonely Island-ish song that dropped an involved Chronicles of Narnia metaphor and a hook about “unicorns and wizard sleeves, Hammer pants and make believe, pirate ships sailing off to sea.” Many of the group’s Seattle fanbase had pegged the album’s “Gold” as the breakout hit. The group themselves had been pushing “Can’t Hold Us;” Ellen Degeneres had latched onto “Same Love,” a moving meditation on gay rights. But it was the song with a line about R. Kelly’s urine- stained sheets that broke.

To read the rest of Kris Ex’s feature story on Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, pick up the new issue of XXL, on newsstands now or get XXL right now on your tablet. 

The post From The Mag: Macklemore Finds F.A.M.E. appeared first on XXL.

In the meantime, We’re taking a look back at each XXL Freshman from past classes to see what they’ve been up through their music since being a Freshman.

This is what Macklemore, XXL Freshman Class of 2012, has been up to musically with his best tracks.

Thrift Shop with Ryan Lewis feat. Wanz

The post Macklemore, Class of ’12 – Catching Up With the XXL Freshmen appeared first on XXL.

Macklemore’s “Thrift Shop” hit isn’t going to fade away anytime soon. So we might as well continue embracing it. In this latest mix, the production of Yum Yum has put together “just a short, basic mashup.” It’s not really needed, but Macklemore meets TLC is just great for Friday. Listen below.

[via SPIN]

The post What Does a Mash-Up of “No Scrubs” and “Thrift Shop” Sound Like? appeared first on XXL.

[via Colbert Nation]

The post Watch Macklemore & Ryan Lewis on “The Colbert Report” appeared first on XXL.

Method Man has some issues with Macklemore—and they apparently stem from his crowd surfing tactics.

In one of the more bizarre instances of beef, Method Man implored fans to literally drop the Seattle rapper if he tries to “crowd walk” like he did at the recent MTV Movie Awards. Although the Wu-Tang alum did say that he thinks that Macklemore can rhyme, he feels it’s disrespectful to steal his on-stage antic.

“I was watching MTV not too long ago and there was a rapper on stage,” he said during a recent live performance. “This motherfucker had a lot of energy and was really, really enjoying his performance. I think his name is Macklemore. Don’t get me wrong, that mothafucker can rhyme, but as I’m watching his performance, I think this motherfucker do something that just pissed me off. He actually tried to walk onto the crowd’s hands. I started that shit! That’s my shit! Don’t get me wrong—when Macklemore come to y’all city, y’all show him all the love that y’all show Red and Meth, but if that mothafucker tries to do my walk on the crowd thing, I want Denver, Colorado, to drop his ass like a bad habit.”

Although Mef takes credit for creating the crowd walk, it actually dates as far back as 1970 when punk legend Iggy Pop walked on his fans’ hands at a performance in Cincinnati.

The full video can be seen above.

[via HipHopDX]

The post Method Man Tells Fans To Drop Macklemore If He Ever Crowd Walks appeared first on XXL.

It’s always cool to see artists doing something really amazing out of the goodness of their hearts.

Macklemore performed at Saint Michael’s College in Vermont last night. Hours before, a couple of his fans tweeted at him a special request to shout out their friend Sam at the concert. Sam was diagnosed with leukemia a few days earlier. Although he was in the hospital, he wanted to be there in spirit.

Mack took the request one step further and opted to visit him. A great photo of the pair was posted on Reddit by his best friend. There is also video of Mack dedicating a moment of silence to the leukemia patient during the show.

Props to Mack for showing love for every one of his fans.

UPDATE: Macklemore sent us his answer on how he heard of Sam’s story, why he visited him in the hospital, and what he took away from the experience. You can read the letter over at Macklemore.com.

I went to visit a college student named Sam in the hospital today. Normally, I wouldn’t publicly address the experience, but one of Sam’s friends posted the pic on Reddit.com and it gained attention and an outpouring of support for Sam and his family. Several media outlets have hit me up asking why I picked Sam and what prompted the visit. Here’s my answer.

We get a lot of emails from people. Whether it’s benefit shows or individual requests, there’s a ton of people that reach out. Most of the emails that we receive are from people or causes that we would love to volunteer our time and get involved with, but unfortunately our schedule is so crazy this year we barely have a spare hour to spend. But yesterday when my girl told me about Sam’s story and that we would have some free time on Thursday, it was a no-brainer to visit him in the hospital.

The email we received was from one of Sam’s friends who explained the situation. Sam is in his junior year in college, and up until last Friday his life was going great. He hadn’t been feeling well the last month, and went to the doctor to get some blood tests late last week. The doctors got the results, sat him down, told him he had leukemia and would immediately need to start chemotherapy in order to hopefully beat the disease. Just like that.

Sam’s story resonated with me. I can’t imagine being a healthy kid, at the end of my junior year in college, and getting diagnosed with leukemia. It’s one of those stories that reminds you how fragile life is, gives you a reality check on your own issues, and make you appreciate the health of you and your loved ones more than ever.

I learned that Sam is a big fan and that he was super bummed to miss the opportunity to go with his brother to our show. His friends that emailed us picked us up from the venue and we drove to the hospital to visit.

I’ve done these types of hospital visits before, and sometimes they can be a little awkward. What do you say to someone in Sam’s position? This is a complete stranger, who is going through a life-altering trauma, abruptly disconnected to the world they once knew. No amount of “you’ll get through this” pep talk seems substantial enough. You want to say something that might leave a lasting impression but the words aren’t there.

But when I first shook Sam’s hand I could tell he was connected. He’s the type of kid that immediately puts the room at ease. He makes eye contact and speaks from his heart, not sugarcoating what he’s going through, but not feeling sorry for himself either. He’s still adjusting to the news of his cancer and the reality of his new life. This tiny hospital room will be his home on and off for the next 2 years. An overflow of saturated shiny balloons occupies the corner, and the gigantic “Get Well Sam” card pinned to a wall gives the sterile room some vibrancy. A stack of DVDs lives just outside his arm’s reach, but he doesn’t have the energy to figure out how to get the DVD player working. We all talk. You listen. You try and put yourself in his position, imagine if you got that news about yourself or a loved one.

These types of experiences are important for me. They bring me back to a place of gratitude and give life a tangible value, beyond the instant gratification that my job provides. Being a rapper is one of the most narcissistic careers in the world. You are surrounded by yourself: interviews, Twitter, Facebook, Billboard charts, YouTube plays, shows, the crowds, awards etc. Fame suffocates the spirit and consumes you if you let it. You wake up thinking about you, and go to bed thinking about you. That’s not a good place to be.

With over 200 shows booked for the year, I barely get to see my family and spend time with the people that remind me where I come from and what’s really important. Getting outside of myself, even for an hour, and doing something like meeting Sam this afternoon gave me a small opportunity to be of service to someone else. I am able to realize that my problems are NOTHING compared to what him and his family are going through. And hopefully the visit made his day a little better and got him through another 24. That’s what matters in the end.

In all honesty, it’s the Sams of the world and the situations they go through that give us perspective on our own lives. Unfortunately, so often it takes a tragedy to wake us up and appreciate those closest to us. When we are faced with death, we immediately put a new found value on the life we’ve been given. I’m grateful for the opportunity to meet Sam and his parents today. Made me feel like a real person. Beyond the music and the accolades, at the core that is what I want out of this life. To feel. And Sam reminded me of that.

Much love to him, his family and his friends.

-Macklemore

The post Photo: Macklemore Visits a Fan With Leukemia appeared first on XXL.

Fresh off their performance at this year’s MTV Movie Awards, Macklemore and Ryan Lewis have released the first half of dates for their world tour. It starts in London on September 9. Stay tuned for more dates—including those for the U.S.—in the coming weeks.

Check out the full schedule and ticket information below.

Sept 09 2013 – London - http://bit.ly/124DCGc
Sept 11 2013 – Birmingham - http://bit.ly/124DCGc
Sept 12 2013 – Manchester - http://bit.ly/124DCGc
Sept 13 2013 – Glasgow - http://bit.ly/rUn9j
Sept 14 2013 – Amsterdam - www.eventiml.nl
Sept 20 2013 – Zurich - www.starticket.ch
Sept 21 2013 – Paris - http://bit.ly/ZE8xsN
Sept 23 2013 – Warsaw - www.ebilet.pl
Sept 25 2013 – Berlin - http://bit.ly/ZhITLS
Sept 26 2013 – Stuttgart - http://bit.ly/ZhITLS
Sept 28 2013 – Dortmund - http://bit.ly/ZhITLS
Sept 29 2013 – Frankfurt - http://bit.ly/ZhITLS
Sept 30 2013 – Hamburg - http://bit.ly/ZhITLS
Oct 01 2013 – Copenhagen - www.billetnet.dk
Oct 02 2013 – Olso - www.billetservice.com
Oct 04 2013 – Stockholm - www.ticnet.se

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Macklemore is pretty rad but, his outfits are the raddest. Sure the Seattle native is a music success, thanks to his atypical DIY journey to the top of the Billboard charts, but he’s also a fly dude with a rather unique sense of style. This past weekend at the 2013 MTV Movie Awards in Los Angeles, California, the “Thrift Shop” rapper hit the red carpet in what looked like a Captain Crunch get-up which turned many heads—including ours. But, as wild as the outfit was, this wasn’t the first time he’s taken this sort of left-field approach to dressing. In fact, he’s been doing it for so long that now, it actually looks cool (just don’t try it yourself). So before you get to poppin’ tags at that thrift shop down the road, we give you a look at some of Macklemore’s Raddest Outfits from these past few months.

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Macklemore and Ryan Lewis are hip-hop’s act of the moment. Today, the pair release the visuals for “Can’t Hold Us,” which is the next single off their album The Heist. Just like their previous videos, its draws us in at many different levels. Notably, Macklemore is rocking out on a boat and its awesome. Elsewhere, they are waving their “The Heist” flag high. At the top its just them. Watch it above.

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This week in the hip-hop Twittersphere finds Action Bronson singing the hits on Vine, Kathy Griffin and A$AP Rocky getting close, and Joell Ortiz waxing eloquent about gym MILFs. Also, Macklemore is apparently hooking all the homies up with ant farms.

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