Look past the number one hits and appreciate an artist’s progression

Listeners often critique musicians on their latest tracks instead of their growth and development. 

A major component of creating music lies in progression. Learning from older work and applying the knowledge to new tracks to continue to influence more people is integral to an artist’s musical output. Thus, when we evaluate music, we cannot do so narrowly, solely relying on the latest charts. We must also look back on how artists have reached their peak.

One of the best examples of such progression is local rapper, Mac Miller. 

His progression from “Easy Mac with the cheesy raps” to a No. 1 Billboard Album in 2011 is showcased throughout his work and his dedication to create influential art, and makes him one of today’s most prominent rappers.

Malcolm McCormick was born in Point Breeze to an architect and a photographer. He was raised Jewish and attended Winchester Thurston School and Taylor Allderdice High School. When speaking to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in 2010 about the beginning of his rap career, he said, “Once I hit 15, I got real serious about it and my life changed completely … once I found out hip-hop is almost like a job, that’s all I did.” 

Early dedication to his career catapulted him from local shows to a worldwide tour in 2012. He started rapping at age 14 and honed his rudimentary skills alongside Pittsburgh rapper Beedie in the group The Ill Spoken. Together, they released various mix tapes but couldn’t hold the attention of any labels. The group split and Miller released two mixtapes, one of which eventually intrigued Rostrum Records — the company with which he signed his first deal. 

Eventually, Miller’s dreams and aspirations catapulted him to work with Benjy Grinberg and Wiz Khalifa at ID Labs.

Clearly, Mac Miller has worked exhaustively to reach the top of the rap world. In fact, Miller’s second album solidifies him as one of the country’s top rappers. Listeners have received his new psychedelic sound extremely positively, showing tremendous growth from his first reputable mixtape, The High Life.

There are many other musical examples that illustrate the importance of looking at artist or band progression. The Beatles played many gigs before Ed Sullivan. They did not just appear and smoothly sing and play guitars in perfect unison. In 1954, Jimmy Denny, manager of the Grand Ole Opry, fired Elvis Presley after just one performance, telling him that he wasn’t going anywhere in his career. If we view artists by single performances, we will make the same mistake Mr. Denny did. There is more to music than one performance or one album. We must appreciate artists for their individual journeys and progression.

Miller’s impressive journey as a rapper is evident in his numerous hits, millions of sales, sold out shows and more than 612 million YouTube video views. He transformed himself from a high school rapper into a concrete artist, with whom many different people hope to work. He may not be The Beatles or Elvis, but he’s a true artist, one with talent and drive that we should admire and appreciate.

Elias Economou primarily writes about campus issues and economics for The Pitt News.

Write to Elias at epe1@pitt.edu.