Nowadays, most rappers become famous by releasing mixtapes until they gain enough support to be signed by a label. Finding a label can be an incredibly difficult and long process, yet the promise of fame and fortune at the end of the road keeps hopefuls working. Macklemore is one of my favorite rappers out there today. Just like everyone else, he had to release mixtapes until a label would sign him. After three mixtapes, Macklemore was able produce his own album. With the help of Ryan Lewis, who does Macklemore’s beats and production, “The Heist” was released on October 9, 2012. The most famous song on this album is “Thrift Shop,” but one of his other great hits is “Can’t Hold Us”, which is a celebration song for the release of his first album.

 Album cover for “The Heist”

The first verse act as an introduction to finally achieving fame:

Return of the Mack, get up! what it is, what it does, what it is, what it isn’t
Looking for a better way to get up out of bed
Instead of getting on the internet and checking a new hit
Get up! fresh out pimp strut walking, little bit of humble, little bit of cautious
Somewhere between like rocky and cosby sweatergang nope nope y’all can’t copy
Yup. Bad, moonwalking, this here, is our party, my posse’s been on broadway,
And we did it, our way.

The lines “Looking for a better way to get up out of bed / Instead of getting on the internet and checking a new hit” refer to Macklemore’s drive to create something amazing. He was sick of sitting around listening to music and instead wanted to make it. The next few lines “Get up! fresh out pimp strut walking, little bit of humble, little bit of cautious / Somewhere between like rocky and cosby sweatergang nope nope y’all can’t copy  / Yup. Bad, moonwalking, this here, is our party, my posse’s been on broadway, / And we did it, our way” refer to Macklemore embracing his own unique style and not giving up. He knew he couldn’t be too cocky or too cautious; instead he had to balance the two feelings to create a solid fan base. Once he did, he was able to see success. The phrase “this here, is our party, my pose’s been on broadway / And we did it, our way” identifies that the song is celebrating Macklemore’s success and the release of his first album.

In this song, Macklemore raps in a quick and energetic manner. The reason for this is it amplifies the excitement of his first album release. The song is upbeat, so lyrics need to be as well.

The rest of the first verse finishes in much of the same way as it began. The second verse addresses other labels who tried to rip Macklemore off with poor deals:

Labels out here,
Nah they can’t tell me nothing
We give that to the people,
Spread it across the country

Time and time again, labels attempted to sign Macklemore but would give him unrealistically small shares of the earnings. (Another one of his songs addresses this specifically.) Sick of dealing with this unfairness, Macklemore teamed up with his partner Ryan Lewis to make an album themselves. Having successfully done so, a celebration is absolutely in order. The chorus describes this celebration:

Can we go back, this is the moment
Tonight is the night, we’ll fight till it’s over
So we put our hands up like the ceiling can’t hold us
like the ceiling can’t hold us

The last two lines of the chorus are most important because they represent Macklemore’s feelings of success and accomplishment. Although he struggled to create a first album, he did it. While artists usually rely on finding a label to see success, Macklemore was able to do it alone. An accomplishment like this is far from typical, which is why the song celebrates it.

Macklemore (right) and Ryan Lewis (left).

From here, the second verse continues like before. Macklemore addresses those who told him he couldn’t do it as well as thanking his fans. The first line of the second verse says it all “Nah, can I kick it? thank you. yeah I’m so damn grateful.” Without his fans, Macklemore would be nothing. He realizes this, so he thanks his fans directly.

Macklemore live at the Sasquatch Music Festival.

Macklemore is an interesting artist. Not only does he have a unique style of rapping, but he also has a unique story of success. I have a lot of respect for him because of his hard work and determination. Although his first album may not have been “professionally” done, it doesn’t sound any different. I can’t wait to see what he does next.

Listen to “Can’t Hold Us” here, you won’t be disappointed: