Ben Haggerty (born June 19, 1983) better known by his stage name Macklemore, is an American rapper and songwriter who is best known for his collaboration efforts with producer Ryan Lewis. He released his debut EP, Open Your Eyes as Professor Macklemore in 2000 and his debut album The Language of My World as simply Macklemore in 2005. Haggerty meet Ryan Lewis in 2006 and released The VS. EP with Lewis in 2009, the two gained success with the singles Thrift Shop, Can't Hold Us and the crtically acclaimed Same Love, the album that accompanied it, The Heist, debuted at Number 2 on the Billboard 200.
Early life
Ben Haggerty was born on June 19, 1983 in Seattle, Washington, he started to get into hip hop at the age of six by way of Digital Underground and has said that Freestyle Fellowship, Aceyalone, Living Legends, Wu-Tang Clan, Nas, and Talib Kweli were big influences as a kid. He earned a bachelor's degree from The Evergreen State College in 2005.
Music career
2000-2005: Career beginnings
Haggerty released his debut EP Open Your Eyes under the name Professor Macklemore which he self-released, he later dropped "Professor" from his name and released his debut album The Language of My World.
2006-2011: Meeting Ryan Lewis and The VS. EP
Haggerty meet Ryan Lewis in 2006 who spent a few years working on Macklemore's promotion as a photographer, they collaborated on The VS. EP which was released with Macklemore's mixtape The Unplanned Mixtape in 2009, the follow up to the EP The VS. Redux was released the following year. In 2011, they released the single My Oh My on December 21, 2010, Can't Hold Us on January 21, 2011 along with "Can't Hold Us" featuring Ray Dalton on August 16, 2011.
2012-present: The Heist and worldwide recognition
The duo released Same Love on July 18, 2012 which talked about same-sex marriages received them critical acclaim and with the single Thrift Shop launched them to mainstream success. Haggerty's album with Ryan Lewis, The Heist, was released on October 9, 2012 and debut at Number 2 on the Billboard 200, selling over 78,000 copies it's first week and went on The Heist Tour in promotion of the album. Macklemore was stated that him and Lewis would begin working on a new album once they have taken a break after The Heist Tour concludes in 2013, estimated the album would take less than three years to complete.
Personal life
Haggerty became engaged to his girlfriend of seven years, Tricia Davis, on January 21, 2013, he also supports LGBT Rights which was expressed in his single "Same Love." In 2008, Macklemore went to rehab for drug-addiction and alcoholism. In the song "Starting Over" on The Heist, talks about his relapse. He came down with a cold and was prescribed codeine cough syrup eventually leading to the abuse of the drug. He explained in a documentary that he spent most of his twenties "trying to fight [his] way out of that (way of life)", saying "I want to be someone who is respected and not just in terms of my music. I want to be respected in terms of the way that I treat people. The way, the subjects in which I choose to .. address through my music. And not because I'm, like, trying to make records about them. It's just that's what's important to me. Music is my creative outlet in terms of expressing what is important to me; what has importance, what has a value. And I wanna be respected for that.
Discography
- The Language of My World (2005)
- The Heist (with Ryan Lewis) (2012)