Macklemore Quotes

"Thrift shopping is all about going into the thrift shop and having no expectation of what you might find."

"Music is therapy. Music moves people. It connects people in ways that no other medium can. It pulls heart strings. It acts as medicine."

"'Vote Love' means vote equality. It means vote change. It means vote what's right for humanity."

"I got sober, and I got happy again."

"'The more expensive the better' is kind of the American way, and if you spent $600 for a sweatshirt, then that makes it better."

"Thrift shopping is really just an extension of me being that same kid and going into a place that's completely unconventional that has really endless possibilities in terms of outfits that you can put together and really just expressing yourself."

"Do you want to live life, or do you want to escape life?"

"Bullying is a national epidemic."

"I don't want to look back and be like, 'You had it all, and you weren't even present for it. You weren't able to enjoy it.' I want to be here, be now and be grateful."

"I shop at thrift shops probably five times a week."

"You can only watch injustice go on for so long until you're compelled to say something. To speak out against it."

"I definitely use 'smiling while rapping' as a tool in the booth. I want to have fun while recording."

"The man that got me into collecting sneakers in the first place was the man they call Michael Jordan. He was the one who kind of exposed me to the sneaker world - he was my favorite basketball player, and he had the best shoes."

"I find that when I put my spiritual life first, the rest of my life is easy. When I put my career first, that's when I have problems."

"My partner has to have good sized bones."

"Its easy to view politicians as corrupt and voting essentially an act of picking the lesser of two evils. I understand that perspective and feel it's valid."

"I want to make music that I like; not something that I have to make because I think it's going to sell."

"I think people are enticed by indie rap and every time you have a group going against the grain, they're gonna be like, 'Wow, you did it yourself in 2012, that's impressive - how did you do it? What're you doing that's different? And how can I be a part of it?'"

"Sampling is kind of prehistoric, given the technology and the textures you can create."

"I'm someone that examines culture and tries to break down why things are the way that they are whether its hip-hop music, sex, race, or consumerism. I try to examine it and scrutinize it to the point where I can write a song."

"I just want to give the people 100% of myself as an artist."

"I'm as honest as I can be."

"When I write, I don't have any expectation of what kind of song it will become or who it might reach."

"I think music should be experienced by people all ages."

"You have major labels that are willing to take unconventional approaches because the old model is crumbling in front of us."

"I put myself in the place of the listener when editing my writing. The last thing that I want to do is be preached at and told who to be or what to think when listening to an artist. However, I do want to be inspired. There's a fine line."

"Reading a piece of poetry with no beat in front of 20 people is way more challenging than rocking for 10,000 people."

"The fame and the money and all that stuff that comes along with it is all great, but that's not the sole purpose of why I make music."

"I played baseball up until my freshman year of high school. That was my main sport. I played third base."

"I think that there will always be artists out there who think they need to sign a major label deal in order to be successful. And that machine is what is going to work for them - there's tons of examples of pop stars who need that machine."