Photo: wenn
Mac Miller’s got fans. No, for real, he’s got crazy fans. He’s got the type of fans who for a whole hour plus set will form several mosh pits to continuously smash into each other while the man they’ve come to see creates the soundtrack - at least this is what happened last night at the second of two shows held at London’s KOKO.
Touring last year’s GO:OD AM album - his first in a new deal with Warner Bros. Records - the Pittsburgh rapper seemed glad to be back in the nation’s capital. “London has been the home to some of my favourite shows,” he told the crowd. “You guys are just awesome.”
Thinking that perhaps this might be a short-lived sentiment after getting up close and personal with the front row and almost having his hat stolen off of his head, Mac snatched the hat back, passed it off to longtime friend Q and followed it up with a jab at Birdman following the Cash Money CEO’s recent Breakfast Club walk-out: “This motherfucker tried to take my hat. You must respeck me and my hat! That’s right, put some respeck on it.”
Using the respeck line to segue into the next record, he tells the audience he has absolutely no respect for this next man. Knowing what’s coming, screams were heard from the fans and the instrumental to Mac’s 2011 hit ‘Donald Trump’ begun to blast through the speakers. As excitement rose so did the crowd. Off their feet and into the air, in a wave formation there were people literally covering the entire square footage of KOKO being pushed from one side of the room to the other.
Performing new cuts like ‘100 Grandkids’, ‘Break The Law’, and of course his end of the week anthem ‘Weekend’, it didn’t matter that Miguel wasn’t in attendance to assist because the crowd had Mac’s back, singing every word to the undeniably catchy number.
Stopping midset to reaffirm his disdain for SeaWorld - “Fuck SeaWorld” - Mac also took a moment to confess that he had wanted to perform a Prince tribute after hearing of the icon’s death, but admitted there was no way he could do the Purple One justice. Instead he just had his DJ play ‘Purple Rain’ and he shared a moment - complete with purple spotlights, of course - with his fans.
For the longtime Mac Miller fan there were a few older gems sprinkled throughout the set. ‘Insomniak’ incited a peaceful riot amongst the already rowdy crowd, as did the Macadelic banger ’Lucky Ass Bitch’. But the song everyone had been waiting to hear, ‘Best Day Ever’, garnered the most applause and proved the best way to close out the show. With no encore gimmicks, Mac performed the record, shouted out London, gave the address to the after party, and then exited stage left not to return again.
Mac Miller’s come a long way from the days of banging on the lunchroom table and rapping back in Pittsburgh. Now with a loyal fanbase that spans the world over, he’s a force that has to be taken seriously. While there were a few tracks missed off the setlist that are forever synonymous with him - ‘Nikes On My Feet’, ‘Kool Aid & Frozen Pizza’, ‘Fight The Feeling’ - there’s only so much he can squeeze into his allocated time slot, and with an extensive back catalogue that features over 10 mixtapes and albums it can’t be an easy task selecting which to use.
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