It’s been a wild time for Macklemore. Dealing with the instant fame of his Grammy Award-winning 2013 album, The Heist, was almost too much to handle and led to a relapse that included weed and pills. But there have been hints that the Seattle rapper was close to finishing the followup to The Heist, and on Wednesday, Macklemore and Ryan Lewis returned with “Growing Up (Sloan’s Song),” a track dedicated and written for Macklemore’s daughter that features Ed Sheeran. Macklemore talked about how becoming a father helped break him from his relapse.
The track is nothing like “Thrift Shop” or “Can’t Hold Us.” It’s more, as you might expect from the subject matter, a sentimental ballad very similar to the style of “Same Love.” With Sheeran handling the choruses, Macklemore lends advice to Sloan, telling her to take chances and what to expect in life. Maybe Sheeran could offer some advice on how to not shart your pants onstage.
The recently released track is currently being offered as a free download on Macklemore’s website. There’s still no word about when Macklemore’s next album will be ready, but he recently said it was about three-fourths finished.
