Kool Aid and Frozen Pizza – Mac Miller

Mixtape: K.I.D.S

The 14th track from Mac’s breakout mixtape ‘KIDS’, ‘Kool Aid and Frozen Pizza’ is a relaxed, kick-back song about a regular day in Miller’s life. He has previously stated that his music (and this song in particular) focuses on exploring ‘positive things that everyone can relate to’. Mac’s easy flow meanders across the spacey, laid-back production from Lord Finesses ‘Hip 2 Da Game’ as he introduces himself to the listener through playfully braggadocios lyrics about his impending success.

“Kool-Aid and frozen pizza
It’s a work of art, I ain’t talking Mona Lisa”

The opening line of the song has Miller calling out those who don’t consider rap to be art as he boastfully draws a comparison between his song and the infamous Mona Lisa by Leonardo DaVinci. A double entendre, the meaning of this lyric is two-fold. Mac is highlighting his appreciation of the simpler things in life, demonstrating through both interpretations of the bar that art cannot be confined to a traditional ‘mould’ – that it is subjective.

“Yeah, I live a life pretty similar to yours
Used to go to school, hang with friends and play sports
Every single summer taking trips to the shore
And that was all gravy but I knew I wanted more”

One of Mac’s most endearing attributes as a lyricist is his ability to be relatable. Here he paints a picture of his regular upbringing and how his drive to make it as as rapper left him wanting more from life.

You must admit he’s killing ’em, running off adrenaline
Waiting for the game to wanna let him in, so open up

For me, Mac’s earlier work takes on a different level of complexity and subtlety when comparing it to his more recent projects. Observations of his evolution as an artist, person, and how his opinions and perceptions have changed and developed are frequent. In ‘Kool Aid and Frozen Pizza’ Miller discusses his imminent breakthrough as he waits to be accepted by his peers and fans on the global stage. In ‘Brand Name’ and subsequently ‘2009’, Mac shares more cynical, jaded thoughts regarding the industry and indeed success after his presence in the game as mainstay for almost a decade.

‘Kool Aid and Frozen Pizza’ was the very first song i heard by Mac Miller. I remember listening to it with my friends back in highschool when it first came out. It has always held a special place in my heart due to it encapsulating Mac’s care-free, playful nature – an aspect that still resonates strongly with me to this day.

Brand Name – Mac Miller

Album: GO:OD AM

On Mac’s third album, we see him delve into issues surrounding his sobriety (or lack thereof), tackling his depression, becoming a better person, and the pitfalls and superficial nature of fame. The latter of these topics, rather obviously, is something Miller grapples with on ‘Brand Name’, providing his take on the world’s obsession with socially desirable brands and the need to impress others.

“Everything we think we love
It ain’t nothing but a brand name
To everyone but us
It ain’t nothing but a brand name, nothing but a brand name
Ask her what she wearing, say it’s nothing but a brand name
Baby, this right here is hand made”

The chorus sees Miller contemplating just how big a part of society branding has become, illustrating its pervasion in popular culture. Both the song and the album is an exercise in Mac freeing himself from the shackles of commercialism inextricably linked with fame and celebrity, denouncing their hold on him (“I got brothers, I don’t need no friends, My shoes off I’m comfortable, I’m chilling, smoking weed again”) and finding his peace in simplicity.

“Went from the 412 out to the 310
Went from the pavement in my basement to them yellow brick roads”

Mac also touches on his journey, using the area codes from both his hometown of Pittsburgh (412) and his current residence in LA (310). He juxtaposes the difference in his surroundings by comparing his basement to ‘them yellow brick roads’, alluding to the his belief that the path he is on will ultimately end in his fulfilment.

‘Brand Name’ and indeed ‘GO:OD AM’ sees the emergence of a more self-aware, mature Miller, especially when compared with his two previous albums ‘Watching Movies with the Sound Off’ and ‘Blue Slide Park’. Lyrics like “I work harder than anybody you know, I’m done with tricks, don’t need no money to blow” show the focus he has on his craft, realising that money is merely a by-product of his hard work and not something to hang his hat on. The track itself features melancholic instrumentals (a feature of the album), paired with chilled, ambling kicks and snares, providing Mac a platform on which to switch up his flows on multiple occasions – something he does with ease. ‘Brand Name’ is a song i have constantly found myself returning to as it establishes a fresh but unmistakably-mac take on fame and its pitfalls, illustrating his versatility, growth, and perspective.

2009 – Mac Miller

Album: Swimming

The penultimate track on what was to be his fifth and final project, ‘2009’ sees a pensive Mac revisit what life was like for him before his breakout 2010 mixtape, ‘K.I.D.S‘. Accompanied by some beautiful orchestral sections, a laid-back beat, and a nostalgic piano sample, Mac reflects on the lessons he’s learned and his progression as both a person and an artist.

“It ain’t 2009 no more
Yeah, I know what’s behind that door”

2009 was the year Mac released his first two mixtapes and was the final year before he began to garner mainstream attention, leaving him uncertain as to what the future may hold. Nine years on and a wiser, more jaded Miller has come to realise what the industry and the game is all about.

“And sometimes, sometimes I wish I took a simpler route
Instead of havin’ demons that’s as big as my house, mhmm”

Throughout his career, Mac has been very open about his struggles with and overcoming addiction, depression, and mental health in general. On 2009 he questions his career path, meditating on the thought that different life choices may have resulted in a more peaceful, less tumultuous journey.

“Take my time to finish, mind my business
A life ain’t a life ’til you live it
I was diggin’ me a hole big enough to bury my soul
Weight of the world, I gotta carry my own”

Mac has come to realise that he needs to do things in his own time; work at his own pace, focus on himself. By comparing himself to others and looking elsewhere for happiness, Miller realises that he’s not actually living, resulting in an existence that he couldn’t even classify as a life. Instead of burdening himself with bad reviews, negative press, and what other people think of him, he has his own cross to bear and that’s what’s most important.

On what has proven to be both personally, critically, and universally Mac Miller’s most polished, complete, and mature album, ‘2009’ is the standout track for me. As someone who has tracked Mac through his entire career, I have been able to witness his evolution as both an artist and a person. ‘2009’ showcases both of these aspects as Miller is able to take a step back and acknowledge his shortcomings, strengths, and missteps in a philosophical look at life five studio albums and 12 mixtapes later. A more introspective cut from his fifth album ‘Swimming’ (and indeed his entire catalogue), ‘2009’ sees Mac’s crooning coupled with soaring instrumental sections that harken back to a simpler time, inviting the listener to reminisce, as Miller does, about a time before his fame.