Macklemore’s ‘Gemini’ is a feel-good offering

It feels wrong to say Macklemore’s latest solo album, Gemini, is better than This Unruly Mess I’ve Made, his 2016 project released alongside longtime collaborator Ryan Lewis. For goodness’ sake, This Unruly Mess I’ve Made saw Macklemore reflecting on important issues: dissecting white privilege, addressing police brutality, confronting the music industry.

But the end result was neither fun nor easy to listen to, and, quite simply, Gemini is. That’s thanks in no small part to a long list of the new set’s featured guests, whose good-time vibes seem to put Macklemore back in the space that gave way to his and Lewis’ 2012 smash single Thrift Shop.

Undoubtedly, that Grammy Awardwinning song is the one that put Macklemore “in Obama’s iPod” as the rapper boasts on the delightfully off-kilter Gemini track Willy Wonka, featuring Migos rapper Offset. There’s the sticky sweet featuring Lil Yachty,

piano with its and playful lyrics. Then there’s the electric funk boogie of Levitate featuring Seattle-based newcomer Otieno Terry. Even Macklemore’s ruminating is limited to lighter fare, like on the guitar-driven where he runs down a laundry list of to-dos he’s been falling short on. “I wake up in the morning, first thing I do is look at a screen. I should read a book, but I keep watching this TV,” he raps, adding, “I want world peace, but still want to watch Worldstar.”

So as it turns out, Macklemore is, indeed, a regular dude. One who misses his youth, as on the starry, piano-driven Good Old Days featuring Kesha. He’s a guy who notices when his ex deletes photos from Instagram as he raps on Over It featuring singer Donna Missal.

This time around, Macklemore may have stayed away from the heavy messages. But with everything going on the world, some fans might say Gemini is the perfect feel-good distraction. — AP