Mac Miller's talents had him crossing paths with many talented artists and producers, culminating in a strange, beautiful, and fascinating discography. After he passed away in September of last year, Mac ultimately left behind Swimming as his final album. Now, following the airing of Shangri-La's third episode, we can glean a little more information about Mac's headspace during the project's creation. In case you don't know, Shangri-La is a three-part SHOWTIME documentary series created by Morgan Neville, director Jeff Malmberg, and legendary producer Rick Rubin. The clip finds Mac chopping it up with Rubin, breaking down his thoughts on his most personal album thus far.
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As he waits for Rubin to arrive, Mac tinkers with gear, vibing to an impromptu instrumental loop. "What if Rick just isn't coming?" he laughs. "That'd be so awesome. He somehow produced this record." Passing time with a guitar in hand, Mac greets Rubin's eventual arrival with a warm embrace. The producer proceeds to gush about Swimming's material, praise that Mac humbly receives. "It's been an interesting journey for me to realize that the goal here is to be as much me as possible," says Mac. "How do we get that out of me, into whatever we're making."
"You make this super personal, stripped back song where there's no bells and whistles, and that the only thing carrying the song is you," reflects Mac, with a gleeful laugh. "It's so scary dude!" Rubin counters with some wisdom befitting of his bead. "If you think about it, your favorite records do that," says Rubin. "The ones you like that other people make. That's the shit."