Review: Macklemore Eschews Deep Thoughts for a Good Time on ‘Gemini’

Macklemore’s first post-fame LP minus longtime partner Ryan Lewis finds the Seattle MC unburdened by stardom or the social concern that turns his woke anthems into online firestorms – “I’m a motherfuckin’ icon/Boots made of python,” he raps on “Willy Wonka,” a creeping track with Offset of Migos. Partying tunes like the funky “Firebreather” sometimes feel like not much more than a rich white guy bragging. But Macklemore’s trademark awkward humanity comes through on “Good Old Days,” a reflection on aging (with Kesha), and “Church,” a thank-you letter to making it that’s warm, vivid, earnest and earned.