‘More money, more oppression’: Macklemore’s latest single rightfully puts billionaires on blast

Social media commended Macklemore’s latest single as “revolutionary.” But his call-outs were arguably not radical. Rather, his piercing words were just an honest commentary about billionaires. Macklemore only comes off as loud because other artists have been deafeningly silent.

Macklemore’s single, “f— up,” raps about how the billionaire class controls key natural and technological resources. He directly illustrates this point by bringing up inmates who work as firefighters for $2 an hour, all while billionaires like the Resnicks have 57% ownership of state water in California. Macklemore describes the system Americans live in for what it is: an oligarchy.

While rationality dictates that Americans should resist this type of rule, they’re ultimately kept at bay by distracting content. These distractions, too, are employed by big tech through entertainment. I’d add that misinformation also plays a key role in these distractions, making it difficult for people to discern truth and lies.

The rapper doesn’t leave any room for ambiguity and directly takes shots at several billionaires. He also gives Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a mention throughout the song and calls him a colonizer for his crimes against Palestinians. Lyricism aside, Macklemore flashed the faces of Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg, and President Donald Trump—while berating them for three minutes about their greed and its consequences.

The cycle of oppression continues

Ultimately, Macklemore believes that their interests all tie back to white supremacy and genocide. As he puts it, “More blood, more weapons, more money, more oppression.” In turn, these powerful men can keep extracting resources from Sudan and Congo. Occupied Gaza may as well be the “Riviera of the Middle East,” as Trump notoriously proposed.

Billionaires undoubtedly benefit from these conflicts. Meanwhile, people who are displaced from these lands are framed as othered beings so that the United States can keep justifying the funding of war. Macklemore brings up pictures comparing South Africa during the apartheid and present-day Palestine. In both instances, natives are treated like second-class citizens by settlers in their own land. Ironically, the United States complicitly supported this oppression by either continuing to engage economically with these states or through the funding of weaponry.

Although this is a critique of the billionaire class, Macklemore creatively tied all of his commentary together by using Elon Musk in his transitions. “And Elon, we know exactly what that was, bro,” then Macklemore cuts to Elon Musk’s infamous Nazi salute. Transitioning to the end, Macklemore mentions Musk in relation to cobalt mining in Congo. It’s all an oppressive cycle, driven by white supremacy, to which only billionaires benefit. But that’s why Macklemore chants that all these things have him “f*cked up.” These events are so blatantly disgusting that no amount of Netflix shows or doomscrolling can make him ignore them.

Out of sight shouldn’t be out of mind

Make no mistake: Macklemore’s work doesn’t just smack billionaires. It also calls on other people to speak up on social issues. “If you still haven’t said sh*t about the genocide, know your grandkids are going to ask you ‘why’?” Macklemore’s statement here takes a hit at artists who have been too comfortably silent about the ongoing onslaught in Gaza, Congo, and Sudan. Although the latter two get less media attention, the tragedies in Gaza have been so highly pronounced.

Our social media feeds have been populated by cute cats and dead children. It’s impossible not to have seen these gruesome images. Instead of using their platforms to sing for a permanent ceasefire or to promote charities, the music industry has been uncomfortably silent. But they shouldn’t be complicit when they have more social influence compared to the average person. This would make it easier for them to promote their advocacies or disavow ongoing conflicts.

Regardless, Macklemore isn’t just rapping for other artists to speak up. He’s imploring everyone to reject the brutal status quo. Giving up and sighing, “Oh well, what can we do?” seems to be the best resort. But people aren’t powerless if we resist hand in hand. From donating to relief organizations to withholding from that iPhone upgrade, every bit of small action is better than no action at all.