Interview with Tom Macdonald

Happy BC Day and welcome back to another week with us at Inside The Scene. This week I was joined by a Vancouver Hip hop artist named Tom Macdonald (Mr. Mac). Tom never was always a musician, he pursued a career as a professional wrestler. I'll let him tell you all about it. Tom is a very mysterious guy and the name of his website describes that very well, (whoismrmac.com). He has worked with another Vancouver artist, Matt Brevner. I'll stop rambling on and get right to it.

ITS - What was your inspiration in pursuing a career in music?

Tom - "Honestly, my inspiration for pursing a career in music was that my pursuit of a career in professional wrestling had come to an end. I started wrestling when I was fourteen. Was on my first show a couple months after I started training. Wrestled on Pay Per View and on a bi-weekly TV show by the time I was eighteen. I just developed a lot of bitterness toward the industry. Guys were telling me I was going to be the greatest thing since sliced bread from the first day I got in to a ring, so…by the time I was old enough to drink I’d heard it all. That stuff goes to your head when you’re young. I was super confident in myself and guys didn’t like that. I was out-shining people twice my age every night and I wasn’t shy about saying exactly that. It just got to a point where I had to walk away from it all. The politics were overwhelming. Guys were trying to hurt me (unsuccessfully, I might add). It was my time to ride into the sunset. I’d had enough. I’d always LOVED music, though.  2 Pac’s “All Eyez On Me” was the first record I ever bought. I’d been writing poetry since I was old enough to hold a pencil, so, I put all of my energy into that. The poems developed into rock songs, but, I didn’t have the voice for that type of music. Then, the rock songs developed into Hip-Hop and R&B songs. The rest is history."

ITS - Who have been your biggest influences in your career?

Tom - "Man, there’s a lot. I’ve said it a million times, but, Robert Plant is my dude. I grew up on classic rock. Zeppelin, Floyd, Steppenwolf, The Beatles, Jethro Tull. Those guys made real, honest music. I know I don’t make anything that sounds like what they did, but…they’ve influenced me more than I can say. Im a big Kanye West fan too. I think his music has a lot of integrity and, like myself, he produces a lot of his own stuff. Also, he’s really outspoken. I think we’d get along. “Stone Cold” Steve Austin is a pro wrestler, but, I still find myself being inspired by him. He’s just a guy who didn’t put up with any bullshit and overcame every obstacle put in his way to become the best of all time. Politics, broken necks, family problems - overcame it all. His work ethic and moral fibre is totally admirable. My less critically acclaimed influences are probably the most important, though. My Dad. My Mom. My sister. They’re the most incredible group of people a guy could ever hope to go through life with. They’ve supported me whole-heartedly from the jump. They tell me what they think is good, what they think is bad, what they think I should do next. They’re probably my biggest influences in life and in music."

 ITS - What was the inspiration behind writing your most recent release “Wannabe"?

Tom - "Well, I’d just returned home from Europe. I was on tour with Onyx for the better part of a month. I had a tough run on my first tour through Europe, man. Onyx fans are purists. They don’t fuck with ‘new’ hip-hop, really. They like that classic sounding stuff. Sample based boom-bap rap. So, I mean, if you’re familiar with my music, you know that’s something I just don’t do. I respect it. I appreciate it. But I don’t fucking like it. It’s just not me. Im someone who makes music because I communicate my feelings poorly otherwise. It means something to me. It’s not some shit that the crowd is always going to be able to sing along to or clap their hands to or whatever, so…you know. I had a couple tough shows where people were like, “Yo, fuck this guy. Im not tryna hear someone sing about their life - I’m tryna party with Onyx”. So, when I got back to Vancouver I got offered a spot on Kool Keith’s tour through Europe and I was like “Alright, lets go to the studio and make some performance songs”. That’s what we did. That’s what “LeeAnn’s Son” was to me. Performance tracks. Songs you could get a little crazy to. Not all of it, but, a big portion of it. When we were like ten songs I deep I was like, “Alright. We got a bunch of bangers for shows. I need to do something real right now. Something true to me.” That’s when I wrote “Wannabe”. In the midst of all these party tracks…I was doing a lot of partying, haha. I’d just got out of a relationship and I was sort of depressed about some other stuff. Sometimes you just lay in bed or look in the mirror and you’re like “This isn’t who I want to be”. That’s the vain I wrote “Wannabe” in. “This is not the way I wannabe”. Done."

ITS - How would you describe the hip hop scene in Vancity, and what can other aspiring hip hop artists do to get themselves noticed?

Tom - "Haha, man. I’m going to have to be careful about how I answer that question. So, I guess that means the hip-hop scene is sensitive, really. Seriously, though - it’s cool. It’s small. It’s not even a blip on the music industry’s radar for the most part. There’s a few of us doing our thing and there’s a lot of bullshit. Same as the hip-hop scene in any Canadian city, I think. That’s about all I can say in regards to the scene without pissing too many people off. Most of the music is stuff that I’m not really a fan of. Not saying it isn’t quality, it just doesn’t interest me. I make a really different type of hip-hop than what the majority of artists in Vancouver make. There’s some really great guys out there, though. I could definitely see a handful of dudes going on to bigger and better things in the near future. As far as what an aspiring artist can do to get noticed…that’s an entire interview on it’s own. Everyone always says this, but, it’s the truth - be yourself. Make honest music. Even if you’re not the most talented rapper on the block- a relentless work ethic goes a long way. Stay true to yourself and don’t be discouraged by the nay-sayers. TRAVEL OUTSIDE OF CANADA."

ITS - What plans are in the works for Mr. Macdonald in 2014?

Tom - "Lots, man. I can’t really say much at this point. I hate to be the guy who leaves the party and then shows up on the doorstep again fifteen minutes later. I’m working extremely hard. I’ve got tons of new material. My plans will reveal themselves as they actualize in my life."

ITS - A fun question I like to throw in, if you could choose one type of food to live off of what would it be?

Tom - "Shit, man. One food? I dunno. The only thing I eat every day that I don’t get sick of is a tuna-melt after I work out in the morning. I guess that’d be it. A lil tuna. A lil cheese. A lil avocado.  Some pickles.  A lot of Miracle Whip. That’d probably tie me over."

 

If you want to find out more about what's coming you way from Mr. Mac you can among various social media.

 

www.whoismrmac.com
www.facebook.com/TheRealMrMac
www.youtube.com/AllstarTWest
Instagram & Twitter @ TheRealMrmac

And Now you can check out his video for his recent single "Wannnabe"