Miller (real name Malcolm McCormick) released five studio albums and a whopping 13 mixtapes during his 11-year career. He dropped his first tape, But My Mackin’ Ain’t Easy, at the age of 15 in 2007, and signed with the independent label Rostrum Records three years later. He released his debut album, Blue Slide Park, in 2011.
In addition to making music on his own, the Pennsylvania native worked with a slew of other artists, ranging from Cobra Starship to Maroon 5 to Ariana Grande, whom he dated from 2016 to 2018.
Miller released his final album, Swimming, in August 2018, one month before he died from an accidental drug overdose at the age of 26. The record earned a Grammy nomination for Best Rap Album.
Revisit the late rapper’s best lyrics below.
“Take my time to finish, mind my business / A life ain’t a life ’til you live it / I was diggin’ me a hole / Big enough to bury my soul / Weight of the world, I gotta carry my own / My own, with these arms I can carry you home / I’m right here when you scared and alone, and I ain’t never in a hurry.” — “2009” from Swimming (2018)
“Can you please help me find my friend / I’ll give you anything you need / Multiplied by 10 / I heard he moved to a place / Where the time don’t end / You don’t need money / All you got is time to spend / Life is short, don’t ever question the lengths / It’s cool to cry / Don’t ever question your strength.” — “REMember” from Watching Movies With the Sound Off (2013)
“Been workin’ all my life to do some different stuff / And people have the nerve to say I’m young and haven’t lived enough.” — “Family First” from I Love Life, Thank You (2011)
“I just hope she know I love her / The world’s best mother / Yeah, it ain’t fair / So I’mma take care of her and her gray hair / When I get rich, I’ll have her livin’ like she should be / No stress, no worries.” — “I’ll Be There” from Best Day Ever (2011)
“You was there before the fancy cars and / You was there when I was just a starvin’ artist / When the car was havin’ trouble startin’ / Now we got our own apartment, same box for the mail / Same hamper for the laundry, the food in the fridge is stale / And this mornin’ you cooked the eggs with the kale.” — “Congratulations” from The Divine Feminine (2016)
