For anyone who listens to Mac Miller, you know how difficult this is. The late, great, Malcolm McCormick (more commonly known as Mac Miller) had an incredible career in rap music, showing one of the most unbelievable transformations throughout. His discography displays an amazing journey, across which he created several musical masterpieces. In this article I’ll be ranking Mac Miller’s top 5 songs from his entire discography, based on the following criteria:

• Flow
• Production (beat)
• Vocal performance
• Lyrical significance/meaning

I so badly wanted to include this track on the official list, but for me it’s so close behind the #5 track that I had to include it as an honorable mention. “Objects” is one of Mac’s first forays into sadder song, and discusses his feelings for an unidentified woman. Mac raps about the trials and tribulations of his relationship with this woman, and how Mac wishes they could be free from the eyes of others. 

“Can you hide away, can you hide away

Sound of silence as they all just watch you

I kinda find it strange

How the times have changed

But I wish, we could go and be free, once

Baby, you and me

We could change the world forever

And never come back again

Let’s leave it all in the rear-view”

Mac shows some of the first flashes of his future sound with this track. He leans more toward singing rather than rapping, showing the range of his talent. The production does a great job of supporting the lyrics as well. Overall, this song is a 10/10 but falls just short of top 5. 

#5: “Ladders” (off of Swimming)

Many would argue that this track, while still amazing, doesn’t crack the top five of Mac’s catalog. I heavily disagree. “Ladders” has some of the best production I’ve ever heard, combined with a lyrical message that creates the perfect contrast to form an astounding song. Hence the title, “Ladders” is a song about the peaks of fame, and the conditions of a fall from the top.

“I know it feels so good right now

But it all come fallin’ down

When the night meet the light

Turn to day

Can’t stop, no, you won’t stop

I know just how that feel

When you’re on top, ’til the ball drop

You’ve never seen it be so real

It feels so good right now

But it all come fallin’ down

When the night meet the light

Turn to day”

If you listen to this song, you’ll hear how the jazz rap beat cloaks the serious message of the song in some of the best pure music you’ll ever hear. A jazz solo that breaks through a chorus and the final verse will purely transport you. Mac’s flow is perfect to fit with the beat, and as stated before, the juxtaposition between the production and the lyrics makes this track a worthy inclusion on this list. 

#4: “Good News” (off of Circles)

Definitely one of the saddest rap songs of all time, “Good News” is easily the best song

on Mac’s posthumous album, Circles. “Good News” discusses the impact of other people on Mac’s mental health, as well as his thoughts and feelings regarding death. It’s smooth, simplistic yet excellent, with an easy-to-grasp message. 

“There’s a whole lot more for me waiting on the other side

I’m always wondering if it feel like summer

I know maybe I’m too late, I could make it there some other time

I’ll finally discover

That there’s a whole lot more for me waiting, That there’s a whole lot more for me waiting

I know maybe I’m too late, I could make it there some other time

Then I’ll finally discover, That it ain’t that bad”

Circles, being a posthumous album, connects a lot to the idea of death and all that comes with it. Mac expertly creates a flow and beat that maintains the peaceful theme and feel of the song. The beat is mellow and calm, as Mac has found peace. The vocals are slow and well-executed, cementing this as one of Mac’s purely best tracks. 

#3: “Yeah – bonus” (off of Faces)

Faces, Mac’s 2014 mixtape, contains 25 tracks that all revolve around the theme of how substance abuse affected Mac. Mac once stated that he was “nowhere near planet Earth” when he made this mixtape. On this mix, he discusses loneliness, fame, and his own morality, as well as how drugs tie into it all. “Yeah” is the last track on the mix, and it makes the whole mix feel like a prolonged high, with “Yeah” being the come-down. “Yeah” features Mac at his most introspective, pondering what will be left of his legacy after his inevitable death due to his abuse problems. He goes through it sounding scared and depressed. 

“Man, I think you went too far

You can’t stop the dance

Don’t ever let ’em stop the dance, yeah

Are we all numb? Where are we goin’?

What have we become? It all keeps on rollin’

A little bit of light lets the hope grow

A lot goes on that they don’t know

Just give me a sign, to show me somethin’

Is it my time? Can I stop runnin’?

Lost in the night and it’s so cold

Forget the things that we don’t know

I made my peace, can I go home?”

“Am I alive? Am I aware? Do you get high? Are we prepared? 

Then one day we’ll die 

No one will care 

Do you get high? We will survive”

This song is chilling upon every listen, as a somber piano beat with guitar accents and vocals exacerbated by engineering match up perfectly with the message and pattern of the lyrics. This track is purely sorrowful and saddening, but the significance of it in coalition with the overall high quality make it one of Mac’s best. 

#2: Perfect Circle / God Speed (off of GO:OD AM)

Mac’s 2015 studio album GO:OD AM had a theme that ran through the entire tracklist. That theme was one of recognition, realization, and awareness. Mac realizes the problems he has and how it can/is/will affect others, especially those closest to him. This is technically a two-part song, with the first part being named “Perfect Circle” and the second part being named “God Speed.” “PC” part tackles Mac’s self-recognition that he isn’t perfect and has flaws and problems. “GS” shows Mac’s vulnerability, as he opens up to those closest to him about what he’s struggling with. He acknowledges how his issues might affect them. 

(PC): “Have you ever had to hurt her? Just for something to do

Can you draw a perfect circle?

Lot of lies cover the truth, you got options, what do you do?

I wash these pills down with liquor and fall

Leave it to me, I do enough for us all 

(GS): “​​Everybody say I need rehab

Cause I’m speedin’ with a blindfold on and won’t be long ’til they watching me crash

And they don’t wanna see that

They don’t want me to OD and have to talk to my mother

Telling her they could have done more to help me

And she’ll be crying saying that she’ll do anything to have me back

All the nights I’m losing sleep, it was all a dream

There was a time that I believed that

But white lines be numbing them dark times

Them pills that I’m popping, I need to man up

It’s a problem, I need a wake up

Before one morning I don’t wake up

You make your mistakes, your mistakes never make ya

“PC” and “GS” have different production, flows, and vocals, to match the different feelings portrayed. “PC” is more self-focused, with piano accents, heavier drums, and a low-pitch choir composing the beat, while “GS” has heavier piano, a high-pitched choir-like background accent, and lighter drums. The composition of the beats is almost flipped, showing how Mac transitions from self-focus (PC) to a focus on those closest to him (GS). “PC” has a more pronounced flow and cadence to the vocals while “GS” is quicker and more sporadic. Overall, the message of this song and the contrast between the two parts make this song a masterpiece.

#1: 2009 (off of Swimming)

2009 is undoubtedly Mac’s best track. It is exceptional in every way. It tackles the ultimate retrospect, as Mac reflects on his past choices that led to the place he’s in. This is Mac reconciling with his past and acknowledging his growth and his mistakes. He’s accepting where he is in life, even if it isn’t the best. 

“I ain’t asking “Why?” no more

Oh, no, I take it if it’s mine

I don’t stay inside the lines

It ain’t 2009 no more

Yeah, I know what’s behind that door”

“And sometimes, sometimes

I wish I took a simpler route

Instead of having demons that’s as big as my house, mhmm”

“Isn’t it funny? We can make a lot of money

Buy a lot of things just to feel a lot of ugly

I was yea high and muddy

Looking for what was looking for me”

2009 was the start of Mac’s career, when he began development for his debut album, “K.I.D.S.” This was the beginning of the end. 2009, when Mac was too young to understand the implications of the choices he was making, leaving him with demons as big as his house. Mac achieved this retrospection. He found himself. 

The track opens with a picturesque instrumental solo that features violin and piano, among other light instruments. After the crescendo, Mac pours his heart out. He realizes how his past choices have affected him and brought him to where he is now. The flow is smooth and calm, but the vocals are inflicted with a twinge of sadness. In some parts, it almost sounds as if Mac is tearing and his voice is cracking. The significance behind the meaning of the lyrics, paired with the angelic production and engineering that accompanies Mac’s heartfelt vocals, is perfection upon every listen. 

Mac Miller has a discography with countless perfect songs, but these five (plus the HM) are truly the best.