‘Songland’ Macklemore Preview: Will ‘City Kids’ Be His New Summer Hit?

After a break that was entirely too long, Songland is finally back with new episodes this week! And the first artist up is Macklemore. Will he find a summer hit on the show?

First, we have a preview of Pop Culture, one of the songwriters competing in this week’s episode of Songland. Then we’ll get in to their competition.

Pop Culture

Pop Culture is an EDM/pop duo from Kansas City. The duo is made up of songwriters/producers Matthew Boda and Callan Searcy. They specialize in full instrumental productions and making beats for dance music. It sounds like a perfect fit for Macklemore!

The duo’s song is called “City Kids.” I love the beat and the piano on the track. It definitely reminded me of Macklemore’s music. But there wasn’t a melody or any vocals on it yet! This allowed for the mentors/producers to have some fun writing. And Ester Dean did just that! She came up with some lyrics on the spot and it actually sounded pretty dope. I would be surprised if she’s not paired with Pop Culture this week.

Casey Cook

The second songwriter competing for their hit to be recorded by Macklemore is Casey Cook. Casey is a Rhode Island native who loves performing. Her website describes her as “a songstress with versatile vocals, captivating melodies, and honest lyrics.” After graduating from Belmont University in 2015, Casey moved to Los Angeles to release her own music. But her biggest musical accomplishment so far was co-writing “Boundaries” for Eurovision Contest winner Lena Meyer-Landrut. The song later went on to become the campaign song for Dark Phoenix in many European countries.

Iro

Ori Rakib, AKA Iro, is a singer-songwriter who was born in Israel and raised in California. But he got his start in music in Europe! Iro signed with Universal Music Sweden/Polydore in 2015. He has been compared to Milky Chance, Vance Joy, and Hozier. Iro is now based out of Brooklyn, New York, where he is often heard performing at subway stations. His Instagram has videos of him performing both covers and original songs.

Chris Jobe

Chris Jobe is a singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist from Dayton, Ohio, who is now based in Nashville. He writes, produces, and performs all his own music. Chris lists artists like The Chainsmokers, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Vampire Weekend, Jon Bellion, Chance The Rapper, and Kendrick Lamar as his musical influences. After the Dayton shooting and ahead of his Songland appearance, Chris released “Make It All Better,” a song about addiction that Billboard reported on recently.

If you want to see more from Macklemore ahead of Songland this week, watch what he says makes a song great.