SHOOTS AND SCORES BY MICHELLE PACIS CPCONTRIBUTORS@PGHCITYPAPER.COM
In March 2013, my photographer friend Heather Mull asked me to style a Pittsburgh rapper she was photographing for City Paper. The article was to be about him starting a record company. I wasn’t familiar with his music or how popular he already was, so I looked him up on YouTube. Then I quickly gathered a bunch of items for the shoot, including a Mario Lemieux Penguins jersey that had been a gift from a former boyfriend. When I walked into the studio, this kid extended his hand and politely introduced himself as Malcolm. I started unpacking the items for different looks I would assemble. He saw the jersey. He pointed at it. He started jumping up and down on the couches and said, “Yo, that’s it, that’s it!” He pulled the jersey on over his shirt, and we started shooting. His demeanor turned increasingly serious as Heather began taking photos. After the shoot, he offered me money; he wanted to keep the jersey. I respectfully declined. (I thought there was no way this kid had money to even spare — little did I know!) I had no use for the jersey and told him I would exchange it for a picture that I could post online of us together, him wearing the jersey. You can see in the picture how happy he was to make that trade. I have been told he wore the jersey on stage at his Pittsburgh show later that night. Aside from my old boyfriend (sorry, Tim!), Malcom getting that Mario jersey and wearing it while performing as Mac Miller probably put a smile on everybody’s face. • This edited version of an original Facebook post was printed with the writer’s permission. Michelle Pacis is a local stylist.
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PHOTO: KIMBERLY MCDONALD
Apple juice and cookies with Mac Miller at Taylor Allderdice
.MAC MILLER.
MALCOLM BEFORE MAC BY AMANDA WALTZ // AWALTZ@PGHCITYPAPER.COM
M
AC MILLER MADE it big as a hot young talent with a bright future in the music industry. But in the wake of his death, many in his native Pittsburgh remember him for more than his music — as Malcolm McCormick, a student, a performer, and a son dedicated to and loved by his family.
for Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI). “I still have the CD of examples he shared and analyzed with everyone,” says Maione. Kimberly McDonald also keeps a musical memento from her days as Miller’s 11th grade English teacher at Taylor Allderdice High School — a copy of
his art. “His early music was fun,” says Gentner. “He connected with kids in a fun way, he was always smiling” McDonald goes on to describe him as “one of those students that a teacher loved to have in class.” “He was insightful. He had intelligent comments. He added to class discussions.
“HE CONNECTED WITH KIDS IN A FUN WAY, HE WAS ALWAYS SMILING.” “I remember him as a serious music student,” says John Maione, a performing arts teacher at Winchester Thurston School who taught Miller music during his freshman and sophomore years. “His knowledge, intensity, and seriousness regarding hip-hop and rap music was inspiring.” He recalls Miller as a leader in his class
his early mixtape The Jukebox: Prelude to Class Clown with the note, “To my favorite English teacher.” “It’s one of my prized possessions,” says McDonald. She and Taylor Allderdice studentsocial worker Debra Gentner each paint Miller as a friendly, well-liked young man who injected humor into his studies and
He was great with literature and poetry. Go figure, right?” she says with a chuckle. Even after he graduated, Miller returned to Taylor Allderdice to perform at the prom. He also made an appearance at the school when he returned to Pittsburgh in 2013 to accept a Key to the City during a ceremony declaring September 20 as Mac Miller Day.