On tour in support of his new album, The Divine Feminine, Mac Miller visited the Crystal Ballroom in Portland, OR on November 7th. The evening started off confusing to everyone. There was no mention of an opener, so everyone showed up early to see him, and then were told that he wouldn’t be going on until 10. And to explain just how many people wanted to see him, there was a line wrapping around the block from 7 p.m. to past 9 p.m. Also one thing I noticed immediately, which became evident later, was that they hired extra security for this show, which is super unlike this particular venue.  

After a long period of anticipation Mac Miller finally went on. Strolling out on stage, like he’s done a million times, you could just tell how at ease he was. One rad thing which I didn’t notice until editing my photos, was that he was repping a old-school looking Oregon t-shirt. It showed me how much he cares about where he’s performing and for his fans. To be honest, I was a little bit anxious to shoot him too because he’s the first musician I shot that is more of a pop culture icon. And at 24, not much older than I, Mac Miller has built a music empire for himself, releasing his fourth studio album this year.

Of course Mac Miller played all of the favorites, along with songs from The Divine Feminine. In a timely manner, he performed one of his most popular songs “Donald Trump” right in line with the election. Although now he updates it by saying “fuck Donald Trump” since that song was released way before Donald Trump tried to run for president. He also played some of my favorite from his new album “Cinderella” and “Dang!”.


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Brian Benton

Brian Benton is a writer and photographer based in Los Angeles.