Ben Haggerty (born June 19, 1983) known by his stage name Macklemore and formerly Professor Macklemore, is an American rapper and musician mostly famous for his album The Heist. He began independently releasing music since 2000 and now collaborates with producer Ryan Lewis, violinist Andrew Joslyn, and trumpeteer Owuor Arunga. He has gained a significant online fanbase. He has released one mixtape, three EPs and two albums, although none on a major record label. His music video "Thrift Shop" has been viewed on YouTube more than 170 million times, and reached number 1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart, selling more than 2.2 million copies.

Macklemore released his debut studio album The Heist on October 9, 2012, which charted at number 2 on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling 78,000 copies in the first week. In July 2012, Haggerty and Lewis announced that their debut full-length album, The Heist, would be released on October 9, 2012 as well as a subsequent world tour to promote the release. Previously released singles "My Oh My", "Wing$" and "Can't Hold Us" were announced to be included on the album – as was the song "Make the Money". "Can't Hold Us" was used as soundtrack for Miller beer ad in UK and Ireland in June 2012, increasing Macklemore recognition in Europe. "Same Love" was released on July 18, 2012, and songs "White Walls" featuring ScHoolboy Q and "Jimmy Iovine" featuring Ab-Soul were confirmed to be included on the album.