Mac Miller - Swimming REDUX REVIEW 

This will probably be the greatest redux review of Anthony’s whole career

This is historical, from a 3 to an 8. We are witnessing history ladies and gentlemen

I was always so perplexed as to why he gave it such a low initial score. One of the greatest records of the 2010s

Mac Miller’s last two albums helped me go through some of the loneliest and darkest times of my life which I was experiencing back in 2019. Lately I’ve been feeling down again so I came back to his music and now that I’m less of a self absorbed prick I truly can feel his pain, especially throughout Circles. This breaks my heart. I feel like I could’ve been one of those ignorant people around him who didn’t truly see him while he was alive. Mac Miller was there for me like a real friend. Even after his death. Which is why I truly miss him, from the bottom of my heart. Malcome, You’ve became immortal with what you brought to this world. I wish one day I see you on the otherside and give you a big hug brother.

No memes this time Anthony, I’m just happy you’re finally doing this album justice. Long live Mac ❤

the greatest example of character development of all time

you can criticize macs talent all you want, but the way he can display his soul on a track is like no other

Thanks for the redux Anthony. Honestly I started listening to Mac Miller in the 7th grade in 2011. Koolaid and Frozen Pizza will be cemented as one of my favorite rap songs of all time. So simple and the bars were incredible. Mac Miller put me on rap music and gave me the appreciation for production and lyricism. Gave me a whole genre flip. I'm so grateful I got to witness Mac's career from K.I.D.S to Circles. What a ride too. Swimming felt like that sober moment in your life. The moment you reach some clarity in your life and take a look around. I always wish for more, but I'm glad he's at rest. RIP to the most dope.

Glad you finally saw the light

The tiny desk version of these songs needs to be put to streaming and vinyl. Absolutely beautiful

This makes me so happy. I always believed the original "laziness" fantano attributed to this album was intentional and more of a display of his emotional state then the lyrics even. Makes me wish he could see how much people love his last 2 albums. rest easy

For me, the most haunting like in hindsight has to be "you could have the world in the palm of your hand, you still might drop it." It almost feels like foreshadowing to his tragic passing. We love you, Mac.

the world didn’t appreciate mac enough while he was still alive. glad you’re giving this record the props it deserves.

FINALLY! A SCORE THIS ALBUM DESERVES Edit: RIP Mac, u r sooo sorely missed and we all love u very much 😔💔🙏🏽

Swimming is such an intimate and magical album, I'm thankful that you finally gave it the love that it deserved.❤️ "Keep your eyes to the sky, never glued to your shoes". RIP Mac☯️

This made my day, I am glad the Mac is now getting the acknowledgment that he sadly did not get when he was alive.. this album is still one of my favorites and got me through so much. Glad to see you appreciate it now too

This felt very genuine. It’s heartwarming and almost emotional to see Swimming get this review from the world’s most consumed critic. Love seeing people enjoy it. Thank you, Anthony.

a frustrating sentiment in some ways that he seems so much more appreciated after his death, but still beautiful to see the impact and appreciation going beyond what was here in his time. long live mac, glad this album is getting the love it deserves

i really think this should’ve won album of the year, this album impacted me greatly throughout my high school years, and really helped me get through tough times, and i am forever grateful for mac, thank you for relooking this.

Anthony is a legend for this one. It helps too knowing that Anthony almost certainly isn't just doing it to please people or because he feels bad but because he's genuinely come around on the album

My love for swimming came after I fell in love with Circles. I wasn’t a Mac Miller fan until circles dropped. I had listened to swimming when it dropped but wasn’t impressed. After circles made me cry multiple times I went back to listen to swimming and it sounded completely different from when I listened to it the first time. I don’t know exactly what changed with me but I’m glad I did change

It’s so refreshing to see him put this on the same level as Circles instead of say Certified Lover Boy. This and House of Balloons were the reviews I felt warranted a redux the most so I’m glad to see this one bump its score up by so much.

Nice 👌🏽 RIP MAC

Really happy to see this redux. 8 is a very fair ranking for this album. This is one of my favorite rap albums, very unique for the genre, lush, engrossing, and personal. On top of that, the context of the time of this release relative to Mac's death made it extra hard-hitting. Have a good one Melon!

“Miller Mac with the illest raps”.. rest easy Mac your art will forever touch and save people. ❤

Wow. From a 3 to an 8?? What an improvement 🙂 but yeah, you were TRIPPING with that first review. This score is accurate.

I cannot express how grateful I am for this. You do such a great job of articulating everything I love about this album & it means a lot to hear you did indeed come around.

Thank you for this Anthony. The fact that he passed away and already had all the material for Circles recorded. He had taken his music in such a soulful direction and sonically, Swimming and Circles were from the same era in his life. It’s no wonder the record grew on you. What’s the Use and Self Care are all time bangers from Mac. How can you not groove out as soon as you hear that funky ass bass line? On top of razor sharp flow switches that to this day I can’t keep up with. “But the breeze ain’t flowin like me mothafucka hol up” He will never be forgotten, Rest In Peace to the legend Mac Miller!

This really made my day. Thank you Melon for recognizing the magic that's within this album that has helped a lot of people ❤

I legit screamed in excitement when he gave it a 8, Swimming is a top ten rap album and I’ve been waiting 5 years for the score to be higher then a 3, this is the best redux melon has done

Mac taught us a lot of things.. one thing he taught me was to do what I love and forget the rest. Go for your passion even if you don’t make money from it ☯︎ (now I’m making videos) Thank you for making this video he definitely deserved way more attention, the album is nothing less than a masterpiece! Rest Easy Mac 🤍 We miss you bro 🖤

This was very cathartic to watch, it reminded me of seeing a friend of yours fall in love with/appreciate a piece of art they never understood why you enjoyed. Seeing Anthony come around on this was really great to see, and I think this is the case for most ppl who were detractors of Mac and/or this album.

Melon I appreciate this because I went through a similar realization that I did not appreciate the beautiful and creative soul he was when he was still with us. This is a beautiful record out of a career full of lovely music

it takes a lot of balls to admit that you were wrong. what a great way to start off the new year. thank you melon. RIP MAC MILLER ❤

From Mac Miller’s great catalogue, this forever will be my favorite album. It even fits me better than Circles. The groovynes, the singing, the flows, the lyrics, it is all so great and feels so cohesive as well. Literally no bad song on this thing. One of my favorite albums of all time. Thanks Melon man

Has he not watched the Mac Miller Tiny Desk concert??? 2009 aint autotuned there and Mac absolutely kills it. Probably his best live performance ever.

This beats Plastic Beach as one of the biggest changes for a redux review. I’m happy to see Melon go from thinking Swimming is weak to having a greater appreciation for it.

For me, Swimming was my first Mac Miller album and I listened to it for the first time in preparation for Circles (as I loved the Good News single so so much), and man, was I blown away on first listen. Swimming was truly a sublime experience to listen to back in January 2020, and to this day it still is - Wings, for example, takes me to another place every single time, it is truly visceral and by far my favourite track on the album. The more melancholic and less energetic tracks on the album are what encapsulate my resonance with this LP, particularly with tracks like Wings, 2009 and So It Goes (a perfect musical finale for the life of Mac Miller) - but even then, the Hip Hop tracks such as Hurt Feelings and Self Care are still excellent and are among my favourite Hip Hop songs of the 2010s. With the themes and personal experiences Mac is speaking about in Swimming in mind, as well as the context of what happened to him only soon after, for me, I believe I managed to appreciate Circles far more BECAUSE I listened to Swimming first. Swimming will forever remain my favourite Mac Miller album as not only shaped through his final potent statement and arbitrary, but more importantly, because of the effect it had on me personally. It is a serene record and I truly do think it deserves far more appreciation. Thank you for doing this album justice, Anthony - it means the world.

Finally you did justice for this album. No lie I was kind of mad and disappointed at your first review of this because it was such a raw classic that he never got to fully depict the narrative around it himself. Plus for it to be his last album and they way you chopped it up in your first review 😢. I’m glad you finally gave it another chance. Mac was changing right before our eyes even tho we will never get a full thoughtful project. Easy Mac with the Cheesy raps will forever have the greatest evolution in music history. I still wish he was here 😔😢. Rip Mac 🙏🏾

Mac. We love you. 💚 This album was and always will be a 10.

I’ve been watching your videos since 2015 and I must say that I think this is the most respectable and necessary review you’ve ever done. Thank you for showing that art and our digestion of it can be a process that is shaped by our environment and the events surrounding the creation of said art. I appreciate you melon for all you’ve done and I hope this is a moment that we as a fan base will remember when we consider your legacy later on.

Incredible album, deeply personal, one of Mac’s best efforts, this DESERVED a redux

If Mac was still alive he wouldn't have changed his review

You gave Faces an unexpected Redux Review. I was so happy to hear how you came around to the mixtape. Glad to see you’re keeping musical tastes growing and being open-minded. I have a REMember Music tattoo with a yin yang symbol tatted on me. It’s one of my favorite music themed tattoos. Been a massive Mac fan since KIDS dropped, but hated BSP. Came back around when the single “Erica’s House” dropped. Led me to getting heavy into WMWTSO, Macadelic, Faces, and eventually unreleased albums like Balloonerism, Pink Slime, Your Shoes are Untied, and more. There’s a Mac project for every music taste. Want jazz? You. Want a sexy r n b tape? Divine Feminine. All around tape? GO:OD AM. Depression? Faces and Balloonerism. Horrorcore? Delusional Thomas. Drugs and death are a theme in every project. Every mainline Mac Miller LP ends with Mac dying, just a fun fact. Dying and/or being in some afterlife.

I've fallen in love with his music and i'm so glad this got such a high grade, really hope his relatives decide to rerelease another mixtape like they did the last 2 years

cant believe mac put you on the cover, a true legend

Swimming is an album that means a lot to me. I'm happy to see that you're enjoying it more after the years, it definitely deserves the appraisal it gets. Great redux review

2009 is my favourite song of all time, this album has a special place in my heart

I will always consider this record to be one of the most heartfelt and magical projects of my lifetime. thanks Mac, we love you ❤️

Swimming is still one of my personal favorite album because of how raw and genuine it feels. Mac always seemed to be able to pull the listener into his state of mind and it always felt like an invitation to self reflect alongside him.

I'm so glad you finally redid the review. This album helped me fall in love with music, so I'm glad you can see now that it has a hell of a lot going for it.

I still listen to Mac almost every day. Find myself going back to Blue Slide Park a lot because it was such a care free time in history. Forever missed for sure.

Long live Mac. You helped me grow as a human being through your vibrations. Thank you always. And I’m so happy it has grown on Melon, Mac was reaching an artistic peak before his passing, and I feel blessed to be here to witness his beautifully fun and warming discography.

It's nice to see this album get the credit it deserves.

Like everyone else, I'm glad this is getting its due from you. I didn't even know about Mac Miller until after his death, and not even from news about it - I just organically heard "self care" through someone else and the vibe of it got to me and got me looking into the rest of his work. Mac became easily one of my top 10 artists (and this is from someone who has prog bands like Rush/Dream Theater in a theoretical top 10 - I like hip hop but I have a much bigger rock/metal/alt influence overall.) I was living in Los Angeles at the time, (originally being an East Coast kid with a jewish background) and going through the most difficult/painful personal arc of my life while also trying to maintain the hustle that LA demands of you professionally. It was all a very potent combination for me - Mac's similar travels to mine, how he framed his personal demons, his Capricorn perspective and demeanor, his musical background and how that was expressed. It felt like I had developed a very personal relationship with him through his music and made me feel like I missed him even though I never even knew who he was when he was alive. My coworkers even had a past story/run-in with him when he made an appearance at their house during a party. It felt like he was right there, just out of reach. His music helped me through the darkest time of my life and I'll always be grateful for everything he did and left us.

Im glad you came around.I loved that record when it came out. I was so sad there would be no more, im still sad about it, miss him.

This album was fire from the jump. There’s only 1-2 songs I don’t love on it. Wish we coulda seen more progression from such a talented artist, RIP Mac

thank you for coming back and recognizing more about the album than you did before. the jump from a 3 to an 8 is incredible. thank you Anthony for this beautiful update

your best review in a while anthony! this made me smile from my heart :)

I thank you for giving this album another fair and critical look. Despite what you initially thought on it; this album when it came out; it...helped me a lot as I was going through some trouble with an ex partner and what Mac was saying/visualizing was really helping putting my feelings at that time into words I could I understand myself.

This album will always be something special to me

Couldn’t have asked for a better start to the year. thank you for this anthony, it means so much to the community

Thank you sm for this redux absolutely sadden when I watched the original review but glad it’s grown on you like it did for us❤

My personal favorite album. This is awesome that you took the time to go back and reevaluate. I also wish you could go back, grab your shoulders, shake you, and ask, “what were you thinking???” Glad to see you finally give it some of the recognition that it deserves. I’ll take an 8 over a 3 from you any day for this album.

finally, swimming and circles are my two favorite albums to date. Ive spent more time with the albums than id like to admit but something about em man i will never stop listening to them. Its nice to see your feelings have changed and that most the people in the comments seem to enjoy it. Thank you for giving swimming the flowers it deserves.

Gracias Anthony por hacerle justicia a este hermoso álbum

im glad this is getting a rereview as it was very underrated, its just a shame mac isn't here with us anymore... his music has made an impact on so many lives 🤍

After years, I can finally rest easy now knowing you have discovered the beauty in this album

HOLY SHIT THIS IS INSANE! Is this the biggest boost to a redux yet??

"Woke up this morning with a bright idea... Maybe I can exist forever right here" RIP Mac 🙏

This is amazing… I just told my friend who randomly mentioned you giving swimming a 3 that you would be doing a redux and then I look and BOOM randomly. THIS ALBUM IS A MANTRA… WAY OF LIFE… masterpiece

this album gets me everytime rarely does shit make me feel the way this album does, really helped me thru some dark times

I don’t believe your tune changed just because he passed but that maybe your in a better headspace to absorb how beautiful this body of work truly was. Thank you Anthony for going back in the crates and taking the time to re-review this record. Long Live MAC MILLER ❤🥹

Well done, Anthony. I knew you wouldn't fail us. This is a very important moment to your legendary legacy.

I knew back in 2019 that it wasn’t a 3 despite your review. I’m glad you came around

So It Goes also references the book Slaughterhouse V. In the book, so it goes is said every time someone who has died is mentioned. I think it’s such a fitting title for a song that has “the ascension to heaven” as Mac called it playing the album out. Love the return to the album and glad your perspective has changed.

I’m so proud of him for seeing this album for what it is. I was adamant that few things truly upset me about his reviews, but Swimming at a 3 is what really stopped me. I’m happy it grew on you. The world is healing ❤

So glad you reduxed this album. It is a great album and has been so impactful for so many people and it really helps to consider his lifestyle and mindset when making it when assessing his art. Bravo 👏

The most anticipated re-review ever when you gave swimming a 3 back in 2018 I didn’t watch RU-vid for a while and questioned life and my region after years of searching for answers I found this video thanks fantano 🙏🏻

This is my favourite album, just cuz of the unique sound you can find anywhere else, and also Just the album that got me into macs music, I legit had a fit when Anthony gave it a 2 before, I'm glad he reduxed it, RIP Mac You'll forever be my biggest inspiration

I am so happy you released this redux. some of the more notorious grades like the MBDTF 6 or Damn 7 have never really bothered me that much bc I do think there was a lot of good points raised in those reviews and they were still overall positive, that swimming grade on the other hand has stuck w me lol

Thank you for giving this album a second chance dude, massive respect for this. RIP MAC

The redux review we didn’t know we needed. So glad you can back to this one.

I love this album with all of my heart- just everything about it. It is my all-time favorite album, just barely above Mac Miller's faces. Although this may not be your cup of tea Anthony, i do appreciate that you giving it credit for some of its best parts that are undeniable, like the emotions and deepness of it all. Thank you for this review, it cool to hear other people's honest opinions.

Swimming is one of those albums on first listen felt like where Mac used all the improvements he made on previous albums and culminated it into this album. The fact that circles is even better (imo) is amazing and testament to his talent which is sad because it proved he had way more in the tank artistically

I believe Mac would have been proud and genuinely happy to see this, which means a lot. Thanks for taking the time Anthony!

I appreciate you revisiting this one. It's a really good record and at times, great. I personally felt like you didn't give it the props it deserved, but It made me happy seeing this revisit. Noice

This will always be a 10!! First time i listened to it I thought it was a masterpiece… this was my first real experience w Mac Miller’s music too. As an older person (older than you Fantano)… I have enjoyed listening to all his music bc it shows the maturity and talent from his teen years until his death… you don’t get that with every rapper/performer. He is my “famous” person I’d love to have dinner with that has passed away. Hands down! I cherish his music and this album will always be on repeat for me. Got my son listening to him too which is always fun! RIP Mac

This is my favourite album so far. This album is magic to me. It still pulls me in and makes me tear up. I love you Mac, from 92 til infinity

I don't even care about the numerical score you gave it, I'm just truly joyful you came around to appreciating this album like so many of us have :-)

I have waited so long for this

Honestly, I’ll start watching your videos again now. Thank you for clearing that one up 🤙🏻

His performance of 2009 on Tiny Desk is fantastic

we won.

Man i did not expect the light 8, im glad youre seeing eye to eye with your fanbase on the album now its very unique in hip hop imo

this is the best thing you’ve ever done

Wooooaaah. WOW

sou mais um que fica realmente feliz demais com essa mudança de vista do fantano sobre esse álbum ❤️

It never sat right with me that your previous review was how your Swimming listening experience would be remembered. Subjectively, it is a more impactful album than you gave it credit for, but contextually it has so much more to offer than the sum of its parts, especially after his passing and in conjunction with Circles. I don’t care how you rate it, it’ll always hold a special place in my heart. But I’m glad you could come to understand what we all saw in it. “It is what it is til it ain’t.”

This was the first Mac album I’ve ever listened to. Completely changed the way I viewed him as an artist and as a person. Incredible.