Not quite a year since the release of his third studio album GO:OD AM, Mac Miller debuted and performed the entirety of his new album The Divine Feminine on Monday as part of AT&T and Audience Network’s latest concert series, which debuts Sept. 30 on DirecTV and U-Verse.
The 24-year-old rapper showcases multiple genre-crossing collaborations on the new album, available everywhere Friday, including features from Kendrick Lamar, Ty Dolla $ign and Anderson .Paak. And two of his highest-profile collaborators — Ariana Grande and CeeLo Green — even came through to the concert taping to perform “My Favorite Part” and “We,” respectively, with Miller.
So what did Miller look for in his many Divine collaborators? “I love people doing things they don’t normally do,” Miller told Billboard, mentioning one collaboration that sticks out among the rest. On “We,” Miller dives into more of a sultry, R&B sound with Green. “His creative process is amazing,” Miller said of the Gnarls Barkley and Goodie Mob alum. “He was able to capture the emotion.”
Miller said before he starts making music with anyone, he’s first making conversation. “Conversation is the most important ingredient,” the rapper said. “Everyone that I’ve worked with on the album has been able to get there with me.”
The Divine Feminine was influenced by love, which he says has officially taken over his life and his work. “I really like love as a concept.” Miller said. “On the last album, I realized there’s no love songs, and I wanted to do a project based around that.” Originally set to be a released as an EP, the rapper later changed it to a full-length album to let himself be more vulnerable and address “more emotional things that I would probably not want to say in fear of looking less cool.”
His latest single “My Favorite Part,” featuring confirmed girlfriend Ariana Grande, is mirroring his real life. “I wanted a foundation to paint on, something very simple with her,” Miller said. With nothing but words of praise about the pop singer, he said working with Grande “is a lot of fun” and she’s one of his favorite artists to work with.
Miller’s AT&T and Audience Network event is just one of a new slate of concerts/interviews coming up. High Valley, Butch Walker and Machine Gun Kelly taped a special Thursday (Sept. 15), while The Band Perry; K.Flay, JoJo and Bebe Rexha; and Good Charlotte all have concerts coming up on the Ted Stryker-hosted show. DirecTV and U-verse customers can watch the concerts on DirecTV Channel 239 and U-verse Channel 1114 or live-stream them online or on the DirecTV or U-Verse apps.
“I love these shows not just because of the intimacy of the performances, but being able to talk to these artists in a relaxing setting about their struggles and successes is very exciting and eye-opening,” Stryker said in a press release.