Makko

In the artist's words:

Makko - The artist with the big grin and the "widest gap in his teeth in town"

"Makko", born Christoph Makowski, has become an integral part of the German hip-hop scene.

The blonde skater from the German rap underground makes sensitive cloud rap. On trap beats, Makko usually raps rather calmly in a deep voice flow about his life and his view of his small world: "I'm on the block, where else should I be?". Makko is modest and has an indie attitude with lyrics that are almost warm and not at all designed for fame or the like.

The rapper has now been streamed millions of times - and we almost didn't get to enjoy Makko's music.

"Make a track by accident" - Makko's beginnings

Born in Berlin, Makko grew up in Fürstenwalde. Makko started skating at an early age and came into contact with hip hop. He uploaded skate videos of himself to Instagram, under which he put American tracks. Makko freestyles and starts producing songs himself that he would like to hear while skating.

He moves to Berlin and, with the encouragement of his friends, he quits his training as an occupational therapist and releases his first tracks. The rapper is considered a classic bedroom producer, no longer completely out of his childhood bedroom - he produces beats and writes lines. With help from his circle of friends, he does everything from audio to video editing - all in DIY style.

After all, he is part of the Berlin rap collective and skater gang Bolo-Boys - named after their love of Toobrokeforfiji's Bolognese - who record tracks together and support each other.

Makko is a skater boy straight out of a picture book - the blonde DIY artist holds on to skating as a way of life and an anchor of authenticity, as he explains in a Puls interview:

"I'm just totally planned out. I actually only ever load things quickly and spontaneously when I really feel like it. So if I somehow say to myself, I've heard this song so many times now, I feel I have to get it out now. Or I need to get a tape or something and then I always do it."

Makko's empathy and honesty also make him an artist of his time.

"Share my pain with the world unfiltered on these songs" - Makko's songwriting

Makko's songwriting is characterized by an unfiltered openness, Makko does not pretend to be vain, he sings about what is on his mind. In his songwriting, he shares his world-weariness and coming-of-age struggles, his lyrics deal with topics such as lack of perspective, the search for meaning and insomnia, which he expresses in lines such as "Third night without sleep, so why am I still awake?".

He takes up the rap tradition of singing about the "past". He reflects on the past and is aware of his fallibility: "A lot of paranoia about things that are coming soon or were back then/ Say, what did I do to myself?".

His dreamy trap songs are also about love and heartbreak, often with a melancholy note, as in "P.S.": "Baby it's late and I'm thinking about you again."

Makko shows an empathetic side by reflecting on life and its challenges such as people pleasing and fears. He wishes for therapy for himself and advises his listeners "Please don't get your head fucked / By all the others that don't tick like you in the head". He even goes to the meta-level and raps about the healing effect of music "And I notice how it helps/ And I notice how it holds me".

Makko's number one hit "Awake at night"

Makko celebrates his big breakthrough in the summer of '22 with his hit "Nachts wach". The producer duo Miksu and Macloud invited him to New York to produce a joint track. The song remains true to Makko's songwriting and his down-to-earth style, but is given an electronic packaging. "Nachts Wach" not only goes viral on social media, but also climbs the charts as Makko's first song ever and immediately reaches number one. In addition to this hit, Makko has an output like no other: he has released six albums in four years, including two double albums "Leb es oder lass es" and "Lieb mich oder lass es".

Makko also tours and is an integral part of the German festival line-up during the festival season. A Makko concert is an emotional & varied experience: Makko's authenticity and approachability create a small community in the concert hall or on the festival grounds for a short period of time. But you can be sure: In addition to the many possible concert guests who may show up, there will certainly be several circles to mosh in, so everyone will get their money's worth here. If you can hardly wait to be there now, you can take a look at Makko's YouTube channel for a little teaser, where he has taken us to his 2023 festivals.

Frequently asked questions about Makko

1. where can you get Makko merch?

Vinyls, T-shirts, etc. - Merch for the current "love me or leave me" tour can be found here or probably at the concert :)

2. who has Makko produced songs with?

Community is one of the most important things for Makko. Besides, Makko is not interested in doing the same thing over and over again and always collaborates with other artists. Whether with his producer duo Miksu / Macloud, Kev Koko, T-Low or Eli Preiss and is a popular feature guest with Paula Hartmann, among others.

3. which songs by Makko should I listen to?

We've already linked lots of songs for you in the description, but here are three more tracks that have that very special Makko vibe:

• If you want to go really deep into the Makko archive, you should listen to his first release, the stoner summer song "Kühlpack" together with Vincent Pfäfflin.
• "Wein" is also one of Makko's earlier singles and still sounds relatively raw - a super relaxed "3 o'clock at night" track.
• "P.S." is a follow-up collabo to "Nachts wach" together with Miksu / Macloud and may not take you to a party night, but it's just as emotionally moving. The theme is the mourning of a (love) relationship, here you can hear a lot of nostalgia and longing on an almost pop melody.

4 Where is Makko in 2024?

In 2024, Makko will be at MS Dockville, among others, but will also be going on his own "Love me or leave me" tour - an overview of the cities & tickets can be found here.