Macklemore Shares Live Video For “Next Year” Shot in Downtown Seattle

Seattle-born rapper Macklemore released a new live video for his hit single “Next Year,” on Thursday (December 23). The studio version of the song, produced by longtime collaborator Ryan Lewis, has already garnered millions of views on YouTube.

But now, after a performance of “Next Year” atop Pike Place Market on The Late Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Macklemore (born Ben Haggerty) has shared a live video performed in the downtown Emerald City neighborhood known as Pioneer Square.

Check out the video, which features The Blue Thunder Drum Line and the Sounders FC Band Sound Wave and many Christmas lights, below. The song, which is all about the positivity on the horizon, features vocalist Windsor singing the sticky hook.

I’m still an optimist, yeah
I got a lot to live on time
Ain’t foolin ‘that shit’
‘Cause next year’s gonna be better than, better than (go)

Next years gonna be better than this year (woo)
Next years gonna be better than this’ cause
New Year’s Eve comin ‘with a fresh kiss and
Next years gonna be better than this

Macklemore released the studio version of “Next Year” earlier this year, marking the first collaboration between Macklemore and his longtime musical partner, Grammy-winning producer, Ryan Lewis, in five years.

The duo, of course, won several awards for their 2012 album The Heist, which featured the hit “Thrift Shop.” But they haven’t worked together much publicly since the album’s follow-up, This Unruly Mess I’ve Made.

The rapper posted about their re-connection on Instagram, saying, “After 3 years of not talking… I ran into Ryan at the store. NEXT YEAR TONIGHT 9 PM PST.”

Additionally, Macklemore cut the proverbial ribbon on a new 14,000-square-foot space for his new golf apparel clothing brand, Bogey Boys—retail store, putting green and basement thrift shops (appropriate from the “Thrift Shop” emcee).

The new store, which comes equipped with a 1980s golf cart as part of its sign, is located in the Capitol Hill neighborhood in the musician’s hometown of Seattle, next to the city’s historic Elliott Bay Book Co. The store’s first floor includes the clothing line and putting greens and its basement holds the thrift stores, reports The Puget Sound Business Journal.

“There’s a lot of work that I’m excited to do in the future with Bogey Boys and helping to diversify the game and push who gets to play golf and how affordable it is and who gets a pair of clubs,” Macklemore said.

Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images