“Time” by Anderson .Paak’s live band Free Nationals premiered today as Beats 1 with Zane Lowe’s World Record on Apple Music. The band’s second single featuring Mac Miller, as well as Kali Uchis, was teased and dropped all within the same week. After the live debut, Lowe interviewed with the band who are currently on tour in Dallas, Texas. They emphasized that this record is one for the fans. Expressing their gratitude for Miller’s family for allowing them to put out this track, they stated that today was a celebration for everyone included. After the brief interview, Lowe played the track one more time.
The song opens with Kali Uchis, and the soulful rhythm that we’ve all come to identify not only Free National’s music, but Anderson .Paak’s. They’ve mastered creating transgenerational music - songs that could thrive 10, 20, 30 years ago as Lowe noted in his segment.
It’s impossible not to get chills hearing Miller’s voice on a new verse being released nine months after his death. According to the members of Free Nationals, Miller was originally the one most pushing for this track and for its release as a single. It's bittersweet for the fans and for those included, but as Miller vocalized in his newest verse, “If you can make it with me, you can make it on your own.”
Miller was never shy about communicating his struggles with addiction and his attempts at sobriety through his music. In his 2015 album GO:OD AM, on the track “Perfect Circle/God Speed,” he explicitly described his fears of overdosing and the reaction it would induce in his mother. While his comical rhymes are what launched him to fame, his honesty progressed his growth in the industry and kept him connected to his fans.
On social media, some of his fans in Tampa Bay shared the wave of feelings brought on by hearing something new from Miller. It's clear that his fans and his colleagues agree that his memory will continue to shine in only a positive light.