santacruz.com photo: Macklemore becomes the first artist to have an independently recorded song put on the charts since 1994 with “Thrift Shop.”

Macklemore and Ryan Lewis have been creating a lot of hype with their rap, “Thrift Shop,” which talks about anti-consumerism.

The song is currently sitting at number one in the Billboard Hot 100, and it is the first time an independently recorded song has taken the number one spot since 1994. The last indie hit to hold this spot was “Stay (I Missed You),” by folk-pop singer Lisa Loeb.

Macklemore, whose real name is Ben Haggerty, is a Washington native who has been recording since the early 2000s under the name Professor Macklemore.

He recently got noticed when he released his first full-length album “The Heist” with the help of producer Ryan Lewis.

On his album, Macklemore not only takes down the idea of being cool just because he bought a $50 t-shirt, but he also takes a swing at the record industry with his song “Jimmy Lovine.”

Lovine is the current chairman of Interscope-Geffen-A&M records and helped launch the career of another rapper, Eminem. In this song he takes down the record industry’s contacts and the politics behind it.

The last thing that sets him apart from other rappers is his support of gay rights. In his track “Same Love,” he spits “I might not be the same but that’s not important/ No freedom till we’re equal, damn right I support it.”

I personally commend Macklemore for all he has done. He showed the world you could be number one on the chart without being signed to a big label and that you don’t have to rap about cars, money or women in order for the world to listen.

I hope this inspires a new set of artists that rap about things that are more real to people such as gay rights and looking good on a dime.