Tom MacDonald (rapper)

Thomas MacDonald (born September 21, 1988) is a Canadian rapper, singer-songwriter, record producer and former professional wrestler. He is known for his right-wing lyrics and fanbase. His music has been characterized as "MAGA rap", a Trumpist subgenre of political hip hop.

He first rose to prominence with the release of his 2017 debut single "Dear Rappers". His 2021 single " Fake Woke" marked his first appearance on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. His 2024 single, "Facts" (featuring Ben Shapiro), debuted and peaked at number 16 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and number 42 on the Canadian Hot 100.

Career

Professional wrestling

During his teenage years, MacDonald worked as a professional wrestler on the Canadian independent circuit, most prominently for the Edmonton-based promotion Monster Pro Wrestling (MPW). He made his debut in February 2003, in a dark triple threat match, which went to a no contest. Throughout the year, he would begin feuding with Bobby Sharp, after another dark match also went to a no contest. The feud concluded in December, when MacDonald defeated Sharp in a triple threat match, which included Brady Roberts.

By 2005, MacDonald was a member of the Custom Made Renegades stable, led by Sharp. In a tournament for the newly created MPW Tag Team Championship, MacDonald and Sharp defeated Kris Knight and Shane O'Ryan, but lost to eventual winners the Dead Ringers in the semi-final. MacDonald and Ozz defeated the New Stallions in a #1 contendership match for the tag team championship, but he and O'Ryan fell short to the Dead Ringers. Later that year, MacDonald unsuccessfully challenged Sharp for the MPW Junior Heavyweight Championship; the first match went to a no contest, and the second match saw him win by disqualification, but not the title, as it does not change hands in the event of a disqualification. In a hardcore match with Sharp, MacDonald brought a 9 iron golf club which almost tore off his right earlobe by ricocheting off a turnbuckle.

After sustaining a number of injuries, and with his appearances in professional wrestling dwindling, MacDonald began to focus more on his music career. His final match was at a Extreme Canadian Championship Wrestling (ECCW) show in November 2009, where he was defeated by the Divine Prophet.

Music

MacDonald started rapping at age 18, but only rose to fame after releasing the single "Dear Rappers" in February 2018. His song "Straight White Male", which was written about MacDonald's belief that straight white men are being demonized, was criticized on social media for its subject matter. In September 2019, MacDonald released the single "Cloned Rappers", in which he rapped that the Illuminati are cloning rappers and disposing of the originals. In late 2019, MacDonald was scheduled to be a supporting act for Falling in Reverse's Episode IV Tour before it was cancelled. In 2020, he released 20 singles, including "White Trash", "Sellout", "Best Rapper Ever", "Cancer", and "Angels". In March 2020, MacDonald released the single "Coronavirus", which was written about the COVID-19 pandemic.

In January 2021, MacDonald released the single " Fake Woke", which debuted at number 96 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. After Eminem released a series of NFTs as part of his "Shady Con" event with Nifty Gateway, MacDonald purchased one—an Eminem-produced instrumental called "Stan's Revenge"—for $100,000. MacDonald used the instrumental to create his song "Dear Slim", released in May 2021. The song's accompanying music video paid homage to the music video for Eminem's 2000 song " Stan". In June 2021, he released "Snowflakes", which debuted on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 at number 71. The music video featured political commentator Blaire White as a background dancer. His single "Brainwashed", released in August 2021, peaked at number 89 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100.

In 2022, MacDonald collaborated with Adam Calhoun to release an album, ''The Brave''. It was the best-selling album of the week in the U.S. upon its release in March 2022, having sold 16,000 copies in the U.S. that week. MacDonald collaborated with Calhoun again in 2023 to release the song "American Flags", which reached number two on the Digital Songs chart in the US, and number eight in Canada. In September 2023, MacDonald and Calhoun released the album, ''The Brave II''. In January 2024, MacDonald collaborated with conservative political commentator Ben Shapiro to release the single "Facts".

On July 14, 2024, he released his single "You Missed". The song is about the attempted assassination of former president of the United States and presumptive Republican nominee of the 2024 U.S. presidential election, Donald Trump, which occurred the previous day. Released less than 24 hours after the incident, the song's title references the fact that Trump survived.

On January 17, 2025, MacDonald released the single "Daddy's Home", featuring comedian Roseanne Barr. The song's title references Trump's second inauguration.

Influences

MacDonald has cited the Beatles, Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, Joe Cocker, Janis Joplin, Marilyn Manson, Tupac Shakur, Eminem, Aerosmith, GG Allin, Kanye West, and the Offspring as musical influences. His music often discusses controversial social and political topics in the United States.

Public image

MacDonald has created a significant online presence among right-wingers, becoming one of the most prominent figures on the "MAGA rap" scene. Writing for ''Vice'', Drew Millard described MacDonald as "turgid", and wrote that he rose to fame by "taking the undercooked platitudes of the Intellectual Dark Web and filtering them into songs", adding that he "can feel like an unstoppable force of reactionary dumbness". Ariana Thompson of '' Inked'' described MacDonald as "one of the most divisive personas hip hop has ever seen" and wrote that his right-wing fanbase "cling onto every word he utter . In a ''Rolling Stone'' profile, MacDonald said he wants to "show people I'm not just some brainwashed right-wing zombie." For the ''Dallas Observer'', Garrett Gravley criticized his songs as "white victim complex anthems" and wrote that they gave him "status among zoomer Trump supporters as an oracle of sorts".

Personal life

Since 2017, MacDonald has been in a relationship with fellow Canadian rapper and frequent collaborator Nova Rockafeller, who has also directed his music videos. Additionally, the couple have a side project named GFBF. MacDonald struggled with alcoholism for much of his life and in 2017 had a "bad breakdown" that prompted him to begin rehabilitation.

Discography

Studio albums

Mixtapes

EPs

Compilations

Singles

As lead artist

As a featured artist

Notes

References

External links

*
Official YouTube channel
*
*
*

{{DEFAULTSORT:MacDonald, Tom
1988 births
Living people
Canadian male rappers
21st-century male rappers
Canadian YouTubers
Musicians from British Columbia
YouTube channels launched in 2014
21st-century Canadian rappers
Conservative media in Canada
Alternative hip-hop musicians
Canadian hip-hop record producers
Music controversies
YouTubers from British Columbia
YouTubers from Alberta
YouTubers from Los Angeles
Canadian male singer-songwriters
21st-century Canadian singer-songwriters
21st-century Canadian professional wrestlers
Canadian male professional wrestlers