# Thrift Shop
**"Thrift Shop"** is a 2012 hip-hop single by the Seattle duo [Macklemore & Ryan Lewis](https://www.edgepedia.org/macklemore-and-ryan-lewis) featuring the singer Wanz, self-released on the duo's own [Macklemore](https://www.edgepedia.org/macklemore), LLC imprint as the fourth pre-release single from the album *The Heist*. The track dropped on August 28, 2012, reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 on February 2, 2013, after a slow build, and held the top spot for six weeks.[1](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/how-macklemore-recorded-thrift-shop-418101/) • [2](https://americansongwriter.com/behind-the-song-thrift-shop-with-hook-singer-wanz/) • [3](https://stereogum.com/2251884/the-number-ones-macklemore-ryan-lewis-thrift-shop-feat-wanz/columns/the-number-ones) It went on to win the 2014 Grammy Awards for Best Rap Song and Best Rap Performance, and [Billboard](https://www.edgepedia.org/billboard-magazine) later included it in its *Songs That Defined the Decade* retrospective series.[4](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/macklemore-ryan-lewis-thrift-shop-songs-that-defined-the-decade-8544127/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Artists and release | Macklemore & Ryan Lewis feat. Wanz; fourth pre-release single from *The Heist*; single released August 28, 2012[1](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/how-macklemore-recorded-thrift-shop-418101/) • [3](https://stereogum.com/2251884/the-number-ones-macklemore-ryan-lewis-thrift-shop-feat-wanz/columns/the-number-ones) |
| Label and length | ℗ 2012 Macklemore, LLC; track length 3:55[5](https://open.spotify.com/track/37rKwjBHaZurlyPYy3Nqvz) |
| US peak | No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 on February 2, 2013; six weeks at the top[2](https://americansongwriter.com/behind-the-song-thrift-shop-with-hook-singer-wanz/) • [3](https://stereogum.com/2251884/the-number-ones-macklemore-ryan-lewis-thrift-shop-feat-wanz/columns/the-number-ones) |
| International peak | No. 1 in Australia and New Zealand for six weeks as of late 2012[6](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/macklemore-ryan-lewis-crash-radio-with-thrift-shop-1484126/) |
| Sales and certification | 1.1 million downloads by its ninth chart week; double platinum by early 2013; diamond within three years of release[6](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/macklemore-ryan-lewis-crash-radio-with-thrift-shop-1484126/) • [1](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/how-macklemore-recorded-thrift-shop-418101/) • [3](https://stereogum.com/2251884/the-number-ones-macklemore-ryan-lewis-thrift-shop-feat-wanz/columns/the-number-ones) |
| Music video | Cost $5,000 to make; nearly 42 million YouTube views by late 2012[4](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/macklemore-ryan-lewis-thrift-shop-songs-that-defined-the-decade-8544127/) • [6](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/macklemore-ryan-lewis-crash-radio-with-thrift-shop-1484126/) |
| Awards | Grammy Awards for Best Rap Song and Best Rap Performance (2014)[4](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/macklemore-ryan-lewis-thrift-shop-songs-that-defined-the-decade-8544127/) |
| Streaming | 1,689,681,023 Spotify streams as of the track page's most recent retrieval[5](https://open.spotify.com/track/37rKwjBHaZurlyPYy3Nqvz) |
## Background and recording
**Origins of the song.** Macklemore had been accumulating material about secondhand shopping for years before the track came together. "For the last couple years, I was jotting down lines and had tons of material about thrift shopping," he told [The Hollywood Reporter](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-hollywood-reporter). "It was just an issue of narrowing it down and making a couple verses to come up with the idea for 'Thrift Shop'."[1](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/how-macklemore-recorded-thrift-shop-418101/) The song was an accidental single, penned to add levity to *The Heist*.[1](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/how-macklemore-recorded-thrift-shop-418101/)
**The beat.** [Ryan Lewis](https://www.edgepedia.org/ryan-lewis) produced the track and estimated that he made about 12 different beats before arriving at the final one.[1](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/how-macklemore-recorded-thrift-shop-418101/) Macklemore first laid his verse over raw drums; the pair brought in a couple of outside producers to generate ideas, an effort that did not pan out, and Lewis finished the beat on his own after considerable time refining the record's feel.[1](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/how-macklemore-recorded-thrift-shop-418101/)
**The hook.** The chorus is sung by Wanz, the stage name of Michael Wansley, a Seattle-based singer.[7](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/wanz-qa-meet-the-f-ing-awesome-singer-in-thrift-shop-1537520/) Macklemore and Lewis had been looking for a [Nate Dogg](https://www.edgepedia.org/nate-dogg) sound-alike to guest on the tune, according to Wanz's own account.[8](https://www.songfacts.com/facts/macklemore-ryan-lewis/thrift-shop) By Wanz's recollection, Macklemore had already written the chorus and fed the words to him in rhythm during the session: "Ben already had the chorus and he was feeding the words to me, right? He would feed them to me in a rhythm." The first melodic delivery that came out of his head was the boisterous "I'm gonna pop some tags! Only got $20 in my pocket!"[2](https://americansongwriter.com/behind-the-song-thrift-shop-with-hook-singer-wanz/)
## Composition and lyrics
**Construction of the beat.** Ryan Lewis did not sample another record for the horn loop at the center of the track; he combined the chopped-up horn figure with handclaps, MPC hiccups, a bit of synth-churn, and DJ scratching on the hook.[3](https://stereogum.com/2251884/the-number-ones-macklemore-ryan-lewis-thrift-shop-feat-wanz/columns/the-number-ones) The arrangement also carries percussion, zaps, and a sample of the "shiiiieeet" line from HBO's *The Wire*, while Wanz's chorus rides a sax line.[4](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/macklemore-ryan-lewis-thrift-shop-songs-that-defined-the-decade-8544127/) • [9](https://www.npr.org/sections/therecord/2012/11/20/165578178/it-isnt-just-ironic-in-defense-of-the-hipster) Beatport lists the track at 95 BPM in A♭ minor, with a retail release date of October 9, 2012, and a length of 3:55.[10](https://www.beatport.com/track/thrift-shop-feat-wanz/3813687)
**What the song says.** On its surface the song is a comic celebration of hunting for bargains in secondhand stores, but NPR's reading found an understated critique of consumer capitalism inside the jokes: $50 for a designer T-shirt is not a bargain when six other people in the club will be wearing the same thing. "I call that getting tricked by business," Macklemore raps.[9](https://www.npr.org/sections/therecord/2012/11/20/165578178/it-isnt-just-ironic-in-defense-of-the-hipster) The song also frames thrift shopping as a form of crate digging, assembling new styles and sounds from vintage scraps, a process NPR described as rooted in hip-hop's own origins.[9](https://www.npr.org/sections/therecord/2012/11/20/165578178/it-isnt-just-ironic-in-defense-of-the-hipster)
## Commercial performance
**A slow build.** The single entered the Hot 100 in September 2012 and did not reach No. 1 until the following February, a slow burn by pop-radio standards.[3](https://stereogum.com/2251884/the-number-ones-macklemore-ryan-lewis-thrift-shop-feat-wanz/columns/the-number-ones) In its ninth chart week in late 2012 it sat at No. 10 on the Hot 100 and No. 2 on [Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs](https://www.edgepedia.org/hot-r-and-b-hip-hop-songs), with 1.1 million downloads sold.[6](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/macklemore-ryan-lewis-crash-radio-with-thrift-shop-1484126/) On February 2, 2013, it hit No. 1, and it stayed there for six weeks.[2](https://americansongwriter.com/behind-the-song-thrift-shop-with-hook-singer-wanz/) • [3](https://stereogum.com/2251884/the-number-ones-macklemore-ryan-lewis-thrift-shop-feat-wanz/columns/the-number-ones) A contemporaneous Hollywood Reporter account placed the peak in mid-January; chart histories date it to the February 2, 2013 chart week.[1](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/how-macklemore-recorded-thrift-shop-418101/) • [2](https://americansongwriter.com/behind-the-song-thrift-shop-with-hook-singer-wanz/)
**The independent model.** The duo reached No. 1 without a major-label record deal, using Alternative Distribution Alliance for distribution and Warner Bros. radio-promotion support, built on touring, social media, and word of mouth.[6](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/macklemore-ryan-lewis-crash-radio-with-thrift-shop-1484126/) On reaching the top, Macklemore and Ryan Lewis were reported as the first unsigned artists since [Lisa Loeb](https://www.edgepedia.org/lisa-loeb) to score a Hot 100 chart-topper, though a Warner subsidiary promoted the song to radio.[3](https://stereogum.com/2251884/the-number-ones-macklemore-ryan-lewis-thrift-shop-feat-wanz/columns/the-number-ones) The parent album, *The Heist*, entered the Billboard 200 at No. 2 with 78,000 copies sold and had moved 213,000 copies to date, according to Nielsen SoundScan.[6](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/macklemore-ryan-lewis-crash-radio-with-thrift-shop-1484126/) By late 2012 the song had been No. 1 in Australia and New Zealand for six weeks, and the single was certified double platinum by early 2013.[6](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/macklemore-ryan-lewis-crash-radio-with-thrift-shop-1484126/) • [1](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/how-macklemore-recorded-thrift-shop-418101/)
## By the numbers
- Six weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.[3](https://stereogum.com/2251884/the-number-ones-macklemore-ryan-lewis-thrift-shop-feat-wanz/columns/the-number-ones)
- 1.1 million downloads sold by the song's ninth chart week in late 2012.[6](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/macklemore-ryan-lewis-crash-radio-with-thrift-shop-1484126/)
- Double platinum certification by early 2013, and diamond certification within three years of release.[1](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/how-macklemore-recorded-thrift-shop-418101/) • [3](https://stereogum.com/2251884/the-number-ones-macklemore-ryan-lewis-thrift-shop-feat-wanz/columns/the-number-ones)
- A music video that cost $5,000 to make, drew nearly 42 million YouTube views by late 2012, and later ranked among the most-viewed in YouTube history.[4](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/macklemore-ryan-lewis-thrift-shop-songs-that-defined-the-decade-8544127/) • [6](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/macklemore-ryan-lewis-crash-radio-with-thrift-shop-1484126/) • [3](https://stereogum.com/2251884/the-number-ones-macklemore-ryan-lewis-thrift-shop-feat-wanz/columns/the-number-ones)
- 1,689,681,023 streams on Spotify as of the track page's most recent retrieval.[5](https://open.spotify.com/track/37rKwjBHaZurlyPYy3Nqvz)
## How it compares with its contemporaries
**Scale among 2013 hits.** "Thrift Shop" and its follow-up "[Can't Hold Us](https://www.edgepedia.org/cant-hold-us)" were by far the year's two biggest crossover rap hits of 2013.[4](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/macklemore-ryan-lewis-thrift-shop-songs-that-defined-the-decade-8544127/) The duo's dominance drew criticism for perceived mockery of hip-hop culture from a place of white privilege, uneasiness amplified by the fact that no Black artist scored a Hot 100 No. 1 as a lead artist in 2013.[4](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/macklemore-ryan-lewis-thrift-shop-songs-that-defined-the-decade-8544127/) The celebration of thrift shops by a white rapper in a predominantly Black genre drew critical scrutiny in real time as well.[3](https://stereogum.com/2251884/the-number-ones-macklemore-ryan-lewis-thrift-shop-feat-wanz/columns/the-number-ones)
**After the peak.** The duo's 2016 sophomore album, *This Unruly Mess I've Made*, failed to spawn a hit on the level of "Thrift Shop" or "Can't Hold Us".[4](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/macklemore-ryan-lewis-thrift-shop-songs-that-defined-the-decade-8544127/)
## Critical reception and accolades
**Contemporary readings.** NPR's defense of the song argued that its thrift-store humor was more than irony: for Macklemore and Lewis, who are white, poking loving fun at the thrift-store lifestyle was also a way of slyly acknowledging that some might question their musical appropriations.[9](https://www.npr.org/sections/therecord/2012/11/20/165578178/it-isnt-just-ironic-in-defense-of-the-hipster)
**The Grammys and the backlash.** The self-released song won two [Grammy Awards](https://www.edgepedia.org/grammy-awards), for Best Rap Song and Best Rap Performance.[4](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/macklemore-ryan-lewis-thrift-shop-songs-that-defined-the-decade-8544127/) Those 2014 wins, which came over [Kendrick Lamar](https://www.edgepedia.org/kendrick-lamar), drew controversy that was further inflamed by a misguided apology text to Lamar that Macklemore screenshotted and posted online.[4](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/macklemore-ryan-lewis-thrift-shop-songs-that-defined-the-decade-8544127/)
## Cultural impact and legacy
**Wanz's trajectory.** At the time of release Wanz was a fifty-something software test engineer in Seattle.[4](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/macklemore-ryan-lewis-thrift-shop-songs-that-defined-the-decade-8544127/) Figuring that he would never get another opportunity like it, he left his software job to tour with Macklemore, and then returned to that job a couple of years later.[3](https://stereogum.com/2251884/the-number-ones-macklemore-ryan-lewis-thrift-shop-feat-wanz/columns/the-number-ones)
**Parody and standing.** [Sesame Street](https://www.edgepedia.org/sesame-street)'s Oscar the Grouch performed a "Thrift Shop" parody with the line "One Grouch's trash is another Grouch's outfit."[4](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/macklemore-ryan-lewis-thrift-shop-songs-that-defined-the-decade-8544127/) Billboard's *Songs That Defined the Decade* retrospective placed the song among the tracks that defined the 2010s, and its catalog performance has kept growing: the track had accumulated 1,689,681,023 Spotify streams as of its page's most recent retrieval.[4](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/macklemore-ryan-lewis-thrift-shop-songs-that-defined-the-decade-8544127/) • [5](https://open.spotify.com/track/37rKwjBHaZurlyPYy3Nqvz)
## References
1. [Anatomy of a Hit: Macklemore & Ryan Lewis' 'Thrift Shop', The Hollywood Reporter](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/how-macklemore-recorded-thrift-shop-418101/)
2. [Behind The Song: "Thrift Shop," with Hook Singer Wanz, American Songwriter](https://americansongwriter.com/behind-the-song-thrift-shop-with-hook-singer-wanz/)
3. [The Number Ones: Macklemore & Ryan Lewis' "Thrift Shop" (Feat. Wanz), Stereogum](https://stereogum.com/2251884/the-number-ones-macklemore-ryan-lewis-thrift-shop-feat-wanz/columns/the-number-ones)
4. [Songs That Defined the Decade: Thrift Shop, Billboard](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/macklemore-ryan-lewis-thrift-shop-songs-that-defined-the-decade-8544127/)
5. [Thrift Shop (feat. Wanz), Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/track/37rKwjBHaZurlyPYy3Nqvz)
6. [Macklemore & Ryan Lewis Crash Radio With 'Thrift Shop', Billboard](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/macklemore-ryan-lewis-crash-radio-with-thrift-shop-1484126/)
7. [Wanz Q&A: Meet the 'F-ing Awesome' Singer in 'Thrift Shop', Billboard](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/wanz-qa-meet-the-f-ing-awesome-singer-in-thrift-shop-1537520/)
8. [Thrift Shop by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Songfacts](https://www.songfacts.com/facts/macklemore-ryan-lewis/thrift-shop)
9. [It Isn't (Just) Ironic: In Defense Of The Hipster, NPR](https://www.npr.org/sections/therecord/2012/11/20/165578178/it-isnt-just-ironic-in-defense-of-the-hipster)
10. [Thrift Shop (feat. Wanz), Beatport](https://www.beatport.com/track/thrift-shop-feat-wanz/3813687)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Musical works and recordings › Compositions and songs › Pop, rock, and metal songs › Hip-hop songs › 2010s hip-hop songs*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license