Grammy-Winning Rapper Macklemore Is Obsessed With Golf and Launching Clothes With Adidas

In this interview with Sports Illustrated, Macklemore talks about his new collaboration between his golf apparel company, Bogey Boys, and Adidas Golf, his favorite players on Tour and more.

It's already been a big year for Macklemore. The Grammy-award winning rapper and songwriter released his latest album—titled “Ben,” after his given name—and he toured across Europe. Now he’s announcing a new collaboration between his golf apparel company, Bogey Boys, and Adidas Golf.

Macklemore started the vintage-inspired clothing brand in February of 2021, just a few years after the game absolutely possessed him. The “Thrift Shop” rapper was drawn to old-school silhouettes for the course, but he couldn’t seem to find any brands that offered performance golf apparel that fit his vibe. Two years later, Macklemore's brand name will sit directly underneath the iconic Adidas Trefoil logo, stitched into an extensive collection of both men’s and women’s golf accessories and apparel. Polo shirts, a terry cloth tracksuit, a women’s romper and a crocodile-textured travel bag are just some of the items launching on June 14th. 

Sports Illustrated caught up Macklemore to discuss the unique collaboration, his deep love for golf, his favorite pro golfer and more. This interview has been lightly edited for clarity.

Samples from the new collaboration between Bogey Boys and Adidas

Fans might see a collaboration between you and Adidas Golf and feel a little confused about the unlikely crossroads. How’d you get into golf in the first place?

Weirdly enough, I’ve always loved golf fashion and thrifting old golf outfits from back in the day – plaid pants and cardigans. It was a big part of my later teenage years of style. When it was ‘97, ‘98—peak Tiger era—I ended up at local muni par-3 courses, but I never really played a full 18 or had my own set. Four-plus years ago, I went out with a friend and my brother and I hit one good golf shot out of a bunker with a 5-iron. Pured it, and immediately was like, “Wait, hold on. What was that feeling? I need that again.” And I’ve been on the chase to feel that ever since.

How’d the Adidas and Bogey Boys collaboration start? What’s the inspiration behind it?

We ran into the good folks at Adidas down at the Masters a couple of years ago and started having conversations about a collab. We met with the team and started dreaming and going through old archival catalogs, lookbooks from back-in-the-day pieces. To be able to work with a legacy brand like Adidas is a dream come true, particularly for a company like Bogey Boys that’s new to the game. So we went back, got inspiration from the era that I love, which is 70s and the 80s and even the 90s, and pulled those archival references and made it our own.

How’d you combine that retro inspiration with modern style?

One of the cool components of this collection is we were able to use the Trefoil Adidas logo with our Bogey Boys logo in a co-branded lock-up. I think that is so iconic and classic. It’s a logo that is kind of burned into my brain from childhood. My dad was a big Adidas fan and he would always have the Axel Foley Adidas Country shoe. He would keep one pair on ice and one pair for the yard. I have great memories of being a kid and going into his closet and looking at his one pair of pristines. To be able to use that logo was awesome, and it wasn’t really a given, it was something that we had to get permission from the folks over in Germany and they gave us the thumbs up.

What is your favorite piece from the collection?

I equate it to picking your favorite kid. I love the sweater vest. I love the tracksuit. I grew up wearing Adidas tracksuits and I still have a ton in my closet. On the ladies side, I love the romper and I think the golf bag turned out amazing. The polo—the quality of the polo, the breathability, the fabric that we ended up with is super special to me.

There are a lot of different efforts to expand the game, to introduce it to new demographics. How can fashion help that effort?

It can be an entry point for people. And once you get into the game, whether you’re going to a par-3 course or the driving range, or you’re going to play 18 holes—you want to put together a “fit.” You want to look good. Whether or not you actually are good is another question. But anyone can look good if they put some time and energy into the outfit.

We’ve seen a lot of artists and songwriters who have expressed their love for the game—Schoolboy Q, Justin Timberlake, etc. What is it about golf that attracts musicians?

I think there’s something about golf that attracts humans. I think that there’s something about being a musician—you’re constantly thinking about the music that’s rolling out or the show that’s coming up or being in the studio. It’s so great to get outside. We spend a lot of time inside, indoors in basements with an instrumental playing in the booth. I think there’s a peace and a serenity that comes from getting out in nature and having a different challenge. For someone like JT or for [Schoolboy] Q, these are people that are at the top of their game and their chosen field. Q is one of the best rappers in the world. He’s got that. He’s not one of the best golfers. I play with him all the time.

You’re known for doing this stunt during your performances where you walk on the crowd as they suspend you with their hands. Is there a golf equivalent for how physically and mentally difficult that stunt is?

It would be the equivalent of walking 36 holes on a really undulated golf course that’s very long, and you’re on the 36th hole and you’re like, oh my God, I can’t believe that I chose to walk and not ride in a cart today. Or it would be like, you’re on the last hole and you have to break 80 or something like that. But it’s so different and that’s why I love it. That mental quietness. I’m feeding off the crowd’s energy. I’m literally walking on their hands. There is a frequency and a vibration in whatever space that I’m in that is so polar opposite to what a golf course has to offer. And that’s why I love it. It’s completely different than anything that I’ve ever done.

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Do you like to listen to music on the course?

I only really listen to music if there's other people around and they’re choosing to. I like to be quiet. I like to hear the sounds, I like to hear the birds and the wind and the rain. I listen to enough music in the studio. Once in a while I’ll put on some jazz in some headphones, but for the most part I’m just taking in the sounds of life that are around me.

Do you have a favorite professional golfer right now?

It’s such a simple, polarizing question. LIV, PGA—I congratulated Brooks [Koepka] on Instagram and one of my homies was like, ‘Yo, the PGA is not gonna like that one.’ And I was like, ‘You’re right, they’re not gonna like that.’ Damn, what did I do?

What compelled you to publicly congratulate Koepka?

I think it’s been really cool to see Brooks come back and fight through the adversity. I think that the indelible human spirit is on display when someone can go from one of the best in the world to falling off that spot, to injury, to battle back to the mental hurdle that golf is. It’s one of those sports that when you have it, you feel like you’re never going to lose it. And when you lose it, you feel like you’re never gonna get it back. To watch him prevail and do so well, with the Masters he came so close, and then to come back at the PGA Championship and win it for the third time, . I love that story. I’m riding with Brooks right now, along with so many other people.

Like who?

My playing partner in the [AT&T Pebble Beach] Pro-Am, Lanto Griffin. I’m always rooting for him. Jason Day is another friend that I’ve played a handful of times with who just won for the first time in four or five years. I love to watch him win. He’s got a beautiful golf swing. Peter Malnati, he’s another great guy.

How is following golf different from other pro sports?

No one cares about me being into football or basketball. None of those athletes really care if I come sit courtside at the game, or whatever. Golf was the one sport that I got into and started following everyone, and everyone followed me back. It’s just different. There’s not the celebrity component where everyone is watching golf the same way or gets obsessed with golf in the same way. When you have other celebrities— like a Schoolboy Q or Justin Timberlake or DJ Khaled that gets obsessed with the game—I think that people get excited that the lane is changing. It’s expanding, it’s growing, and potentially, we can be a catalyst to more people getting obsessed with this sport.

How is your game holding up right now?

It was going well in Europe. I played a lot. I had taken a year off just to finish the album. I have my little golf selfie stick and I film my swing and I review the footage and try to figure it out. I have no idea what I’m doing one day, and the next day it all clicks.

Sounds like your golf obsession is fully back.

I was barely sleeping—I was definitely burning the candle at both ends, performing and then waking up early and playing golf all day and repeating the cycle. It’s better than it was when I had no idea how to hit a golf ball after taking a year off. We’re on an upward trajectory.