Episode 10: Hip-Hop Magazine Editor Mac Smiff

We Out Here Editor Mac Smiff about bringing Portland Hip-Hop to the center stage

“Everyone should have a chance to make their art and tell their story,” tells Mac Smiff (aka Fahiym B. Acuay), editor of the local online hip-hop magazine We Out Here. Starting his first journal at age 4 after his older sister taught him to read, Smiff has always had a way with words. Inspired by the narrative in hip-hop, his time as editor-in-chief of WOHM has coincided with a burst of growth in the ongoing Portland scene, despite racial and police issues surrounding the community.

As a vocal advocate for change, Smiff has been at the forefront, experiencing racism at his front door and regularly putting the spotlight on issues around the cities. These experiences are bringing forward the stories that he states are important for our history—stories that are increasingly bringing Portland hip-hop to the center stage.

In the penultimate Gritty Birds episode of Season One, we sit down with Smiff to talk about his story, his favorite artists and influences in hip-hop throughout the decades, and what’s going on in the local hip-hop scene today and moving forward.

The soundtrack to this week’s episode features “Razor Tongue Saltine” by Mic Capes and was recorded and mixed at Open Roads Studios by Jeni Wren Stottrup.

https://soundcloud.com/grittybirds/episode-10-mac-smiff