Mac DeMarco has opened up about the death of his close friend Mac Miller and discussed how the rapper influenced his most recent album Here Comes the Cowboy.

Miller, the highly popular rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer, died in September last year from an accidental drug overdose due to what was described as “mixed drug toxicity” with traces of fentanyl, cocaine, and alcohol found during the autopsy.

It was well known that both Miller and DeMarco had become close friends, often meeting up to personally for jam sessions and to discuss new music directions. In a new interview with NME, DeMarco was discussing his song ‘Skyless Moon’ and how Miller’s affection for the song resulted in it being included on his most recent album: “That song is definitely [about death]. I didn’t know if I would put it on the record,” DeMarco explained. “Mac was the kind of guy who would call me at 4 am and he’d ask me to come over to his house to play bass guitar on something and I’d always say yes.

“His enthusiasm was infectious. I remember I was at his house and it was 5am, and he had these big ass speakers. He asked me to play one of my new songs and I played ‘Skyless Moon’ really fucking loudly. He just looked at me after like, ‘FUCK YEAH MAN!’ So I was like: I guess I have to put it on the record!”

DeMarco added: “Playing that song live makes me feel weird. It reminds me of him and what we lost. He was just such a musical guy. He lived and breathed it. Remember this dude would spend his spare time jamming with the Dave Matthews Band, and would never be out of place.

“I meet a lot of people but it is rare you connect with someone that quickly and feel comfortable around them. Especially when they are that famous. [His death] is still very raw.”

[MORE] – Mac DeMarco will pay tribute to Mac Miller on new album ‘Here Comes The Cowboy’