Mac DeMarco

In 2018, DeMarco established his own record label by the name of "Mac's Record Label". Before his commercial debut Rock and Roll Night Club in 2012, he made music by the pseudonym "Makeout Videotape" on Bandcamp. In early 2012 however, Mac eventually signed to indie label Captured Tracks and released his debut extended play, Rock and Roll Night Club, on vinyl. Earlier, Green Burrito Records released the album on a limited edition 100-unit cassette run. His style of music has been described as "blue wave" and slacker rock, or, by DeMarco himself, "jizz jazz".

DeMarco was born in Duncan, British Columbia, on Vancouver Island, and raised in Edmonton, Alberta. His great-grandfather is Vernor Smith, Alberta's former Minister of Railways and Telephones, for whom DeMarco was named, and his grandfather (also named Vernor Winfield MacBriare Smith) was a judge of the Court of King's Bench of Alberta. His mother, Agnes DeMarco, later changed his name to McBriare Samuel Lanyon DeMarco after his father left and refused to pay child support when DeMarco was four years old. DeMarco is also of Italian descent. Mac DeMarco attended McKernan School for junior high. Around this time he started playing guitar, with lessons from his grandmother. During high school he was in several bands, including indie rock band the Meat Cleavers, alternative R&B group the Sound of Love and post-punk band Outdoor Miners (along with current keyboardist, Alec Meen), which was named after "Outdoor Miner", a song by English rock band Wire. He started smoking cigarettes as a teenager, which would become a significant part of his image. In January 2023, DeMarco said he no longer smokes. After graduating from Strathcona High School in Edmonton in 2008, DeMarco became a backing musician. He then moved to Vancouver.

Living in the Killarney neighbourhood, he released a self-produced album, Heat Wave, as a part of the indie rock project Makeout Videotape in 2009. The album sold out its 500-unit run. DeMarco worked on "psychedelic" video projects during this time. He was joined by Alex Calder and Jen Clement, signed to Unfamiliar Records, and toured with Vancouver band Japandroids in 2009. In 2011, DeMarco moved from Vancouver to Montreal to begin recording as a solo artist. Failing to find work as a musician, he participated in medical experiments for money and worked on a road paving crew. On January 9, 2012, record label Captured Tracks announced the signing of DeMarco. In early 2012, he released an LP titled Rock and Roll Night Club. The four-track-recorded album features skits and slowed-down vocals.

Captured Tracks released DeMarco's full-length follow-up album. Entitled 2, it was received well by critics, garnering a "Best New Music" designation from Pitchfork. On January 21, 2014, DeMarco announced the release of his upcoming second album, Salad Days, along with debuting the lead single "Passing Out Pieces". The record was released on April 1, 2014, and again received the "Best New Music" designation from Pitchfork. It was a shortlisted nominee for the 2014 Polaris Music Prize. DeMarco made his first talk show appearance (and second TV appearance after The Eric Andre Show) when he performed the song "Let Her Go" on Conan on March 30, 2015. On April 22, 2015, DeMarco announced the release of an upcoming album titled Another One, which was released on August 7, 2015, in addition to a video depicting its making. DeMarco describes the album to be a collection of love songs. Another One received a generally favourable response from music critics, scoring 75/100 on Metacritic. Still in Rock has ranked this LP as the third best of 2015. On July 8, 2015, DeMarco released a 9-track instrumental album titled Some Other Ones and called it a "BBQ soundtrack". The album was later re-released in 2023 on streaming services.

On January 31, 2017, DeMarco announced his third studio album, titled This Old Dog. He also released two singles from the album on the same day. This Old Dog was released on May 5, 2017. On April 8, 2018, DeMarco appeared on FishCenter Live and participated in an interview with Max Simonet. He partnered with the non-profit organization Plus1 for his tours that year, and one dollar for every ticket purchase went to the Girls Rock Camp Alliance to: "[empower] girls, trans and gender-diverse young people through music education and mentorship."

On March 5, 2019, DeMarco announced his fourth studio album Here Comes the Cowboy and shared the first single off the album, "Nobody". The album was released on May 10, 2019, on Mac's Record Label [sic]. The album received mixed reviews from critics and audiences upon release. It marked his first top ten appearance in the US Billboard 200 at number 10. On September 7, 2020, DeMarco was featured on a collaboration with English artist Yellow Days, entitled "The Curse". On October 28, 2020, DeMarco was again featured on French musician Myd's single "Moving Men". An animated version of DeMarco also appeared in the music video for the single. Released October 28, 2020, DeMarco also appeared in the music video for the song "Whatever You Want" by Crowded House. DeMarco contributed a cover of the Metallica song "Enter Sandman" to the charity tribute album The Metallica Blacklist, released in September 2021.

In October 2021, DeMarco returned to live performances following a hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic. His return to the stage was marked by changes to his live band, with the departure of longtime members Joe McMurray, Andrew White and Jon Lent, and the addition of Daryl Johns (bass) and JD Beck (drums). Jon Lent left the band after being sentenced to two years in jail for sexual assault. DeMarco "immediately removed" Lent from the band after learning about his arrest. Andy White confirmed his departure shortly afterwards. DeMarco released an instrumental album, Five Easy Hot Dogs, on January 20, 2023. The fourteen-track album was recorded in different locations during a road trip from Los Angeles to Utah. During the week of Five Easy Hot Dogs' release, the track "Heart to Heart" from DeMarco's previous album, Here Comes the Cowboy, became a viral hit on TikTok. As a result, the song became DeMarco's first to chart on the US Billboard Hot 100, eventually peaking at No. 83. The song also reached the top 10 and top 5 of Billboard's Hot Rock Songs and Hot Alternative Songs charts, respectively. On April 21, 2023, DeMarco released his first compilation album titled One Wayne G, online only, without any prior announcement. The album, released without prior announcement, featured 199 tracks of instrumental and demo recordings made between 2018 and 2023. With a runtime of just a little under nine hours, it received positive coverage for its experimental format and intimate atmosphere.

In 2024, DeMarco recorded an album titled Hear The Music, which was not announced or released to the public. On April 8, 2025, DeMarco announced a tour beginning in August and ending in December 2025. The tour was set to be held following the release of his new album, which he additionally announced would be released in August 2025. DeMarco later announced additional tour dates in Europe in 2026. On June 24, 2025, Mac revealed the title of the album to be Guitar and announced a release date of August 22, 2025. The announcement coincided with the release of a lead single, "Home". The album was recorded in November 2024 in Mac's home studio in Los Angeles, with DeMarco recording, mixing, and producing the album himself and David Ives mastering. During the European leg of the Guitar tour, DeMarco hid copies of a "secret album" for fans to find. The album, titled Dog On The Rock, had not been officially released, but was uploaded to the internet by fans who found the hidden CD-R copies. A second album, titled Seven Off The Two, was found by fans in Canada and subsequently uploaded to Soundcloud.

DeMarco's style employs the use of flat drums (little or no reverberation or dynamic range compression), chorus and vibrato effects on the guitar and a generally lazy atmosphere à la soft rock records, muted and low frequency bass guitars. He has mentioned Michael Jackson, Neil Young, Shuggie Otis, Black Sabbath, Christopher Cross, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Jonathan Richman, Genesis, Sting and Weezer as favourite artists. He has also cited Japanese musician Haruomi Hosono as his favourite artist. DeMarco's music has been generally termed as indie rock, psychedelic rock, jangle pop, and lo-fi. His guitar-based compositions have moved from glam-inspired works to what reviewers describe as "off-kilter pop" or "folk rock". DeMarco has self identified his style as "jizz jazz", going as far as naming his apartment studio Jizz Jazz Studios, as mentioned in a documentary starring himself, Pepperoni Playboy. DeMarco has pointed to artists such as John Maus, Ariel Pink, Brian Eno, Daniel Lopatin, Isao Tomita, Joe Meek and R. Stevie Moore as influences on his reel-to-reel production style.

From 2011 to 2012, DeMarco lived in Montreal, Canada, before moving to Brooklyn, New York. From 2013 to 2016 he was based in the Far Rockaway neighborhood in Queens, New York, Afterwards, he resided in Los Angeles, where he regularly hosted jam sessions with musicians and friends such as Thundercat and the late Mac Miller. In 2025, DeMarco purchased a one-hundred-year-old farmhouse on Pender Island in British Columbia. DeMarco is a fan of the Edmonton Oilers, his hometown ice hockey team. His 2023 album One Wayne G is named for Oilers legend Wayne Gretzky, with its 199-song length referencing Gretzky's 99 jersey number. Since 2009, DeMarco has been in a relationship with Kiera McNally. The couple met as teenagers in Edmonton, Alberta.

In 2018, DeMarco launched his own record label titled 'Mac's Record Label'. In 2021, the first artist to be signed was Tex Crick with his album Live in... New York City, followed by Vicky Farewell with her album Sweet Company in 2022.

Current members Alec Meen – keyboards, backing vocals, percussion (2017–present), guitar (2021–present) Pedro Martins — electric guitar, backing vocals (2021–present) Daryl Johns — bass guitar, backing vocals (2021–present) Phillippe Melanson — drums, backing vocals (2025–present) Former members Peter Sagar – guitar, keyboards, backing vocals (2012–2014) Pierce McGarry – bass guitar, backing vocals (2012–2016) Joe McMurray – drums, occasional backing vocals (2012–2021) Andy White – guitar, keyboards, percussion, backing vocals (2014–2021) Rory McCarthy – bass guitar (2016) Jon Lent – bass guitar (2016–2021), keyboards, percussion (2015–2016) JD Beck — drums (2021–2022)

Studio albums 2 (2012) Salad Days (2014) This Old Dog (2017) Here Comes the Cowboy (2019) Five Easy Hot Dogs (2023) Guitar (2025) Mini-LPs Rock and Roll Night Club (2012) Another One (2015) Compilations One Wayne G (2023) Demos Another (Demo) One (2016) Old Dog Demos (2018) Here Comes the Cowboy Demos (2020) Other Here Comes the Cowboy Demos (2020)