When speaking to hip-hop artists about the music they grew up on, names like Tim McGraw and Kenny Chesney aren’t typically part of the conversation. But Athens native Addie McNeely, who records and performs under the name Mack2Tone, is anything but typical, and the same goes for the lyrical content of her debut album, “Fool Me 2wice.”
Growing up in the Glen Oaks neighborhood off Timothy Road, Addie and her brothers, Keaton and Will, were not allowed to listen to hip-hop on the radio or watch videos on BET. Instead, their parents played a variety of music, particularly their mother’s country favorites. The McNeelys were active in their local church and in several different sports.
While Addie was away playing basketball for Lane College in Tennessee and majoring in mass communications, her brothers formed recording label Autumn Saints. Will became Will the Producer, Keaton became Keaton Mak, their cousin became Cîrcø, and they were joined by friends Chance and Saevon Springer.
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“Will sent me the Autumn Saints music in a group chat, and I thought they were the most talented guys I’d ever heard in my life,” Addie told the Banner-Herald. “And they were my family.”
While visiting Athens for her brothers’ album release party, Addie heard all about how they’d built their own home recording studio, and listened to them talk about how much joy it brought them. Inspired by what she saw, Addie played Will a voice memo on her phone that contained a song she’d made, and he immediately became excited.
“(Addie) has always been a superstar at whatever she participates in,” said Will, who won 2017 Producer of the Year at the Athens Hip-Hop Awards. “She lets nothing get in the way of what she wants.”
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By the time Addie graduated from college last year, she had already been sending music to her family under the MC name Mack2Tone, and Will took note of his sister’s storytelling abilities right away. The resulting Mack album, “Fool Me 2wice,” was recorded at her brothers’ studio and mixed and mastered by fellow Athens hip-hop artist Kxng Blanco.
From the opening track, which begins with a voice mail from the woman that the majority of the songs were written about, “Fool Me 2wice” is a volcanic first-person narrative of love and loss that plays out like a hip-hop version of Alanis Morissette’s “Jagged Little Pill.” As the songs go from fun and sexy to hurt and enraged, Mack’s album is a triumphant work of authenticity by an artist who proudly wears her heart on her sleeve.
“I actually left (Lane College) and finished classes online right before COVID hit,” said Addie. “I’d gotten involved in a very toxic relationship that ended up inspiring the entire album.”
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Addie’s experiences in Tennessee played out like the plot of a movie, and she was fortunate to survive to tell the story, but her decision to turn the lessons learned into art proved to be just as successful as it was cathartic. Though “Fool Me 2wice” was released on May 28, Will said it has already neared 30,000 online streams, and Mack2Tone is scheduled to perform at Athentic Brewing Company on Friday.
During her time on the basketball court and studying the music industry from the outside, Addie was able to become comfortable in front of large groups while maintaining an observer’s perspective. Through the courageous act of telling her own story, Addie is confident in her value as an original in the ever-expanding Athens hip-hop scene.
“It’s easy to be the same and ride the wave, but it’s even harder to be different,” said Addie. “once that sound is heard, it’s fresh, and it gets easier.”
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