For kids growing up in Macedonia in the 1990s, the local shopping plaza was more than a place to run errands. It was somewhere to ride bikes, meet friends and spend an afternoon when there wasn't much else to do.
For Cleveland-area musician Brett Zupka, who performs as ZuP, those memories inspired his latest EP, “Macedonia Commons.”
The hip-hop artist and producer hadn't planned to make a collection of songs about his hometown.
But when fellow Macedonia native and producer Evan "Lackney" Broda sent him a beat, something clicked.
"When the ‘Bikes’ beat came in, that was like the first thing I popped in my head," Zupka said. "I'm like, ‘This is so nostalgic to me, like so ‘90s… like, what if I just talk about riding my bike?’"
The resulting song, "Bikes," became the opening track of an EP that explores the places and experiences that shaped his childhood.
"When I was a kid, there was really nothing else to do," he said. "The Commons was like… the common ground, you know? No matter what, you always just like ended up back there."
Finding music at the Commons
During Zupka’s childhood, Macedonia Commons included a movie theater, a Walmart and a Coconuts record store where ZuP explored new music.
Nearby, Fun 'n' Stuff offered go-karts and arcade games.
Some of these still remain, while others have disappeared. But music has brought the memories back to life.
On his track, "Soft Place to Land," Zupka recalls discovering the artists who inspired him to write his own songs.
"I'm a huge Beastie Boys fan," he said. "So, when their ‘Hello Nasty’ album came out, and they had some of the lyrics on there, I used to listen and rewrite them."
Eventually, he began recording his own music and selling CDs in his high school’s hallways.
His first independent album, “Room to Grow,” followed an unexpected breakthrough with "Drunk and Sunburnt," a song he wrote after a relationship ended.
A friend encouraged him to enter the song in a contest on Cleveland radio show, “Rover's Morning Glory.”
ZuP almost forgot about the submission until he woke up to dozens of messages saying his music was playing on the radio.
He reached the final round, and his social media following grew from about 10 people to 200 in a single day.
"I was not prepared for this," he said. "I'm like, ‘Well, I guess I should write more music.’"
Since then, ZuP has developed a sound that moves between alternative, hip-hop and R&B singing and rapping.
His manager and best friend coined a description that stuck: "genre fluid."
Zupka said he chooses how to deliver a song based on the story he wants to tell.
"This is kind of like a story that anybody can relate to, so I'm gonna sing," he said. "This is a story that I need to really dive into details to really explain what's going on. I'm going to rap.”
That versatility extends to his collaborations with other Northeast Ohio musicians, including Joey Aich, Jade Ring and Chris DiCola.
On "Passenger Princess," a humorous track with comedy rapper Mayor Wirtz, the two traded lyrics in a shared document, building their verses together rather than writing separately.
"I like the collaborations that make me think outside the box," Zupka said. "It was so much fun to do. That whole process was great."
Revisiting a place that no longer exists
For “Macedonia Commons,” Zupka wanted to capture the feeling of growing up in the '90s.
On "Fireworks," he intentionally kept an extended instrumental section reminiscent of the decade's music.
"Let the beat breathe for a little bit here, you know, because it's so 90s," he said.
One of the EP's most personal songs, however, nearly didn't happen.
Zupka originally planned to close the project with "Sum of Innocence," contrasting childhood friendships with the divisions people experience as adults.
But DiCola encouraged Zupka to preserve the nostalgic atmosphere of the EP rather than bring listeners abruptly back to the present.
"When I was a kid, there was really nothing else to do. The Commons was like… the common ground, you know? No matter what, you always just ended up back there."Brett Zupka
That conversation inspired him to revisit another childhood destination: Fell Lake, a former swimming and recreation area in nearby Northfield.
"I used to go to Fell Lake all the time," Zupka said. "Like that was like the greatest place on earth. It's this huge pool. I remember being so sad when they closed it down. They built a school on top of it."
He connected with fellow Macedonia native Shannon Hogarth of Cleveland band Rubik's Groove, and the two exchanged memories of growing up in the area.
After hearing the song, Hogarth suggested a melody for its ending. Zupka invited her to record the vocals herself.
Her voice, paired with cinematic production and the sounds of children playing, became one of his favorite moments on the EP.
"Anytime her voice comes in and the beat just like goes into the cinematic thing and you hear the kids playing in the background, it just like, takes me," he said. "Oh, life was so good back then."
A friend's legacy inspires a creative leap
Although the new EP celebrates childhood nostalgia, a more recent loss also shaped its creation.
In 2025, Zupka lost his close friend and fellow Cleveland hip-hop artist Veeno after an eight-year battle with cancer.
The two collaborated on music in the early 2010s, including "Nowhere2go," "Back 2 Cleveland" and "Kushmas."
Veeno's death forced Zupka to reconsider how much time he spent worrying about whether his creative ideas would resonate with others.
"I remember just thinking, ‘Man, Veeno's gone. He can't tell any more stories. That's so unfair,’" Zupka said.
At the same time, he was questioning whether anyone would want to hear an EP about growing up in a Cleveland suburb.
"And I'm over here second-guessing things, because I'm afraid that people are gonna think it's silly or stupid because I'm writing an album about Macedonia, Ohio," he said.
Remembering his friend helped him push past those doubts.
Zupka chose to release “Macedonia Commons” exclusively on Bandcamp, hoping to create a more personal connection with listeners rather than chasing streaming numbers.
Even if the project reached only a handful of people, Zupka said he would still consider it worthwhile.
"I wouldn't care because I'd be like, hey, I did this, just do the thing," he said.
It's a philosophy he hopes other creatives will embrace.
"Do the thing if it scares you," he said. "Do it if you think that people were gonna judge you for it. Do it because at least you [can say] you did it, and you can stand on that and be proud for it."
