Chance the Rapper

When it comes to modern hip hop, there aren’t many names bigger than Chance the Rapper. Talented, humble, and innovative, Chance has managed to be one of the most successful rappers in the hip-hop game without being signed to a single label throughout his entire career.

Chance the Rapper’s first mixtape, “10 Day,” dropped in 2012 and it was the result of his ten day suspension from school in his high school years after being caught with drugs on campus. He always had a talent for rapping and would do it often for fun around school, but when he released this mixtape and saw the reaction he was getting from his peers, he decided to pursue rap full-time.

Since then, he began gaining street cred for his rhymes and eventually, people from outside his inner circle began to take notice. Even though throughout his career he has had record label after record label throw contracts and offers his way, Chance insists that he will have the most creative freedom for his music if he is an independent artist. Three Grammys later, I don’t think anyone disagrees with his creative pursuits or with his talent.

Chance raps about everything from his experimenting with drugs, early in his rap career to his new focus: God, family, and miscellaneous things that just make him happy. I’ve been blessed to see him not once, but twice. The second time however, has to be the one I cherish the most because my younger brother, who was then a high school student, adores his music. He knows every song, every Chance the Rapper fact, and wears Chance’s merchandise with pride. So for his 17th birthday, I decided to share my love of live music with him and take him to his first concert to see his favorite rapper.

While the road to see Chance’s performance was a little rocky (the festival we attended ran out water so people fainting like flies and the crowd was sweatier than the typical festival standard), Chance was amazing. His music alone makes you want to dance and waive your hands in the air to his lyrics, but his stage presence only heightens his music. He moves around the stage dancing and jumping and engages everyone, often pointing the mic at the crowd who, naturally, know all the lyrics to his verses. While he no longer participates in his old lifestyle of drugs and partying, he still gifted the crowd with a few songs from his mixtape, “Acid Rap,” which is my brother’s favorite. The show ended with a confetti-filled sky and some fireworks. Needless to say, the next concert my brother attends will have to be amazing because the performance we got to see and the bonding experience for us, as siblings, makes the memory of that show really special.

If you don’t believe me about the dance moves, here’s a clip I took from the night of the show. He was preforming his song “Angels.” A youtube link for some of his older music is also in the youtube link at the top of this video (explicit content included).