Chance the Rapper Charts with Coloring Book
Chance the Rapper has released his first solo project in three years and it is nothing less than iconic. Keeping true to his vow of never selling his songs, he has made the project free for streaming through Apple Music and Soundcloud. He has never been signed to a major label and may just revolutionize the industry with his independent model. He stands a strong chance of topping Billboard Charts with Coloring Book and hopefully has a Grammy in his future. Fans can support Chance by voting on a petition to allow artists who distribute free music the opportunity to receive Grammy Awards at change.org.
Coloring Book takes us on a high-pitched, soul saving Gospel journey through neon-lit valleys of smoke-filled Chicago streets ascending into a highlighter scribbled sky full of black babies and dreadlocked angels blessing the city with a brighter tomorrow. Melding choir samples with Lil Wayne, T-Pain, and Young Thug lyrics yields something beyond the realm of rhythmic and delivers a miasma of mind-altering melodies. This mixtape gives us a renewed sense of spirituality and isn’t afraid to let our cup runneth over with lines like “We went from White Owls to Raws” on the song Smoke Break. In a city notorious for its murder rate, Chance speaks a message of life, love, and possibility – with heavy emphasis on love and relationships that make life worth living. Listening to Coloring Book is akin to attending Sunday Mass with the gangsters, pimps, and misguided hoes all draped in white robes; it is neither pompous bible knocking nor cliché conscious rap, and it isn’t quite drill drill drill, kill kill kill; instead, it addresses the dark issues of Chicago’s reality with the light of positivity only a true artist with deep love for his people can bring. It’s a work of art showing the light of real salvation to real people dealing with real struggles – a beautiful ghetto gospel. Where other artists try to get rich, Chance simply sends a message “If one mo label try to stop me, it’s gon be some dreadhead niggas in ya lobby.”
The intro reminds us “Music is all we got” and in 2016 Coloring Book has the power to save souls and clean up streets. Check it out and get some motivation.
-Robert Vickens
