CHANCE THE RAPPER
XOYO | August 26th
Hip-hop can be a fairly exasperating pursuit. The hype-train of the genre is unbelievably congested and people can often be far too willing to celebrate anything that looks different or is marginally rebranded from the status quo. When 20-year-old Chancellor Bennett springs onto the stage for Good Ass Intro it’s immediately clear he’s more than your average mixtape poster-boy. In fact, there’s a sense we might be in the presence of someone who could change this over-congested landscape for good.
Every single person in the crowd knows every single word to every single song on Acid Rap, the mixtape which dropped in April and was downloaded 50,000 times on the night of its release. Chance dances around the stage for cuts like Everybody’s Something and mimes playing the organ for the irresistible Cocoa Butter Kisses. When he occasionally references the savage crime statistics in his native Chicago – like in the lyric “We just aiming back because the cops got you/ buck buck, bang bang yelling FUCK FOX NEWS” – Chance switches abruptly from the happy-go-lucky adolescent to the wise-before-his-years jaded spokesman for a city on the brink of turmoil. The impact of Acid Rap hasn’t worn one bit. His live delivery is adrenalised and lacking in maturity. Chance counts the track into Favourite Song, with his raspy tone sounding like a young James Brown. He swings the microphone stand around himself and darts across the stage embodying every ounce of the spirit which drew people to Acid Rap in the first place.
It seems unfair to pigeonhole the Chance The Rapper experience as something refreshing for just hip-hop fans. This sold out date was the first time he has ever visited London, and he put on a show brimming with untamed charisma and tantalising charm. It also showcased so-called ‘rap songs’ that have sensational melodies as well as some of the most stimulating wordplay around. You’d be right in thinking that Chance The Rapper is a breath of fresh air for hip-hop fans; but it’s hard to accept that what we were witness to at XOYO was simply the new face of rap music. Chancellor Bennett has a far bigger job on his hands.
– – – – – – – – – – –
Words: Duncan Harrison
Photo: Louise Caldwell
CONNECT TO CRACK
