By: Giovanni Mio
The Chicago rapper brings positive vibes and amazing features with his latest project
Rating: 4/5
"You don't want no problem with me." This is just one of many statements Chance The Rapper makes on his latest musical offering, "Coloring Book." Combined with gospel choirs, a line of very impressive features and some positive raps, Chance has gone from a man looking for an answer to being the solution.
Let's quickly recap Chance's catalog before we dig deeper into "Coloring Book." In early 2011, a 10-day suspension for possession of marijuana in high school led to his first mixtape, appropriately labeled "10 Day." After a few years of the mixtape picking up steam and joining other artists on several projects, Chance blew up with his "Acid Rap" mixtape in 2013. Downloaded over 1,000,000 times on DatPiff, it showed a somber Chance that showed growth, yet needed a few more seasoning.
Safe to say "Coloring Book" is his coming out party, if "Acid Rap" wasn't considered one by now. "Coloring Book" opens up with Chance singing "This ain't the intro, this the entree." And it sounds like it. Featuring Kanye West and the Chicago Children's Choir, "All We Got" sounds like a sequel to West's "Ultralight Beam," off his album "The Life Of Pablo." Throughout the song, Chance talks positively about his life, including the mother of his daughter, his daughter, and how he's happy at this point in his life.
We go from talking about how great life is to how terrible labels could be in a span of one song. On "No Problem," featuring 2 Chainz and Lil' Wayne, Chance takes aim at the music industry's attempts to stop him making music. Chance is perfectly content with releasing free music (he's been a part of three free projects to this point), and I'm not complaining. How fitting we hear Weezy F. Baby on a song about anti-labels, but 2 Chainz saying he's so high him and God are dabbing makes this song amazing.
The highlight of this mixtape for me are the slow jams in the middle of the project. My personal favorite song has to be "Juke Jam" with Justin Bieber and Towkio. Chance talks about an old flame he used to go to the rink with, and uses his Chicago roots by mentioning juking, a dance style known in the area. Surprisingly over the past few years, Bugatti Biebz has won me over with his maturity and voice. His short part in this song just seems to give the song the layer it needed to sound like a potential single.
Where "Coloring Book" thrives compared to Chance's old projects is execution. Chance's intentions are known throughout this whole mixtape. His energy in his voice and the production will either have you praising the lord for living another day, have your "city doing front flips", or looking back on an old lover you miss. My only critique I have for Chance is the lack of actual rapping. It feels like most of these songs he's in singsong mode, but it works for this mixtape.
Chance had high expectations to fill after "Acid Rap," and he unsurprisingly delivered and then some. Listening to "Coloring Book" could technically be going to church. If you're feeling down on yourself and love some positive hip hop, this mixtape is exactly what you need.
Favorite Tracks
"Juke Jam"
"No Problem"
"Smoke Break"
"You don't want no problem with me." This is just one of many statements Chance The Rapper makes on his latest musical offering, "Coloring Book." Combined with gospel choirs, a line of very impressive features and some positive raps, Chance has gone from a man looking for an answer to being the solution.
Let's quickly recap Chance's catalog before we dig deeper into "Coloring Book." In early 2011, a 10-day suspension for possession of marijuana in high school led to his first mixtape, appropriately labeled "10 Day." After a few years of the mixtape picking up steam and joining other artists on several projects, Chance blew up with his "Acid Rap" mixtape in 2013. Downloaded over 1,000,000 times on DatPiff, it showed a somber Chance that showed growth, yet needed a few more seasoning.
Safe to say "Coloring Book" is his coming out party, if "Acid Rap" wasn't considered one by now. "Coloring Book" opens up with Chance singing "This ain't the intro, this the entree." And it sounds like it. Featuring Kanye West and the Chicago Children's Choir, "All We Got" sounds like a sequel to West's "Ultralight Beam," off his album "The Life Of Pablo." Throughout the song, Chance talks positively about his life, including the mother of his daughter, his daughter, and how he's happy at this point in his life.
We go from talking about how great life is to how terrible labels could be in a span of one song. On "No Problem," featuring 2 Chainz and Lil' Wayne, Chance takes aim at the music industry's attempts to stop him making music. Chance is perfectly content with releasing free music (he's been a part of three free projects to this point), and I'm not complaining. How fitting we hear Weezy F. Baby on a song about anti-labels, but 2 Chainz saying he's so high him and God are dabbing makes this song amazing.
The highlight of this mixtape for me are the slow jams in the middle of the project. My personal favorite song has to be "Juke Jam" with Justin Bieber and Towkio. Chance talks about an old flame he used to go to the rink with, and uses his Chicago roots by mentioning juking, a dance style known in the area. Surprisingly over the past few years, Bugatti Biebz has won me over with his maturity and voice. His short part in this song just seems to give the song the layer it needed to sound like a potential single.
Where "Coloring Book" thrives compared to Chance's old projects is execution. Chance's intentions are known throughout this whole mixtape. His energy in his voice and the production will either have you praising the lord for living another day, have your "city doing front flips", or looking back on an old lover you miss. My only critique I have for Chance is the lack of actual rapping. It feels like most of these songs he's in singsong mode, but it works for this mixtape.
Chance had high expectations to fill after "Acid Rap," and he unsurprisingly delivered and then some. Listening to "Coloring Book" could technically be going to church. If you're feeling down on yourself and love some positive hip hop, this mixtape is exactly what you need.
Favorite Tracks
"Juke Jam"
"No Problem"
"Smoke Break"