Chancellor Johnathan Bennett – aka Chance the Rapper – has been on the scene since 2011, but what was his first song?
Chance the Rapper’s first song was titled ‘Windows’, and was released ahead of his first mixtape, in 2011. This mixtape was titled 10 Day, and the track featured at number four on the setlist.
Read on to learn more about Chance the Rapper and his musical history.
Take a Chance
When he was in school, Chance the Rapper announced he wanted to pursue a musical career. Initially, this decision was derided by his teachers, who didn’t think he’d amount to much. However, throughout the late 1990s and early-to-mid 2000s, Chance had become heavily influenced by music.
He attributed this mostly to his parents, who always played music when he was growing up. In 2003, Chance heard the track Through The Wire, by then-upcoming hip-hop artist Kanye West. This introduced him to the genre, and he began rapping. To this day, Chance explains that his earliest and biggest inspiration was Kanye West.
At the start of 2011, while in his senior year in high school, Chance the Rapper’s music began flowing. He jotted down plans for his first mixtape, 10 Day. It was just before the release of this tape, in December, that he launched his first song. This track was named Windows, and served as a prelude to 10 Day.
You can listen to this track on YouTube, since having been re-recorded.
After its release, the mixtape found considerable success for the no-name rapper. He would make some early connections that did him well, however. In 2012, things changed irrevocably for Chance the Rapper, and he began to blow up.
Childish and Chance
In 2012, Chance the Rapper fell in with fellow hip-hop artist, Childish Gambino. He made a brief appearance on the established artist’s mixtape, and would join him on tour around North America. This was a real industry opportunity for Chance, allowing him to open for a known artist.
He would continue to work extensively with Childish as time went on. In 2013, Chance released a second mixtape, featuring Childish as a guest appearance. The 2012 tour had worked well to cement Chance as a legitimate presence, and by 2014 he’d be seeing constant success.
While he remained relatively small compared to other artists as years went on, he was successful in his own right. He performed with several industry-strong artists and received a string of awards, usually for new or upcoming talent.
When 2016 came around, Chance’s dreams came true. He featured heavily on Kanye West’s album, The Life of Pablo. He worked with his main inspiration and hero to co-write and appear on several tracks.
Giving Back
Since the relative success of his first track, Windows, Chance has taken every opportunity to pay it back. He still resides in his hometown of Chicago, and works to better the community. He’s a Christian by religion and often calls upon Jesus Christ in his musical works. He’s even gone so far as to label himself a Christian rapper.
He’s outspoken against gun violence, and promotes racial justice and equality. He’s worked to better the education of children. His work around Chicago drove fans to try and inspire him to run for mayor.
In 2020, it was announced that Chance would receive a prestigious award from UNICEF. This would be presented at a gala, marking him as a recipient of the Chicago Humanitarian Award.
On social media, Chance remains supportive and communicative, but mostly political. He’s outspoken in his disliking for the traditional two-party system in the United States. When Kanye West announced his run for presidency in 2020, Chance the Rapper supported it.