Chance the Rapper makes waves with the release of Coloring Book
“And we back,” are the first lyrics of the song “All We Got” on Chance the Rapper’s third mixtape, Coloring Book. And Chance the Rapper is definitely back after three long-awaited years. “All We Got”, which features Kanye West and references West’s The Life of Pablo track “Ultralight Beam” that features Chance himself, sets a precedent for the rest of the album. The mixtape is available to stream and is free to download with a subscription to Apple Music.
Coloring Book features a myriad of artist contributions. Starting off with Kanye West, some other featured artists Chance worked with include Lil Wayne, 2 Chainz, Young Thug and Justin Bieber. The mixtape is a collection of vibrance achieved through solid, strong beats and uplifting lyrics that match a gospel-esque sound. The songs themselves are blank illustrations, left to the listener’s interpretation of coloring either within or outside the lines.
“Blessings” and “How Great” touch on the spiritual side of Coloring Book by making religious allusions. “Blessings” emphasizes Chance’s relationship with God, offering a sense of his human vulnerability. While the song goes briefly into the essence of material things, Chance comes around to say that he’s blessed spiritually and through faith. The workings of God have shaped him and his career, as a lyric explains that, “it seems like blessings keep falling in my lap.”
“How Great” incorporates the classic gospel song “How Great Is Our God.” It features a choir for the first half of the song that leads into Chance’s verse. The strong and slower singing of the choir is juxtaposed with Chance’s fast and rapid lyrics. “How Great” also provides insight into Chance’s vulnerability as a religious being, with lyrics that demonstrate him losing sight of his faith: “I was so far down in the mud, couldn’t even let my light shine, but you was always there when I needed to phone a friend or use a lifeline.” Adding spiritual elements to Coloring Book offers a new perspective on Chance the Rapper, one that wasn’t seen in his previous mixtape, Acid Rap.
Although Coloring Book has an overall theme on religion and spirituality, it lacks cohesion between various tracks. For example, “Juke Jam” featuring Justin Bieber is a typical love song that is not so extraordinary, with certain lyrics lacking in authenticity and originality. Such lyrics include the bridge of the song, sung by Bieber: “We’ve got so much history baby, maybe, maybe you and I were meant to be, maybe I’m crazy, crazy about you.”
Other songs allude to fictional characters in children’s books. “Finish Line” references Harry Potter with the lyrics, “Scars on my head I’m the boy who lived.” “Same Drugs” alludes to Wendy from Peter Pan, but in a dark way that confronts drug abuse: “When did you change? Wendy, you’ve aged, I thought you’d never grow up, I thought you’d never.”
Coloring Book is for the most part a strong album with strong production value. While the lyrical content can sometimes be confusing and incoherent, the beats within each track underline the flow of Chance’s verses well. Album highlights include “All Night,” which has a good dance and uplifting feel, as well as “Summer Friends,” which is soothing and dreamy. The mixtape comes full circle with the tracks “Finish Line” and “Blessings,” which are tonally similar to the first track “All We Got.”
Overall, Coloring Book is, for the most part, an excellent music project. It embodies Chance on a more personal level, providing insight into his faith and spirituality.