According to promotional materials, Chance the Rapper has released another new song that functions as an interdisciplinary work of art. This is the second time he has done something extraordinary like this.
Chance and Vic Mensa collaborate on writing exercises in the music video for "A Bar About a Bar," as Chicago-based painter Nikki Washington works in the background. As Chance raps, the scene he describes materializes, and Washington draws inspiration from the story in his artwork.
"A Bar About a Bar" follows March's "Child of God," which included the work of Gabonese artist Nala Opiangah and featured Moses Sumney.
The Big Day, Chance the Rapper's most recent album, was released in 2019. Learn about Chance in "The 200 Most Significant Artists of Pitchfork's First 25 Years."
It appears that he's serious about this comeback. It can be remembered that he laid low for a while, only to emerge with "Child of God."
"It's good to be back and know who I am," Chance the Rapper tells Complex at the time, during the private launch of his "Child of God" art exhibition with Nala Opiangah at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago.
However, a frequent misperception about the 28-year-old rapper and father of two is that he has forgotten who he is. In actuality, Chance has become much more introspective over the previous few years. Now, he's reemerging as an artist who acknowledges that he's still influenced by negative but no longer fears being misunderstood.
The Chicago rapper embarked on a trip to Ghana at the start of 2022, where he reconnected with his Blackness, uncovered deep familial origins, and met individuals who would ultimately shape the creative approach of his upcoming release.
One of these individuals was the gifted Gabonese painter Nala Opiangah, who at the time was working out of the studio of the famed Ghanaian artist Amoako Boafo. Chance decided he wanted her to be a part of one of his most ambitious artistic ventures to date upon their instant rapport.
Chance's first solo album in over a year, "Child of God," doubles as a contemporary art installation. It also represents a new beginning for Chance the Rapper. Since the release of his most recent studio album, The Big Day, both his music and his images have undergone continuous development.
Chance has always had a passion for movies, but by directing the cinematography for "Child of God," he is putting his filmmaking skills on full display and developing a "new visual language" that places greater emphasis on the words he's spewing.
