“The Big Day” has arrived. Chance The Rapper’s latest album, his official debut full-length, features a 22-song tracklist and a wide range of guest artists including Shawn Mendes, Nicki Minaj, John Legend, Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon, Death Cab for Cutie’s Ben Gibbard and Timbaland, among others.
Along with contributions from his father Ken Bennett, Smino also makes an appearance on the album’s third song, “Eternal.” Bon Iver’s Vernon and Francis Starlite of Francis and the Lights collaborated on the album’s title track as well as “Town on the Hill” and “Do You Remember,” along with Death Cab for Cutie’s Gibbard who sings the track’s chorus.
Also on the album: Chance responds to criticism that he’s traded mainstream pop for the hip-hop sound he came up on. of Hs previous mixtapes with various features from long-time rap legends and newer stars like Gucci Mane and Timbaland (“Big Fish”), Nicki Minaj (“Slide Around,” “Zanies and Fools”), DaBaby and MadeinTYO (“Hot Shower”).
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Additionally, Megan Thee Stallion makes an appearance on the album on “Handsome” as well as Pi’erre Bourne and fellow Chicago native Lil Durk, who are both featured on “Slide Around.”
He enlists the help of songwriting legends such as Randy Newman, who has a writing credit on “5 Year Plan,” and En Vogue who, assisted by Dreamville’s Ari Lennox, collaborated on “I Got You.”
The album is Chance the Rapper’s first full solo project since his 2016 mixtape “The Coloring Book,” which earned him three Grammy awards for best rap album, best rap performance (“No Problem”) and best new artist. In the time between the two projects, the rapper released a string of singles including “First World Problems” featuring Daniel Caesar and “I Might Need Security,” amid his numerous acts of community service. In 2017, he donated millions of dollars to help fund Chicago’s public schools and mental health services.
He also recently released his debut mixtape “10 Day” and his 2013 breakout project, “Acid Rap,” on Apple Music, Spotify and other major streaming platforms. In addition, all of his music will soon be available on vinyl.