It was less than a year ago when artist-activist Chance the Rapper, government name Chancelor Bennett, stopped by Houston’s Bayou Music Center to remind fans of his presence, relevance, and continued fresh inspiration with the project “Star Line.” When we covered the show in 2025, it was clear that no one could fill the niche of colorful, uplifting, gospel-influenced/jazz-inspired melodies and move a crowd quite like Chance. He has made a true effort to show love to his Houston fans, stopping by the city on every tour stop (with the exception of the canceled “Big Tour” in 2019, planned for Toyota Center). So when I heard the 10-year Coloring Book anniversary tour was making its way to the H, I had to be there – and I walked away from the experience with a few musical lessons to share with y’all.
- The spiritual undertones of Chance’s biggest hits resonate very differently in 2026 than they did in 2016. In the mixtape intro (sorry, the entree) “All We Got,” Chance the Rapper links with Kanye West to sermonize about how music is the one earthly thing where they can feel fulfilled, in control, and able to express themselves without judgment or resentment. The song even makes reference to then-girlfriend Kristen being from Houston, like “Auntie Yonce.” The idea is that it takes laser-focused dedication to become this talented at your craft. However, after talking to some in the crowd, a chord struck me. With the upending of the world around us, young adults who grew up on Coloring Book are at a stage where musical fandom seems to be the one thing in our control, and few songs demonstrate that better than “All We Got.” Similarly, “Blessings” was a song lauded by devout Christians when it was released, as a message about the importance of following God. While the message still very much cuts across, the sub-themes of the song have philosophical density as well – making reference to the facade of money, drugs, and other worldly possessions that have captured the mind of our youth. The interpretation I got from the crowd, and from Chance’s lyrical emphasis, is that the youth of today are pulling the curtain back.
- As a whole, Coloring Book holds its weight with the best projects of the 2010s. The club bangers, of course, replicate their energy in a concert full of passionate fans. “No Problem” retains the same pugnacity that can instill confidence in the middle schooler still shoved in his locker, while “All Night” still occasionally is thrown off the speakers of a late-night DJ set to revive a crowd. But I was particularly impressed with Chance’s performance of lower-streamed songs – such as “Mixtape,” the trap-heavy track with fellow mixtape enthusiasts Young Thug and Lil Yachty, who express their frustration with the music industry’s forced shift away from free distribution of these mixtapes, such as Coloring Book, and solely toward commercially distributed albums. In a place where he could’ve overdubbed or ad-libbed like other trap artists, his breath control really stood out as a positive.
- There’s ever-evolving lore to Chance that gives a clearer picture of his artistry. As expected, when Chance asked for his “day one” fans, they made themselves known. I was expecting them to go bar-for-bar on Acid Rap, or even sing a little something from 10 Day – Chance’s debut mixtape. What I was not expecting, however, is to learn that Chance was a member of a band called the Social Experiment, and Chance ran into the crowd holding a microphone to fans as they sang “Sunday Candy,” a gospel-influenced track dedicated to his grandma.
It says a lot that Chance is as relevant as ever, in spite of both institutional hip-hop and religion losing their fandoms by the second. The worlds that he collides are very easy to poke fun at, and stereotype to the plentitude of horrific Christian hip-hop that is out there. The difference is: Chance drops his ego, acknowledges both his struggles and his privileges, and paints pictures for the listener to keep with them in their life’s journey. My favorite song of the night, and from Chance overall, was “The Highs & The Lows.” It’s inspired me to become a better man to this day, and I hope you’ll be able to have that same experience with some of Chance’s music – because music is all we got.
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