RUNNING HEAD: LITERATURE REVIEW

Literature Review: How Chance the Rappers Coloring Book Shapes Listeners Identities
Zach Fehrenbach
John Carroll University

LITERATURE REVIEW

There has been a multitude of research done on the relationship between music and the
construction of identity. For this context, a more specific focus will be placed on the relationship
between rap music and the development of African American identity. This development of
identity through music can be on a personal level or a group level. On a personal level, people
use music to identify themselves to others (Silvera, 2015, p. 31). Furthermore, rap music is one
of the most significant influences on the social development of many young African American
men (Elligan, 2000, p. 27). Rap music also has an effect on listeners worldviews and cultural
orientation (Jamison, 2006, p. 57). This study performed by DeReef F. Jamison (2006) is very
intriguing because it is a scientific study that categorizes certain types of rap music and how they
affect listeners outlooks on life (Jamison, 2006, pp. 45-60). The types of rap are categorized as
recreational, conscious, and sex-violence (Jamison, 2006, p. 48). Chances style of rapping falls
under conscious, which is the direction that many scholars want modern rappers to take.
Melbourne S. Cummings and Abhik Roy (2002) discuss the idea of Afrocentricity and how it is
derived from rap music (Cummings, Roy, 2002, p. 60). They define Afrocentricity as discourse
that seeks to bring about harmony and transcendence in the African America community
(Cummings, Roy, 2002, p. 60). This starts with the personal level and continues onto the
communal level.
Music as a whole is rooted in culture (Cross, 2001, p. 29). Rather than pertaining to a
scientific or biological basis, Music is viewed as constituted of practices, concepts, and
perceptions that are grounded in particular social interactions and constructions (Cross, 2001, p.
29). Groups can formulate an identity from music, and this allows them to take part in collective
thinking, group synchronization, and group catharsis (Cross, 2001, p. 37). This notion of music
forming cultural identity can be applied in a more specific manner as well. Rap music brings

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about a sense of black nationalism (Henderson, 1996, p. 313). This is not surprising because rap
musical structure and vocals are rooted in African and African American tradition (Ullman, 2016,
p. 15). Erroll Henderson advocates strongly for this construction of black nationalism, which is
the notion that African Americans need to accept their distinct historical personality and work to
develop structures back their interests as a people (Henderson, 1996, p. 313).
Much of rap music has always been focused on politically negative things such as sex,
drugs, and guns. This movement toward black nationalism goes against these defining cultural
aspects. Houston Baker, Jr. expands upon this idea when he discusses the development of African
American identity based on critical memory (Baker, 1999, p. 265). He writes, Critical memory
works to illustrate the continuity, at a black majority level, in the community-interested politics
of black publicness in America (Baker, 1999, p. 265). It is intriguing because Baker takes a
broad perspective on the topic, as he analyzes many different versions of African American
rhetoric, rather than just music. Baker analyzes Martin Luther King Jr.s voice and language
(Baker, 1999, pp. 274-275). He writes, Young, charismatic, and intensely sincere in his
commitment to nonviolent direct action in the service of a black collective, King became a
national sensation (Baker, 1999, p. 275). Obviously, Martin Luther King Jr.s effect on African
Americans, social justice, and racial equality was on a much bigger scale than Chance. However,
Chances goals, topics, and manner of execution align with Kings in a way. Chances Coloring
Book assesses African American identity from the past, present, and future. This goes along with
a notion that Cummings and Roy (2002) offer, which is that rappers are traditional storytellers in
that they are creators and critics or rhetoric (Cumming, Roy, 2002, p. 9). As discussed in more
depth later in this review, Chance does not simply talk about change, he actually goes out and
takes action to make it happen. Henderson (1996) writes, Nationalism doesnt survive simply on

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the articulation of sentiment. It must be wedded to two other elements: image and organization
(Henderson, 1996, p. 320).
Coloring Book has many unique aspects which have resulted in positive reviews from
critics. One of these aspects is the presence of religious content and undertones. Chance includes
hymns and an explicit Christian message (Orr, 2016, n.p.). Allison Stewart (2016) writes,
[Coloring Book is] possibly the most overt declaration of Christian faith from a secular rapper
since Kanye Wests seismic single Jesus Walks (n.p.). The presence of religion in rap music is
an interesting discussion. It is a perfect medium for theoretical or methodological endeavors
(Viljoen, 2006, p. 265). This is not to say that Coloring Book is some type of sermon, however.
Although nearly every song on the album seems to have a certain aspect of spirituality
(Weingarten, 2016, n.p.), Coloring Book is not a strictly religious album (Fitzgerald, 2016, n.p.).
Kiana Fitzgerald (2016) writes,
Chance is walking the tightrope between secular and religious, with his devoted followers
looking up at him. With its myriad influences and creative directions, [Coloring Book] is
certainly praiseworthy. (n.p.)
The album does not have a distinct genre, which is one of the reasons it is so noteworthy
(Younger, 2016, n.p.). However, Chance wants listeners to worry about the messages more than
the medium (Younger, 2016, n.p.). He incorporates many different societal messages, and that is
not a bad thing. There is a grand aspect of ambiguity when interpreting music, and that is what
makes it an art (Benson, 1979, p. 71). Another aspect of the important message that Chance is
bringing to light is his initiative to clean up his hometown of Chicago, Illinois. His efforts to
improve his city have included initiatives to lessen homelessness, hosting a youth concert to
address gun violence, sponsoring events at museums, and funding the church camp he attended

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as a child (Austen, 2016, n.p.). Ben Austen (2016) quotes Jamila Woods, who has worked with
Chance on his albums:
For young people on the citys South or West side, theres nothing coming from
government, from our school system thats bolstering the kind of pride that comes out in
Chances work. (n.p.)
Chance is not affiliated with a music label, which is another way that he is antithetical to the
common way of doing things in the modern rap industry. When he performed on Saturday Night
Live in 2015, he was the shows first-ever unsigned musical guest (Austen, 2016, n.p.). This
action of refusing to sign with a label makes it so that Chance can put forward his true feelings
and political sentiments without being censored (Hemphill, 2015, p. 122). Coloring Book, along
with other recent popular underground music, is making it so that the difference between
underground and mainstream music is being blurred (Bertholf, 2015, p. 133). Coloring Book is
free to download and became the first streaming-only album to chart on the Billboard 200
(Austen, 2016, n.p.). Garry Bertholf (2015) writes, Mass culture and new media are conditions
of rhizomatic possibility rather than symptoms of immiseration and cultural malaise (Bertholf,
2015, p. 133).
The sound of Chances music is another reason that it has such a large impact on
listeners. His band is called the Social Experiment and their music is very prominent in every
song on Coloring Book. He allows for many trumpet solos, which serve as a break for listeners.
Some rappers have tried to incorporate live instruments into their music, with varying degrees of
success. Jonah Ullman (2016) writes that,

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[When done correctly], the use of live instruments in hip-hop allows for a heightened
level of reciprocal interaction between the instrumental track and the vocals while
preserving compositional freedom. (p. 18)

LITERATURE REVIEW
Research Questions
RQ1: What makes Coloring Book unique?
RQ2: How does Coloring Book shape listeners identities?
RQ3: How does Coloring Book affect African American culture?

LITERATURE REVIEW

References
Austen, B. (2016). The new pioneers: Chance the Rapper is one of the hottest acts in music, has a
top 10 album and his own festival all without a label or physical release. Billboard,
128(21). Retrieved from http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/magazinefeature/7468570/chance-the-rapper-coloring-book-labels-grammys
Baker, H. (1999). Critical memory and the black public sphere. In D. Ben-Amos & L. Weissberg
(Eds.), Cultural memory and the construction of identity (pp. 264-294). Detroit, MI:
Wayne State University Press.
Bertholf, G. (2015). The hip-hop underground and African American culture. Journal of Popular
Music Studies, 27(1), 132-135.
Binder, A., Cheyne, A. (2010). Cosmopolitan preferences: The constitutive role of place in
American elite taste for hip-hop music 1991-2005. Poetics, 38(3), 336-364.
Cross, I. (2001). Music, cognition, culture, and evolution. Annals of the New York Academy of
Sciences, 930(1), 28-42.
Cummings, M. S., & Roy, A. (2002). Manifestations of Afrocentricity in rap music. Howard
Journal of Communications, 13(1), 59-76.
Decker, J. L. (1993). The state of rap: Time and place in hip hop nationalism. Social Text, 34(1),
53-84.
Elligan, D. (2000). Rap therapy: A culturally sensitive approach to psychotherapy with young
African American men. Journal of African American Men, 5(3), 27-36.
Fitzgerald, K. (2016). Chance the Rappers Coloring Book reveals shades of gospel. NPR
Music. Retrieved from http://www.npr.org/2016/05/15/477943987/chance-the-rapperscoloring-book-sports-shades-of-gospel

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Hemphill, P. R. (2015). Rebel without a pause: Discovering the relationship between rap music
and the political attitudes and participation of black youth (Doctoral dissertation).
Retrieved from University of Michigan Dissertations and Theses.
Henderson, E. (1996). Black nationalism and rap music. Journal of Black Studies, 26(3), 308339.
Jamison, D. F. (2006). The relationship between African self-consciousness, cultural
misorientation, hypermasculinity, and rap music preference. Journal of African American
Studies, 9(4), 45-60.
Language and music as communication: A discussion. (1979). Music Educators Journal, 65(6),
68-71.
Orr, M. (2016). Chance the Rappers Coloring Book is the gospel album Kanye doesnt deliver.
The Federalist. Retrieved from http:/www.thefederalist.com/2016/05/17/
Silvera, G. (2015). Hip-hop as a form of education. International Journal of Arts and
Humanities
1(1), 30-35.
Stewart, A. (2016). Gospel and faith merge with rap, in song. The Record.
Ullman, J. (2016). From the ground up: Cultural and musical implications of live-instrumental
hip-hop (Doctoral dissertation). Retrieved from UVM College of Arts and Sciences
College Honors Theses.
Viljoen, M. (2006). Wrapped up: Ideological setting and figurative meaning in AfricanAmerican gospel rap. Popular Music, 25(2), 265-282.
Weingarten, C. R. (2016). Chance the Rapper: Coloring Book. Rolling Stone. Retrieved from

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http://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/chance-the-rapper-coloring-book20160518
Younger, B. (2016). How Kirk Franklin revolutionized gospel and made hip-hop a more spiritual
place. The Fader. Retrieved from http://www.thefader.com/2016/05/19/kirk-franklingospel-hip-hop-chance-the-rapper