Background and career
Chancelor Jonathan Bennett (born April 16, 1993), known professionally as Chance the Rapper, is an American rapper. He gained widespread recognition with his second mixtape, Acid Rap (2013), which helped establish him as a leading figure in Chicago hip-hop and among independent artists. His third mixtape, Coloring Book (2016), received critical acclaim and became the first streaming-only project to win the Grammy Award for Best Rap Album at the 59th Annual Grammy Awards, while its single "No Problem" (featuring 2 Chainz and Lil Wayne) won Best Rap Performance. His debut album, The Big Day (2019), peaked at number two on the Billboard 200. He released his second album, Star Line, in 2025. As a featured artist, he has appeared on songs including "Ultralight Beam" by Kanye West and the chart-topping single "I'm the One" by DJ Khaled. Bennett is also a member of the Chicago-based collective Savemoney and a lead vocalist for the hip hop band the Social Experiment.
Outside of music, he has worked in television and film, including serving as a judge on the Netflix series Rhythm + Flow and as a coach on The Voice. He received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination for writing the song "Last Christmas", performed during his appearance on Saturday Night Live in 2017. His accolades include three Grammy Awards (including Best New Artist), three BET Awards, and a Soul Train Music Award. He is among the highest-grossing hip-hop touring artists and has also pursued philanthropic efforts, including advocating for the public education system in Chicago.
Chancelor Jonathan Bennett was born on April 16, 1993, in Chicago, Illinois. His father, Ken Williams-Bennett, was an aide to the late Chicago mayor Harold Washington and then-senator Barack Obama. His mother, Lisa, worked for the Illinois attorney general. Bennett grew up in the middle-class neighborhood of West Chatham on Chicago's South Side. When he was sixteen, Bennett's father began to work in the Department of Labor during President Barack Obama's first term. Bennett personally met Obama in his youth and talked about his aspirations to be a rapper, to which Obama responded with "word". Bennett was originally going to move to Washington, D.C., following Obama's win in the 2008 presidential election, although those plans eventually fell through. Bennett attended Jones College Prep High School where he was a member of the Jewish Student Union. Bennett's interest in music began with Michael Jackson, who he exclusively listened to on cassettes until the fifth grade.
Growing up, Bennett's parents were constantly playing music, including Billie Holiday, Sam Cooke and other artists in the jazz and gospel genres. Bennett began listening to hip-hop after hearing "Through the Wire" by Kanye West on the radio while walking through Hyde Park. After finding out the song was on West's debut album The College Dropout, Bennett purchased the album, making it the first hip-hop album that Bennett listened to. Bennett considers West a huge influence on him and has said that he was inspired to begin rapping by West. Bennett and West met each other in August 2014 at Bonnaroo Music Festival. Bennett began rapping in the sixth grade when his cousin let him start using his studio. In his freshman year at Jones College Prep High School, Bennett formed the hip-hop duo Instrumentality alongside a friend. Many of Chance's earliest performances took place at the YOUmedia Lyricist Loft at Harold Washington Library in Chicago. After placing second in a local songwriting contest, Bennett met then-Chicago Mayor, Richard M. Daley who enjoyed his music.
