Chance The Rapper's 'Starline' is a call-to-action in the middle of f***ing chaos.

Chance The Rapper presents 'Starline' at a moment in US history when community is the way through the madness.

What the fuck is going on y’all?

Whether you want to pay attention or not, things are changing and swiftly right in front of us. The government is shut down due to a lack of agreement between Republicans and Democrats on healthcare for the very people who voted for them to have the power they wield. We’re watching the Secretary of War speak to a room full of decorated generals about the responsibility of shaving consistently, which directly targets black men in the military, and the requirement of a gender-neutral haircut to participate, which directly targets women in the military. Make no mistake, my loves. We’re in the shit.

What I’ve always found in the books I’ve read and even from personal experience is that music, arts, culture is powerful. Even in oppression, the artists of that struggle used their creativity to ensure messages of unity, strength and truth were spread throughout the community and even beyond. I was editing this when I stumbled across Jacob Lawrence’s The Migration Series and I was hypnotized. I’m always intrigued when I discover a piece of art or culture that had never been introduced to me. Listening to him speak while sorting through the 60 paintings that beautifully recall the migration of African Americans from the south to the north gave me enlightenment. If you’ve never had the pleasure, here’s the link. You’re welcome.

I guess what I’m trying to say is that our arts are not an escape. They are one of the many tunnels through. So, when I listened to Chance the Rapper’s album, Starline, it felt like a call to action. A moment to reflect, support and reform. I experienced it as if he were asking us to reconnect with the history that we’re so quick to disregard. I promise I will get back to the album, but don’t you find it ironic how people within our community say, “We aren’t our ancestors” and minimize their contributions to our comfort, and in the same quarter, grow upset that the current administration wants to do the same. Interesting.

Okay. Back to Star Line’s reconnection to a disrespected past.

I watched Anthony Anderson interview Chance during his press run during the album’s release and he talked about the historical link to the uprisings in Africa and the Civil Rights movement here in America. It was a connection that allowed him to recognize that he could create music for more than just us. He could make music for all of us. Ride was my favorite moment of Starline and I could make the argument that it’s the most radical.

When you listen to it, DexLVL and Chance’s production dressed in a One Way and Al Hudson sample draws you into a sweet sway. Just drifting back and forth. And then you listen to the words. He talks about shooting out a rainbow and glides directly into mentioning coalition as the main goal by turning “Tommys into Djangos.” The mere mention of getting his Gullahs off the Gilligan, a tribute to his family’s history in North Carolina, enabled a moment of learning for the listener. Yeah, you. If you don’t know who the Gullah people are, I’ll start your journey here.

Shit, Drapetomania was a term coined by a Southern physician named Samuel Cartwright who aimed to explain the “disturbing desire” for enslaved peoples to seek freedom. According to Cartwright, “The cause in most cases that induces the Negro to run away from service is such a disease of the mind as in any other species of alienation, and much more curable, as a general rule.” The cure, you ask. “Whipping the devil” out of the slaves who tried to escape or even cut off their big toe. Yeah, it was like that. This album connects you to so much information. I watched The Emperor Jones after listening to it to see why he even made the reference in “Space & Time.” Keeping it a buck, he did that.

I saw someone on social media say that his album The Big Day wasn’t good because he was with his wife. I know that’s crazy for me to even give life to. But of course. I have to say something about something. The idea that his creativity was stunted by the presence of his partner is ludicrous, especially when you know that they’ve been in each other’s lives since 2013 and he released Acid Rap and The Coloring Book in this time. Just ammo if you see the bullshit lurking.

I loved the project, obviously. He decentered himself in a conversation about revolution, community and the black experience and explored ways to honor the struggles that exist outside of him. It’s like that. I wouldn’t say it if it weren’t. Listen to the album and follow the path it takes you on, because it was a ride.