Chance The Rapper recently appeared on the Tea Time podcast with Raven-Symoné and Miranda Maday, where he discussed his career journey, his hometown of Chicago, and more. While celebrating the tenth anniversary of his acclaimed project Coloring Book, the rapper revealed that he has been seriously considering a major change to his public identity.
Fans may eventually know him by a different name, though it would still remain connected to his current stage name. Chancelor Jonathan Bennett is considering simplifying his artist name and possibly dropping “The Rapper.”
Around the 20-minute, 41-second mark of the YouTube episode, Maday asked the Chicago artist about the meaning behind his stage name and his thoughts on the idea of being a “rapper.” Chance shared his perspective and revealed that he has been thinking about changing his name during the conversation.
He explained that a girl from his high school originally gave him the nickname, and throughout his career, people have encouraged him to change it because they felt he had grown beyond being “just a rapper.” The 33-year-old artist said he has always wanted to stay connected to hip-hop, carrying the culture with him the same way it supported him throughout his journey.
“I’ve been thinking about changing my name… I’m going to take off the ‘Chance.’ I just want to be ‘The Rapper,’” he revealed. “It’s something I’ve been thinking about a lot. I really love the art form, and I really love words. I think the greatest rappers, like myself, are etymologists and linguists at heart… I feel like the ‘Chance’ part represents giving people a lot of vulnerability and insight into my personal life and what I’m experiencing. But I don’t connect with that as much anymore as I do with simply creating within the genre and exploring ideas that aren’t always directly tied to my own experiences.”
The “You Can Always Come Back Home” artist also reflected on what he appreciates about his favorite rappers. “My favorite rappers were vulnerable,” he said. “These people talked about their lives. But I also love when they criticize the state, imagine a better future, or just focus on wordplay. Those things that aren’t always directly connected to their personal existence are also important to me. When I’m creating within this art form, sometimes it’s good to make a song that isn’t about what happened to me that day… Sometimes it’s better to keep certain things just for myself and my family instead of turning everything into content for the public.”
