FSD: You’ve been getting a lot of early Eminem comparisons as of late. Does his music influence the sound of yours?
Chance: Everybody says that I sound like Em (Eminem) and that’s just because I grew up on that Infinite shit and that really old Marshall Mathers LP shit. There’s a lot of wordplay in my sound, but there’s so many different sounds that come with my shit. There’s a lot of singing and harmonies and I get a lot of that from like old East Oakland hip-hop like Souls of Mischief and Hieroglyphics. Then you got Freestyle Fellowship who incorporated mad jazz into their hip-hop shit. But all in all, a lot of my influences come from Kanye just because I started rapping listening to Kanye and wasn’t really listening to any other artist for like the first three years I knew what rap was.
But right now, who I think is crackin’ is Rick Ross and Kendrick Lamar. I listened and studied Rich Forever and Section 80 for like three days straight and didn’t play any music from anyone for a while. The thing about those two tapes is that they’re two completely different projects; but kind of conquered the same problems, I want to say. Kendrick dropped a mixtape being an independent artist, but he dropped that shit like an EP or an album and sold it. It’s basiclly the exact opposite with Rich Forever. Rich Forever was like an album! It was from a major label artist with major label features, but he dropped it as a mixtape and moved the fuck out of it. I was really thinking about both of those projects as I was finishing up the recording for 10 Day, and kind of wanted my project to have that universal sound.
FSD: Are there any other young artists that you like right now?
Chance: Yeah definitely. I like a lot of what Chicago has going on right now. Chief Keef is super crackin’, I fuck with his shit. Lil Durk is nice. Katie Got Bandz, Alex Wiley and Kembe X, Vic Mensa and Kids These Days, St. Mille and a lot of other artists that are out right now. But really who I’m listening to a lot of is Kids These Days. Sonically, I don’t think anybody is fucking with them on like some real music shit. They got like a seven part band with like a horn section and shit so it’s so many different influences to their shit. I fucks with Chief Keef super heavy too, he’s super hot right now.
FSD: How do you feel about Chief Keef’s music and the effect that it’s having on the younger crowd?
Chance: Honestly, I like the music. The whole drill sound is so reminiscent of trap, but it’s so Chicago and different from what we’re used to. Soul samples and twisting are probably the two things that people say about Chicago, if you know anything about Chicago rap. At this point it’s a completely different sound and a completely different feeling.
I don’t completely agree with all the shit that’s going on surrounding it as far as the social aspect because the music that a lot people are making right now are forming a lot of kids lives. I definitely believe we got to be careful of what we saying, but that shit is real. It’s definitely a certain demeanor that a lot of young, black motherfuckers have in Chicago right now, and they can relate to that and what Keef (Chief Keef) is rapping about. A lot of them who are making drill music are making a completely different lane for rappers out of Chicago and their producers are really behind that sound. Young Chop and Snapbackondatrack are ill as fuck and they’re both mad young, so I fuck with them.
FSD: Do you think older artists need to get out of the way and let the younger movement fully take control?
Chance: I wouldn’t necessarily say “get out the way.” I want to see more collaborations with some of the older artists and find a way to make Chicago another “music mecca.” Atlanta had their point with the whole 90’s Dungeon Family movement and New York has had their shit. LA has had their shit forever. I want to see Chicago come together for some new shit, and I would love to collaborate with some of the older artists. I don’t think anyone necessarily has to step down from any thrones to have more music available to the public. I just think there needs to be a lot more working together so Chicago can get to that point and be one of the “music meccas of rap.”
FSD: What’s going on with Save Money? Are you looking to bring them more into the spotlight?
Chance: Well, first off, more than just trying to break it down into the artistry, Save Money is basically just a family. We’re a family of people who work together on whatever the project is, so it’s people who we fuck with who are into film. Actually, Austin Vesely has done all of my videos and probably all the videos for my 10 Day project. Richie Randall, who does Rich Mason Media is pretty crackin’ right now. Thelonius Martin, who’s an ill ass producer, he’s with us and shit. Save Money isn’t like some trendy rap crew that’s about to come out and take over the game. It’s definitely more so of a family. I hate to use crew or clique, but yeah that’s what comes to mind with Save Money. We’re a group of motherfuckers who fuck with each other and grew up together and trust each other and just so happen to have some very talented people in that group. Definitely look out for music coming from Presto, Joey Purp, Dally Auston, The Kids These Days album and a lot more music. We’re all working right now.
FSD: Tell us a bit about the mixtape. What features and production do you have on it?
Chance: There’s a lot of different producers on there. The sound that I was going for, I was just trying to make sure that I got my point across with the tape, given the type of exposure that it’s getting. I tried to make sure that I got as many different styles that I possibly could for myself. I definitely reached out to get as many rappers that I could to get on the tape, that would make the tape a functioning, cohesive project. I got Vic Mensa on there, Alex Wiley, Blended Babies did a track on there, Chuck Inglish has a track on there and that one is a real standout. It’s a lot of good shit on there! The sound overall is a lot of chill ass music that you could also get some shit crackin’ to. I really just wanted a universal project that could reach a bunch of different crowds and could be played straight through like an album.
FSD: So what’s next for you?
Chance: I don’t really know if I’m supposed to talk about it, but I’ve had a few meetings with some label people, but shit is going decent right now. I’m getting a lot of love nationally as well as Chicago. I guess I could say this shit too now, I plan on dropping three tapes this summer, so expect a lot of collabs with Chicago artists and others. They’re all going to be sporadically and very ill so look out for those. A lot of good music coming up.