Even if you don’t live in Chicago, it’s well known at this point that if you go to one of Chance The Rapper’s monthly Open Mike nights, there’s a non-zero chance that something unexpected and awesome will happen. At past installments, he’s brought out special guests including Kanye West, Vic Mensa, Dave Chappelle, and even some then-unreleased Jordan sneakers for the high school kids in attendance. The 30th edition of the event was held last night, and Chance’s special guest was his old friend and collaborator, Donald Glover.
thank you @donaldglover for coming to our 30th @socialworks_chi @OpenMikeChicago !!! thank you @chancetherapper for leveraging your celebrity for the youth of Chicago in moments like these. thank you @chipublib @YOUmediaChicago !!! pic.twitter.com/sCMyPVRyF0
— BLACK POWER ranger (@MalcolmLondon) June 12, 2018
In a video of the performance, Chance is on stage and says, “My next guest needs no introduction, so… let’s try it.” The introduction to Childish Gambino’s “This Is America” starts to play, at which point the youngsters in attendance know what’s going on. Most of them get out of their seats and rush the stage, screaming and waiting for Glover to emerge. He does, and launches into a performance of the song, rapping and doing some of the iconic dance moves from the song’s video. The moment was surely a fun surprise for these high schoolers, and it’s also a good time even just watching the video.
Watch a clip of Glover performing “This Is America” above.
