The reason Acid Rap has been in the forefront of alternative rap for all these years is because it doesn’t appeal to a single geographic location or movement or genre, but a time period. It has been 4 years since Chance released this mixtape, yet it still resonates in car stereos and Soundcloud playlists like it came out yesterday. Acid Rap is both conceptual and cohesive, the themes and sounds of each song relate similarly to the single concept of the mixtape. This is best seen on the song Cocoa Butter Kisses, where Chance raps about how his newfound drug habits are an official departure from his adolescence. The mixtape is just 13 tracks about tripping off acid, it fuses the idea of drug abuse with youthfulness and growing up. The clear influence to the sound and aesthetic of the mixtape, LSD plays a key part to understanding the concept of the album. The concept of Acid Rap is pretty simple and obvious acid. The mixtape is so cohesive with it’s sounds that there cannot be anything that matches the fun, energetic, yet conscious and cultural mixture that is this project. There is a sense of oneness with the project that makes it separates it from any other album or mixtape made since it’s release and even before it’s release. However, what makes this all special is that the combination of these instrumentals and Chance’s unorthodox vocals create this work that cannot be replicated. His high-pitched, raspy rapping style never sounds sloppy or ill-fitting over these beats.

Similarly, Chance’s vocals are so unmistakable that it separates the tape from other contemporary works. There are definitely albums and mixtapes that use a similar variety of instruments, but the arrangement on Acid Rap is so fast paced and absorbing.

The wide array of influences on the production make Acid Rap sound like no other contemporary mainstream project. Songs like Good Ass Intro and NaNa have instrumentals that are perfectly mixed with these sped up hi hat drums and his signature horns to create this compelling and trippy blend. Influenced by jazz, Chicago drill, and juke, the production has this distinct and entertaining palette. The production, which was mainly done by members of Chance’s Social Experiment group, consistently dishes out these fast colorful beats.

Nostalgia Ultra from Frank Ocean, A$AP Rocky’s $AP, Earl Sweatshirt’s Earl, House of Balloons from The Weeknd, and of course Chance The Rapper’s “Acid Rap”.Īcid Rap sounds and feels significantly different from any other contemporary project. If we look at the most critically acclaimed and popular mixtapes to be released in the 2010s, there are 5 major competitors.

Acid rap instrumentals