Is It That Bad? Revisiting “The Big Day” 1 Year Later

Intro:

Yesterday was the 1 year anniversary of Chance the Rapper’s debut album, The Big Day. This came after dropping 2 of 3 highly successful mixtapes: Coloring Book (the real debut imo) & Acid Rap (the mixtape that got me into Chance). The Big Day clearly isn’t his best project, and many have never given it a chance since it released last year. After a year though, I’ve decided to revisit the album with an open mind to answer one question: “Is it truly as terrible as remembered?”

Strengths:

The album definitely sounds like something that could be played at a wedding/family event. The songs mostly carry the same feel good & uplifting vibe/tone; which gives the album character. You’ll hear lots of keys & chords throughout the album, there are even some groovy drum patterns like on “Eternal”. A few of the trap songs on here end up being my favorites with the addition of the happy/feel good aesthetic. Specifically, Pierre’s spacey melodies + bouncy drums make up my favorite song & beat on the album “Slide Around”.

I’d like to express that themes/concept of the album really is not an issue at all. Chance sounds like he’s in the happiest place in his life; as he’s rapping about lots of self growth, positivity & his wife/wedding. Best example: “Used to have obsession with the "27 Club/Now I'm turning twenty-seven, wanna make it to the 2070 club”. Since Chance didn’t focus on his rapping, a few of the features really do outshine him (Smino, DaBaby & Taylor Bennett). That being said, the best rhyming on the album definitely comes from “We Go High”.

Weaknesses:

Outside of the positives I mentioned, the album really does have some questionable production choices. Chance barely fits on a song like “Roo” which sounds really outdated & “Ballin Flossin” that sounds like kidz bop/mall shopping music. Even some of the mixes are not great, and beats like “The Big Day” take way too long to pick up. Outside of the beats, a lot of this album really does un-ironically sound like children’s music.

I understand why he dumbed down his lyrics for an album like this, but some of the rapping is absolutely disappointing. On top of the lack of strong/memorable verses, Chance spits some of the corniest lyrics like “Treat the bad advice like bad breathe” or the entire chorus on “Big Fish”. Even the flows on The Big Day are unusually sloppy sometimes. Strangely too, Chance’s singing is noticeably worse (Ex. Let’s Go On The Run & Roo”) & his rapping delivery at times is more obnoxious.

Outside of the few features I mentioned earlier, the rest are really unmemorable or just flat out not good. The length of the album itself is an entirely big issue, even with the lack of good features to break it up. Hot Shower is actually a song I enjoy, but it really does sound out of place with the album. Not just sonically, but even the subject matter is so vastly different from the core themes of The Big Day. However, it could be a representation of the “dance song” a DJ would play at a wedding to get everyone on the dance floor.

Is It Really That Bad?:

So I’m not going to lie, it genuinely isn’t a good album in my opinion. I think if you replaced Chance & had any other rapper perform these, it would still be just as bad (and maybe worse tbh). However i think there is some unfair criticism when it comes to the subject matter. Upon release, I remember everyone mainly trashing the album for being about his wife & wedding. I think we all remember the “I Love My Wife” meme that went viral. But this criticism is so unfair to me now, as there are plenty of amazing rap songs about the same subject.

That’s just the surface level though, as it really does all boil down to the execution. The album just isn’t good both sonically & lyrically. For a debut album, it actually sounds like there was a lot less passion/effort put into it (compared to the actual budget). Additionally, I do see how the subject matter being so personal & specific to Chance would turn people off. I can say it does make the album hard to relate to if you’re not in a similar position. Regardless, this album is below even the average of expectations & Chance’s standard of quality

Overall: 2/10

I really did try to enjoy The Big Day a lot. Despite voiding my expectations, the songs I already enjoy were the only ones I found myself liking even more. I don’t think Chance has completely lost his potential or anything, but it’s clear to all of us fans that this was a big step down. At the very least, Chance made the album he wanted to make & it still did decent numbers for him (which is a lot more than others). Thank you for reading and you can listen to the album with the link below.