Chance The Rapper with the DEAFinitely Dope team; Photo: Chancellor Bennett/DEAFinitely Dope
In a new collab video with Pigeons and Planes and DEAFinitely Dope, an organization that provides a platform where deaf and hearing people can “take the plunge into the world of ASL [American Sign Language],” Chance The Rapper learns how to sign his song, “Blessings (reprise).”
Standing next to Matt With A Smile from DEAFinitely Dope, Chance introduces himself in ASL. Then they jump into breaking down this song. Naturally, they start at the beginning:
I speak of promised lands
Soil as soft as momma’s hands
Running water, standing still
Endless fields of daffodils and chamomile
Matt With A Smile then walks Chance through each phrase, translating the lyrics into ASL. “This is making me realize how good I am at writing right now,” Chance says at one point. “These are crazy terms.”
That’s when Matt With A Smile took that opportunity to point out the intricacies of ASL. “That’s what makes people more interested,” he says. “Because when you put it in sign language, there’s so many ways you can expand it.”
Chance seconds that and points out his fascination with language and words. “That’s what I love about this whole thing,” he replies. “There’s a million ways to say things. Language, man.”
Many people don’t realize this, but lots artists have ASL interpreters at their concerts to accommodate those who are hard of hearing. It’s often the law to provide such interpreters.
Thanks to interpreters like Amber Galloway-Gallego, who told SONGLYRICS how she turns interpretations into a performance, this practice becoming more widely integrated into the music world. Artists like Kendrick Lamar, Eminem, Future, and Red Hot Chili Peppers are leading the charge and are fully embracing this movement.
As for learning ASL, it proves to be difficult. You can watch Chance try to rap his entire song in sign language at about the 11:30-minute mark in the video below: