Juneteenth may have originated in Texas but it’s a big celebration in Los Angeles. Los Angeles County is home to the third largest Black population in the United States, a community that has had enormous influence over pop culture at large. It’s no surprise that the city’s preeminent venue, the Hollywood Bowl, would host Chance the Rapper for its own Juneteenth concert. Chance the Rapper has had a unique trajectory in his career, from out-the-gate high of Coloring Book, to a mid-career lull, only to come back several years later with 2025’s Star Line. His Hollywood Bowl Juneteenth show had been billed for several months, with fellow Chicagoan Vic Mensa joining the bill more recently. Rounding out the lineup was DJ D-Nice of Boogie Down Productions with a dynamic and attention-grabbing set between the two rappers.

First up was Vic Mensa, who had the unenviable position of performing a rap set in the harsh mid-afternoon sun. He performed more than admirably along with his guitarist and bassist. He started the set out with a politically-charge freestyle, mentioning “FIFA stadiums” and a “country rotten to the core.” While Mensa performed “Orange Soda” he engaged the audience with a call-and-response of “Black is beautiful / Yes indeed!” and brought out singer Aja Monet the perform “Rich in Family” and rapper Rapsody for a cover of her song “God Gotta Afro,” which was a highlight of the set. Between Vic Mensa and Chance the rapper was a set by legendary DJ D-Nice. He mixed up the set and made it so much more than a standard DJ set between performers. His set captivated the audience throughout, aided by the quickly setting sun that turned the sunny afternoon into a balmy evening.

DJ D-Nice started out his set with some old school hits from artists such as Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie before transitioning to hip-hop with cuts from Too Short, Tupac and Dr. Dre making appearances. Then, the DJ brought out the DC Singers for their first of two appearances for the evening, performing a Kirk Franklin song before slowly transitioning from gospel music to Lil’ John’s “Get Low.”

Finally, as dusk turned to night, Chance the Rapper made his appearance as the headliner. The gravity of the moment was certainly not lost on the still-relatively-young performer. From the moment he hit the stage, he was a ball of energy, bouncing around and dancing along to the beats provided by his drummer and DJ. The show opened with clips explaining Juneteenth, a holiday that has been celebrated in the Black community for well over a hundred years, but only recently became a national holiday. After the clips, Chance jumped right into “Star Side (Intro),” which also serves as the opening song from his new album Star Line. He would spend the rest of the evening skipping around his discography, focusing heavily on Coloring Book and Star Line. The second song, “No Problem” was one of his earliest hits and found the crowd up on its feet from the get go.

Between songs Chance interspersed older clips, testimonials from Black Americans, whether in front of a government body or a news team. All detailed a struggle against a system skewed against them, conjuring a range of emotions. He wasn’t above hitting some pop highs, with a “cover” of the DJ Khaled song that features him, Quavo and Justin Bieber (they were not present), “I’m the One” making an appearance in his set. “Juke Jam” continued the Beebs theme, as that song from Coloring Book features the pop star. After dedicating his set to Dr. Angela Davis, Chance brought another Chicagoan, BJ the Chicago Kid to perform “Everybody’s Somebody.” Immediately after he dropped a performance of his most popular song from his most popular album, “No Problem,” which got any audience members not already on their feet dancing like maniacs.

He finished up his set with an uplifting new song “Pretty.” Then, to close out the set he brought The DC Singers back out for “Finish Line / Drown,” bringing their uplifting vocalizations to the gospel-inspired hip-hop track.The Hollywood Bowl’s Juneteenth celebration certain skewed towards the younger set with Chance the Rapper and Vic Mensa headlining the show. However with the addition of a classic favorite in DJ D-Nice, the DC Singers, Aja Monet and Rapsody, the evening went full circle, giving a taste of something for everyone.

Chance the Rapper Setlist:

Star Side (Intro)
Ride
Blessings
Summer Friends
All Night
Tree
Just a Drop
No More Old Men
The Negro Problem
Drapetomania
Burn Ya Block
I’m the One (by Chance the Rapper, Quavo, Justin Bieber and Khalid)
Juke Jam
Closer (Goapele cover) featuring Goapele
Gun In Yo Purse
Letters
All We Got
Everybody’s Somebody featuring BJ the Chicago Kid
No Problem
Pretty
Finish Line/Drown feauturing the DC Singers
Link Me In The Future
Same Drugs

File photo: Colin Hancock