A day after Chance the Rapper’s silhouette and trademark squawk appeared on the Dillo Day website, Mayfest organizers announced Thursday that the Chicago native will be Dillo’s Daytime Headliner.
Chance, sponsored in part by Cricket Wireless, will be the second act during the May 31 event, scheduled to perform from 3 to 4 p.m. He is the first artist to be confirmed for this year’s Dillo Day.
"We're excited to see campus' reaction, because I don't think we're going to find any naysayers on this act," said Michael Bass, School of Communication junior and Mayfest's Chair of Concerts.
Born as Chancelor Bennett, the 20 year-old grew up in Chicago and attended Jones College Prep. Chance is known for his two free mixtapes, the second of which, 2013's Acid Rap, was certified platinum. He has collaborated with many artists including Justin Bieber, James Blake, Skrillex and 2013 A&O Blowout headliner Childish Gambino. He will be performing at a number of major music festivals this summer, including Coachella, Sasquatch and Bonnaroo.
Mayfest members started discussing Chance in Fall Quarter and got the contract signed over Spring Break, according to Weinberg senior Xander Shepherd, Co-Chair of Mayfest. While Mayfest officials usually announce artists within 24 hours of signing the contract, Shepherd says they "wanted to be strategic" with the announcement.
"We know that it's going to be an amazing day, and I think that this announcement is an indication that there's some really great things to come," he said.
With a bevy of favorite songs, Chance will attempt to make Dillo Day even better than it was the last time.
Preetisha Sen contributed reporting.