Few artists can honestly claim to have had a better 2016 than Chicago's very own Chance The Rapper. Since emerging in 2011 with his first mixtape 10 Day, it's only been a matter of time before young Chano asserted himself alongside the biggest names in the game. With his latest effort, Coloring Book which gets a real-life manifestation this weekend as Chance and the gang bring their one-day festival, 'Magnificent Coloring Day' to the south side's Comiskey Park. Announced around the release of the project back on the tail-end of May, the festival has been highly-anticipated, with tickets selling out in waves almost the moment they have been added to the website. Chance made further headlines by announcing he had bought back bundles of tickets from counterfeiters, releasing them back into circulation. On top of that, the guys stopped by none other than Ellen to perform a "No Problems", a furtherance of the kind of independent spirit that is central to the festival at large. There's been plenty of excitement, headlines and rumors swirling around and as the date finally approaches, TheseDays has everything you need to know about one of the biggest shows of the year.

The Line Up

Setting up shop across town from Common's own star-studded lineup for AAHH Fest, Chance and the gang went about curating a collection of acts that speak to both the current influence on music today and the future of where its going. The schedule reads like a who's who of current and past collaborators and friends of the Chicago MC. Included on the Saturday listing is none other than "No Problems" conspirators Lil Wayne & 2 Chainz, "Mixtape" accompaniment Young Thug as well as frequent collaborator and 'Colbert Show' consigliere Skrillex, among others. Those names join the likes of established greats like Alicia Keys, John Legend and Tyler The Creator opposite rising stars like Lil Uzi Vert among many others who will surely make cameos throughout the show, including SaveMoney, NoName and a contingent of Chicago artists who have grown around Chance and co. Having just recently brought out Lil Dicky in Las Vegas, with a penchant for great onstage surprises, those in attendance should certainly expect some familiar faces to pop up throughout the long weekend day. 

UPDATE: A schedule popped up on the internet late Thursday night, details below:

1-1:30 • Francis & The Lights

1:45-2:25 • Lil Uzi Vert

2:40-3:20 • Young Thug

3:34-4:20 • Tyler, The Creator

4:50-5:35 • John Legend

6:05-7:15 • ColleGrove (Lil Wayne/2 Chainz)

7:45-8:30 • Alicia Keys

9-10:30 • Chance The Rapper

10:30-11:30 • Skrillex

The Location

The Cell, Guaranteed Rate; forget all the corporate meandering, especially because the theme for the day is artistic independence and accept the fact that no one ever stopped calling the home of the White Sox anything but Comiskey Park. As important as ever is the coordinate of the festival: 35th Street & Wentworth is certifiably the south side, home to Chance The Rapper and much of his merry band of musicians and a centerpiece to his push for resources necessary to the city's more overlooked corners. By using his fame and notoriety to not just sell tickets at the United Center, Chance is offering the south side of the city an opportunity to be seen for more than crime and shootings that those on the opposite end tend to cull from headlines and cries from greedy aldermen. While it may seem like a small move to those from outside the city, anyone who understand the moving parts of Chicago and its fractured political scene understand the brevity of bringing a cross-section of Chicagoans down to 35th for a rap show. It's the show don't tell of Chance's sensibility, a subtle part of his operation that has allowed him unprecedented recognition within his city. 

The Clues & What To Expect

If you stay up on the social networkings of the Social Experiment, you've probably gotten some clues as to what exactly will be going on at Comiskey Park this Saturday. Chance's 'Magnificent Coloring World' event that took fans via bus to a build-out world that included everything from Benny & The LuvaBulls to a collective electric slide moment, somewhat raising the bar for his next-largest singular event. At an talk last week, Coloring Book cover artist Brandon Breaux alluded to animatronic animals scattered throughout and there has been talk of a possible literal coloring book put together by artists from around the city. As far as musical surprises? Stay tuned. Chance and the team have had a long list of surprise onstage collaborations and will be expected to bring out all the stops this time around. In the past, he's unveiled Kanye and Vic Mensa at one of his Open Mikes, Kendrick Lamar at last year's TIP Fest and even his manager, Pat Corcoran, brought out Metro Boomin for his 25th birthday party at Chop Shop. It should prove to be a star-studded affair and we certainly wouldn't be surprised to see some familiar faces around the park.