Chance the Rapper has bought Chicagoist, a local news publication whose parent company was shockingly shuttered last year after the staff voted to unionize. The injection of cash into the endangered and important trade of neighborhood journalism marks the latest in a line of apparent good deeds by 25-year-old Chancelor Bennett.
The rapper whose music preaches Christian love and forgiveness is headlining the Special Olympics. He has donated a million dollars to Chicago Public Schools. He has chaperoned field trips, called for moratoria on gun violence, and blasted racist beer ads.
The 25-year-old Chicago born rapper made the announcement in his song “I Might Need Security” and New York’s public radio station WNYC, which previously owned the Chicagoist, confirmed the purchase on Thursday.
The deal means that Chance’s Social Media LLC company now owns all of the Chicagoist’s assets, including its archives and social media channels. Chance said in a statement that he was “extremely excited” about the purchase, adding that the site was an “integral local platform for Chicago news, events and entertainment”.
