Chance the Rapper hosts bike giveaway for kids in Chicago Ridge

One hundred children rode away from a Chicago Ridge Raising Canes on a chilly Monday with new bicycles and helmets, courtesy of the fast food chain and Chicago’s Chance the Rapper.

The students did not just leave with bicycles; they left with holiday cheer from one of the city’s best-known rappers, who says he hasn’t stopped investing in the community that raised him.

Chance the Rapper, born Chancelor Bennett, appeared Monday at the 95th Street location of Raising Cane’s to celebrate the donation of the branded children’s bikes to SocialWorks, his nonprofit. He founded SocialWorks in 2016 with his friends to empower local youth through arts, education and civic engagement.

“It’s a quintessential childhood gift, like everybody remembers their first bike,” Chance told WBEZ/Chicago Sun-Times after the giveaway. “My dad taught me how to ride a bike and it was a big deal. It was like going through driving school, he was very intent on getting me to understand it and not giving up.”

Bikes offer kids “independence,” he continued. ”Once you get your bike, it's like a new level of independence that you reach and being able to decide where you're going, like, transportation wise, as a kid… as I got older, building friends and community out of it.”

The young recipients also received a Raising Cane’s meal and were serenaded by Christmas carolers as they test drove their new sets of wheels. Raising Cane’s previously donated bikes to SocialWorks but doubled its donation this year, a move Chance said will help expand the program’s reach.

“They hit us up this year and increased it to 200, so we were able to give away so many bikes,” Chance said. “We actually just did a giveaway two days ago at a Green Line station and set up a small warming center.”

Transportation around the city is a cause important to the Grammy Award-winning artist. Earlier this month, the Chicago Transit Authority announced the launch of its “Enjoy the Ride” campaign with the rapper. Riders can hear two announcements from him that will play at train stations for the next coming weeks.

“It’s insane, I spent, you know, most of my life, like from the ages of probably nine to 20, taking the train everywhere and the bus too, but mainly like CTA and the rail line,” Chance said on Monday. “It started off as just a small partnership of doing, like a wrap of a train or two, to growing into all these other initiatives. And I think we're looking to expand it even more and figure out ways that we can really have, a real impact.”

The musician said he would like to see the campaign include “a day of appreciation” down the road for Chicago Transit Authority workers “ because they go through, you know, a lot working on public transportation.”

This holiday season is truly a busy one for the rapper, with the recent announcement of “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve” adding a countdown from Chicago for the first time in 55 years. Chance will co-host and perform before the ball drops in the televised celebration.

“They never had a Midwest ball drop,” Chance said. “We're an important city and an important part of the country. And I think the fact that the first time that they're ever having it represented [outside of New York]... that they're broadcasting from be Chicago, is huge, and it being me, is crazy, you know,” Chance said. “I'm excited. I'm actually gonna perform myself too, right before the ball drops.”

Asked what he wants for Christmas on Monday, the rapper paused before taking a serious tone: “I want peace and serenity and democracy and recognition of all countries and their people.” Then he grabbed a chicken finger, threw it in his mouth and went behind the counter to take a group photo.