During a recent show at the Venetian Resort in Las Vegas, R&B legend Anita Baker gave a shout-out to a special audience member.
According to Complex, a video posted to Twitter shows the “Angel” singer acknowledging her friend Chance the Rapper and telling the crowd, “You should say hello to a friend of mine, by way of the music industry, and by way of helping me, helping me to get a hold and ownership of my master recordings.”
Chance replied to the video of Baker thanking him, writing, “I saw one of THE greatest performances of my LIFETIME last night! Thank you so much @IAMANITABAKER for being an inspiration and an icon to so many of US.”
The lovefest continued with the “Caught Up in the Rapture” singer responding, “Had no idea you would be in our Midst. Such a nice Surprise. Brought Tears, to my eyes.”
The Chicago native then thanked Baker for making the evening so memorable for him and his friend, tweeting, “WOW the fact that you remembered my friends [sic] name AND that it was her birthday just echoes what an INCREDIBLE PERSON you are on top of all that you’ve given artistically. Honored and blessed to call you friend miss @IAMANITABAKER.”
The “No One in the World” singer spent much of 2021 fighting her former label Elektra for control of her masters, telling her fans not to stream her music until everything was sorted out.
In September 2021, she tweeted a photo of her first five studio albums—1983’s The Songstress, 1986’s Rapture, 1988’s Giving You The Best That I Got, 1990’s Compositions, and 1994’s Rhythm of Love—with the caption “All My Children Are Coming Home.” The details on what Chance specifically did to help Baker haven’t been released, but this is just more proof that the artist/activist is a genuinely good person who appreciates those who’ve come before him.
And of course, we’re all thinking about how much we want an Anita Baker/Chance the Rapper collaboration now. It’s what we deserve.