It's the best verse on Kanye West's The Life of Pablo, on the album's best song, and among the best tracks of West's catalog. West doesn't rap it, though: Chance the Rapper does. He's a 22-year-old kid from Chicago, who isn't signed to a label, who raps about '90s children's cartoons, who has writing credits on a few TLOP songs. The song in question, "Ultralight Beam," is a gospel hip-hop song. It's been played live in front of crowds three times: Once on Saturday Night Live, once in Raleigh North Carolina, and last night at a surprise concert hosted by SoundCloud in Midtown Manhattan.

Here's what you need to know about Chance The Rapper, specifically as a live performer: he has one of the finest live hip-hop shows you'll ever see. This isn't an exaggeration. He's up there with Jay-Z, The Roots, and Kendrick Lamar. Much of this is thanks to his band, a jazz-trained group of Chicago musicians anchored by Donnie Trumpet. Chance is the band leader. He's spinning, he's punching the air on each horn blast, he's adapting his flow to the band's tempo, and, at times, they're adjusting to his. It's fluid—not this rigid archetypal hip-hop show that lives and dies by the tempo of a pre-recorded beat.

Which brings us to "Ultralight Beam," a song Chance included on his set list for his intimate NYC show last night. On record, "Ultralight Beam" breathes. It has space. And when Chance plays it with his band, the song truly is alive. He's able to give it those natural swells, those deep breaths. He's urgent at one point, then angry, then pensive. And when he says, "This is my part nobody else speak," the entire audience is singing with him. They're lyrics that Carvell Wallace at MTV interpreted as, "A devastating moment, and one that finally makes good on the song's persistent threat to go beyond music. It makes me wonder if maybe the closest most black people can come to heaven is the freedom to speak without being told for the 397th year in a row to be quiet. Maybe heaven is just a place where you can let your voice carry."

It's incredible to see. And though Chance only has one show listed on his website for 2016, you'll be seeing more of him this year. Last night, he announced that his next mixtape is due out this month, which would hopefully mean more tour dates, and more chances to see "Ultralight Beam" live.

For more videos see our Snapchat EsquireMag.

Matt Miller Culture Editor Matt is the Culture Editor at Esquire where he covers music, movies, books, and TV—with an emphasis on all things Star Wars, Marvel, and Game of Thrones.

This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io