It’s stories like this that make you love the power of music. On Friday, The Players Tribune published a story on ESPN’s Holly Rowe, and her journey to overcome and beat cancer, which she would credit Chance The Rapper with.
Holly, who’s been with ESPN since 1998, was diagnosed with cancer in February of 2016. She had surgery to remove tumors in her chest and right arm before she returned to work. Then in May of 2017, the cancer returned, and Holly had to endure the exhausting battle that is chemo therapy. However, it was there , in between her chemo trips, where she leaned on Chance The Rapper’s music to get her through the troubling times.
In a recent interview with The Players' Tribune, Rowe emotionally spoke about how Chance The Rapper’s music got her through chemo. “If I ever meet [Chance the Rapper], I’m gonna just say, ‘Thank you for getting me through chemo.’”
Holly says her son would organize uplifting playlists for their drives to and from intense sessions of chemo. The ESPN analyst would go on and say, “Every day we’d go to chemo, and it’s about a 20-minute drive, and I had to go every day for 30 days. We’d listen to Chance the Rapper. Every day, [my son] would be like, ‘All right, what song do you want?’ I’m like, ‘I want “Blessings.”’ I want “Sunday Candy.” We know that whole album.”
So while Chance may get some flack or backlash for making gospel music at times, just remember this story and the impact its had on some people.
Check out the clips of Holly’s interview (below) and see the whole thing over at the Players Tribune.