THE CURIOUS CASE OF VIC MENSA
I don’t open up my MacBook much. I only open it to play music off my iTunes on it because I have a lot of albums I love on it. Yesterday I had it on shuffle and Vic Mensa came on.
I’ll get to what specific song came on later but I’m writing this to say I’m concerned.
I’m not talking about the stuff in the media about what he said about the rapper that was gunned down this past summer, the drug use, or the new American history X skinhead style he’s been rocking. I’m just talking about music.
I looked to see if Vic had anything recent drop and he actually did release something recent called “Hooligans” over a week and a half ago and I listened to the project annnnnnnnnd …….
It was hard to get through.
I know all the popular publications are going to give it a positive rating and I’m not knocking em for it because at the end of the day it’s all opinions but I’m that friend in the studio that’s gonna keep it 1000 with you and actually do work in the studio sessions and not just smoke up all the trees. Now my opinion isn’t law or absolute but I’ll always be honest.
Almost every song on Hooligans is forgettable. I judge albums by what message I leave with and I literally left with a blank piece of paper after listening to Hooligans. Now the track with Ty Dolla Sign was pretty cool and probably one of Vic’s best songs in 4 years but other than that I can’t see myself revisiting the Hooligan EP. I literally wanted to cut the EP off once I heard “Rowdy.” Vic if you reading this that ”Rowdy” shit not you bruh. Leave that shit to them other niggas. I say that respectfully.
So after listening to Hooligans I decided to listen to Vic’s discography backwards. So I listened to Autobiography next and that album was basically Vic’s best J.Cole impression. The Autobiography was better than Hooligans but it’s plagued with the same things such as corny bars, poor vocal performances, no identity of sound, and production that is hit or miss.
The same could be said for the “There’s a lot going on” EP while I respect the message of the album cover and the some of the tracks on it because I saw Ferguson in person. I seen the damage and it changed all my family and friends lives but the EP was very inconsistent and it felt like Vic didn’t know what he wanted his identity to be. He’d have a good track but then revert back to generic lyricism and songwriting.
Aye Vic if you ever read this. Go back home to Chicago. Get the fuck away from L.A dawg. I don’t know if you’re in a good place mentally or not and I pray that you are in a good space but I’m just speaking on the music not anything outside of it. The song I heard on shuffle yesterday was “Holy Holy” and I played that track back 3 times in a row cause I’ve been dealing with some mental issues myself. You rapped with purpose, you had soul, I felt the pain and happiness all over “Innanetape.” Even on a song like “Down On My Luck” I felt it. It was something I played over and over because I heard an artist sure of his sound and his direction. This artist I’m hearing in 2018 doesn’t have that same soul. Fuck it put the Kids These Days band back together on some Blues Brothers shit. Do what Kenrdick did on “To Pimp A Butterfly” and go home.
I know artists aren’t supposed to stay the same. That’s true they’re supposed to grow. Kendrick grew each project. Mac Miller (Bless his soul) became a better artist once he left LA and moved back east. Noname grew. Chance grew. Come back home Vic. Get some orange soda and get back to the music that put you on because the message I left with after I heard “Innanetape” was “This kid music is gonna change the world.”
Peace
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