Vic Mensa is a name that has earned its stripes across the last decade of hip-hop. First finding his feet as part of Kids These Days, the Chicago voice has consistently tested the boundaries of his creative outpour – weaving in and out of the limelight enough times to keep in touch with his cult following, whilst savouring the rewards of commercial success. Now stepping up to his highly anticipated, and inarguably overdue, solo album ‘VICTOR’, Mensa hops over the hurdle of the sophomore slump and delivers an influential body of work that proves the importance of his voice within contemporary rap.
It’s a magnetic comeback to say the least, arriving five years after his critically acclaimed debut ‘HOOLIGANS’. In some ways, ‘VICTOR’ serves as an extension to his previous work, inviting familiar collaborators such as Ty Dolla $ign, G-Eazy, Mr Hudson and, of course, Chance The Rapper. At the heart of the record is balance, neatly put across opening track ‘Sunday Morning (Intro’). As a booming voice speaks over taught string sections and distant scribbles, the listener is lured in: “Young Victor, as you go through this journey of incredible heights and indescribable lows, remember yours is a story of resurrection from the dead…” Breaking into fluttering piano keys, the well-versed rhymer takes the centre stage and bites straight into the key themes of the project: sobriety, relationships, redemption, mental health and community.
—
—
Across 11 tracks, ‘VICTOR’ demonstrates a breadth in styles and influences that, although subjective, generally keep things fresh and exciting. Take ‘Strawberry Louis Vuitton’, an instant highlight that sees Mensa merge forces with Thundercat, handing their flowers to the late Virgil Abloh over a rich, grooving instrumentation. In contrast, fiery singles like ‘LVLN UP’ burst in with a momentous, braggadocious energy, propelling its crowd-approved trap bounce with verses that keep their head held high, detailing the artist’s tough-skinned entrepreneurship. Similarly, ‘All I Kno’ takes its menacing production and uses it as a backdrop for Mensa’s experience under the public eye, detailing: “I was on hiatus, lockdown, watching TMZ, they posted all my cases”. Indeed, it is through the intricacies of storytelling that Vic Mensa pieces together much more than just straight-up, drop-top bangers.
At the centre-piece of the tracklist is ‘Law of Karma’, a gritty cut that reiterates the record’s sense of duality. As the rapper ducks and dives between personal anecdotes and ruminations, he opens himself up to feelings of hypocrisy and self-realisation, unafraid to challenge his own past: “I used to flow as if my ass was exempt, that was then…”. Building an ominous atmosphere through his production, the rapper ruthlessly tears down his pride in a similar fashion to his own mentor Jay-Z, carrying the essence of 2017’s confessional record ‘4:44’. It’s a chilling moment that is reflective of growth.
Rounding off the album with the fun and breezy ‘Eastside Girl’, Vic Mensa and Ty Dolla $ign (king of rap hooks, let’s be honest) tag-team on their own spin of Chicago house. Although some may question the closer, others will be sure to welcome the care-free summer soundtrack, reminiscing on Vic Mensa’s debut, break-through single ‘Down On My Luck’, which incorporated similar elements.
From start to finish, ‘VICTOR’ walks its listener through the process of struggle and overcoming, firm in its opening of society’s difficult conversations. It’s a bold approach, one that seems to break away from the mould of the ‘woke rapper’, permeating the genre on a broader level.
7/10
Words: Ana Lamond
