Mick Jenkins
Mick Jenkins Breaks Down Lyrics on His Song “Contacts”
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Mick Jenkins Drops His Long-Awaited Comeback Album, ‘Elephant In The Room’
Chicago rapper Mick Jenkins returns with his new album, Elephant In The Room — the first full-length project he’s released since 2018’s Pieces Of A Man. While he did release an EP titled The Circus last year, Elephant In The Room is the first chance Mick fans have had to hear him detail his life’s changes since 2018 and he doesn’t disappoint; from the very first bar of the album, he tells us exactly how it’s been and how it’s going to be.
“Give a f*ck if yo’ pockets low, we been living lowkey,” he rhymes on “The Valley Of The Shadow of Death.” “Wonder how we was popping bottles, this far below deep.” It’s clear that some things haven’t changed: Mick’s emotive, vulnerable songwriting remains as compelling as ever, while his stark observations and razor-sharp wit still cut to the bone of any number of real-life topics, from “Things You Could Die For If Doing While Black” to feeling underappreciated on “Scottie Pippen.”
Mick rolled out the album with an engaging, revealing website that detailed his thoughts on crafting the album and on the songwriting philosophy behind additions such as “Contacts.” You can find the website here and use the password “Carefree” to access Mick’s calendar, contacts, notes, reminders, and photos. Listen to the full album below.
Mick Jenkins Laments Being Stuck In Second Place On ‘Scottie Pippen’
Chicago rapper Mick Jenkins is back with another new single to promote his upcoming album, Elephant In The Room. After kicking off his latest buzz cycle with the video for “Contacts,” Mick addresses the disappointment of going through a relationship feeling like a second-place priority with “Scottie Pippen.” Named for the NBA Hall of Famer who has famously been committed to the annals of history as just being Michael Jordan’s sidekick despite being one of the greatest players of all time, the song is aptly named.
For the rollout to Elephant In The Room, Mick has created a nifty website mirroring his phone’s calendar, contacts, notes, and photos apps, using it to offer insights into the album and the tracks that have been released so far. Of “Scottie Pippen,” Mick writes, “Scottie Pippen never got the recognition he deserved when playing next to Micahel Jordan. He is often relegated to just a sidekick, but he was just as important in those championship games as Mike. Sometimes no matter how hard we try we’ll just be number two to some. And no matter how great the work is, it goes underappreciated.”
Relatable content. Speaking of, there’s also a reminders list on his site with a link to pre-save the album, as well as reminders to “CALL YOUR MOTHER” and “Drink More Water,” which, y’know? We could all stand to do a little more.
Listen to “Scottie Pippen” above.
Mick Jenkins’ ‘Contacts’ Video Has An Unexpected Twist At The End
Where most rappers have to arrive at a crossroads in their career before deconstructing themselves on a record, 30 year old Chicago rapper Mick Jenkins has made a career out of doing so constantly. On his fourth album, Elephant In The Room, due out later this month, he opens up once again with conversations about both himself and the world around him.
With the just-released “Contacts,” he floats over a clean-hitting, contemplative beat produced by Rascal, Tae Beast and Eli Brown spitting “Stretching out, my shoulders wide / All my burdens boulder size,” before the cognizant punctuation on the hook that “Real eyes realize real lies, help me see the truth.” In the song’s video (above) directed by Ren, he takes his clone hostage before an unexpected twist at the end that can’t be missed.
Jenkins shared some thoughts on the upcoming album:
“From my estranged relationship with my father to friendships that don’t feel the same anymore to the even more basic idea of acknowledging that I need help. We become accustomed to allowing none progressive qualities and truths to occupy so much space in our lives simply by ignoring them, or ignoring them despite them being right in our faces! I intend to face several of those dormant issues/topics head-ons in the hopes that others can, at the very least, identify with the spaces I’ve grown from.”
Elephant In The Room is out October 29th via Cinematic Music Group. Peep the tracklist below.
Elephant In The Room Track List
Mick Jenkins Relives A Suburban Nightmare In His Time-Looping ‘Truffles’ Video
The 1993 high-concept Bill Murrary comedy vehicle Groundhog Day continues to inspire a generation of artists, even thirty years after its release. While time-looping films had a big year — see: The excellent Palm Springs on Hulu and the horrific, Oscar-winning Two Distant Strangers on Netflix, among others — the originator’s influence resonates and gets a Disturbia– related twist in the video for Mick Jenkins’ new single “Truffles.”
The video, which also takes inspiration from Friday and Get Out sees Mick living out a suburban nightmare — and reliving it, over and over again, as he wakes up each day, heads outside to water the lawn, and is confronted with the contorted faces of his not-so-friendly neighbors. The eerie video is accompanied by Mick’s armor-piercing rhymes, delivered in his signature laid-back deadpan as he reflects on the negative perception of Black people in America — especially in unofficially segregated suburban areas like the one depicted in the video.
“Truffles” is the second single Jenkins has released this year after he collaborated with Kaytranada on the boastful “Designer Frames.” Whether that means the Chicago-bred rapper is gearing up for a larger release remains to be seen, but since it has been over a year since his EP Circus, and even longer since he released his critically hailed Pieces Of A Man, it’d be fair to say that he’s about due.
Watch Mick Jenkins’ “Truffles” video above.