Vic Mensa

Vic Mensa Receives 12 Months Probation for Class 1 Misdemeanor

by
Vic Mensa Hosted 12-Hour Sleep Out to Raise Money for the Homeless in Chicago

Vic Mensa has to stay out of any trouble for the next 12 months after pleading guilty to possession of a controlled substance. According to TMZ, Vic Mensa was able to sidestep jail time by striking a deal with prosecutors.

According to Kendra Glover, a representative for Loudoun County Commonwealth’s Attorney, Mensa pled guilty to one count of possession of a Schedule III controlled substance. The rapper was carrying mushrooms. The charge was a Class 1 misdemeanor.

In addition to a year of unsupervised probation, Mensa will have to perform 25 hours of community service, and pay a $1000 fine, and substance abuse assessment.

Vic was arrested in January for attempting to bring mushrooms through the Dulles International airport.

The post Vic Mensa Receives 12 Months Probation for Class 1 Misdemeanor appeared first on The Source.

Chance The Rapper And Vic Mensa Rap Freely In Their New Video ‘Wraith (Writing Exercise #3)’

by

Chance The Rapper and Vic Mensa came through with a reminder that, regardless of narratives and past missteps, when it comes to rapping they are exceptional at their craft. The Chicago wordsmiths’ recent video “Wraith (Writing Exercise #3) is two minutes and 27 seconds of unbridled lyricism, following them through a store, in the studio, and on an indoor basketball court surrounded by their crew. The record itself is produced by Smoko Ono.

Mensa takes on the first verse, clutching his dog as he talks about his mother, liars, and much more. Chance follows up, utilizing the sequential word overlay from his previous “Writing Exercise #2” as he references Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, how saving money is part of his bone marrow, and neo-colonial states. Vic Mensa returns at the end, trading his confident rap voice for a more melodic vocal tone.

Though the two rap veterans’ careers are different, the synergy here should come as no surprise as they previously collaborated on “Family,” “Shelter,” “Suitcase,” “Taxi Cab,” and various other tracks. “Wraith (Writing Exercise #3)” follows Chance The Rapper’s “Child of God” single released back in March. Mensa appeared on “Just The Same” alongside Big Gigantic and Mick Jenkins which came out earlier this week.

Chance The Rapper Shares ‘Bag Boy,’ His Crew SaveMoney’s First Single In Eight Years

by
Chance The Rapper
Getty Image

Back in the late stages of the so-called “blog rap” era, just before streaming services became a thing in earnest and Billboard began counting streams as album-equivalent units, rap crews had proliferated all over the country, encompassing such loose confederations as the ASAP Mob, Raider Klan, and SaveMoney, the Chicago-based clique that included future superstars like Chance The Rapper and Vic Mensa in their numbers.

Since then, many of these groups have dispersed or been sublimated into the increasingly fragmented tapestry of the post-streaming landscape, and more than a few have been forgotten about. However, at least one, SaveMoney, is looking to make a comeback, backed by one of their most successful members, Chance The Rapper, who shared the group’s first single under the SaveMoney banner in nearly eight years, “Bag Boy.”

Featuring group members Joey Purp and Kami along with guest artist DEXLVL, the new track is a laid-back, guitar-driven slow-burner Chance tweeted out with the cryptic message, “And it begins,” suggesting that there may well be more coming — something Chance, Kami, and Joey even teased in 2018, though nothing came of it then. And while both Joey Purp and Kami have collaborated a few times over the years, he hasn’t often tagged the SaveMoney Twitter account (which retweeted his message), which could mean that the group is planning a larger reunion now that Chance and Vic are back on good terms, too. Check out Chance’s tweet below and stream the new track here.

Chance The Rapper Shares A Snippet Of A New Song With Vic Mensa

by
chance the rapper new music
Getty Image

Chance The Rapper fans haven’t heard much from the Chicago MC in the last few years as he’s concentrated most of his energy on being a dad and the living embodiment of the wife guy meme, but that may soon change. After being featured on Supa Bwe’s “ACAB” posse cut last month, today, Chance shared a teaser of a new song with fans via social media. Doubling the excitement, the song appears to be another reunion with his longtime friend and collaborator Vic Mensa, with whom he reconciled after a few years of tension on last year’s “Shelter.”

“Felt cute might delete later,” Chance wrote in the caption of the video containing the snippet. Over a lush, soulful beat, the two rappers discuss the ills of the world, with Chance recounting an apocryphal theory about President George Washington’s death from a possible throat infection due to antiquated, unhygienic treatments that were used at the time. The fiery verse also appears to include references to various uprisings of Black people against oppression and cuts off just before Chance gives former FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover a piece of his mind.

The presentation of the new song appears in line with the rollout for “Shelter” and another (relatively) recent Chance single, “The Heart & The Tongue.” Although Chance hasn’t yet announced a follow-up to his 2019 “debut” album The Big Day, Chance’s increased activity — and a mysterious video posted by DJ Khaled on Instagram a few weeks ago — suggest that one could very well be in the works. Check out the snippet above.

Vic Mensa Drops A New Collection Of Love Songs, ‘Vino Valentino’

by
Vic Mensa Vino Valentino
Juan Veloz

Vic Mensa has just sprinkled a surprise Valentine’s Day release in the form of the sensual 4-track EP, Vino Valentino. For Mensa — who was released from a brief stint in jail last month following an arrest for LSD and mushroom possession upon returning to the US from Ghana — the EP is a departure from the politically-charged nature of 2021’s I TAPE and really most of his previous material. But the Southside of Chicago lifer more than holds his own as a romantic crooner on this new joint.

Album opener “D’ussé Tears” is a mildly auto-tuned swoon over gentle bedroom R&B and jolts of electric guitar. “Will you be my Valentine? All the time… every time …anytime?” he asks on the track’s climax, making it a worthy addition for mid-February playlists. He’s brought along a stable of longtime collaborators and Chicago hip-hop’s finest, like producer and multi-instrumentalist Peter CottonTale, producer Stefan Ponce, and poet Malik Yousef.

Check out the Vino Valentino cover artwork and tracklist below.

Vic Mensa Vino Valentino
Vic Mensa

1. “D’ussé Tears” (feat. Dixson & Malik Yusef) – Produced by Vic Mensa, Additional Production by Peter CottonTale, Greg Landfair, Dwayne Verner Jr., Dixson
2. “Alone Wit U” (feat. Do Or Die) – Produced by Stefan Ponce
3. “Cancer” (Interlude) – Produced by Stefan Ponce
4. “Can I Call U Baby” (feat. Peter CottonTale) – Produced By Vic Mensa, Peter CottonTale, Stefan Ponce, Dwayne Verner Jr., Greg Landfair, and Erik Rumsa

Vino Valentino is out now via Roc Nation. Listen to it here.