Chicago rapper Vic Mensa has been a very outspoken activist against police brutality and government-backed violence against African-Americans. Seven years ago, Mensa released a song titled “16 Shots” which addressed the 2014 police killing of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald.
“I’ve been harassed by police my whole life and seen people who looked like me treated like animals at the hands of law enforcement. That’s how I feel: F### police,” stated Vic Mensa in 2015.
Spin interviewed Mensa for the outlet’s latest cover story. The 29-year-old emcee shared his current views on law enforcement and the street violence perpetuated by Black males.
“The police are not your biggest issue,” Mensa said. “They may be the definitive factor on if you live or die today, but you’re gonna deal with much more run-of-the-mill violence from your own kind.”
He added, “Because that’s just the psyche and the programming of our communities. So it’s like you as a young Black man learn that you must become the aggressor unless you wanna be a victim.”
Vic Mensa Has Had Run-Ins With The Law
Last year, Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority officials arrested Vic Mensa at Washington Dulles International Airport after allegedly discovering drugs in his baggage. Mensa pled guilty and accepted a sentence of 12 months probation.
In 2017, the man born Victor Kwesi Mensah also pled no contest to carrying a concealed firearm. The former Kids These Days member received two years probation for those weapons charges in Beverly Hills, California.
“Obviously it’s whacked to have to go to jail and be plastered all across global news. But I think it’s pretty beautiful that, just a few months after that, I was able to launch the first Black-owned legal cannabis company in my state,” Mensa told Spin. He launched the 93 Boyz marijuana brand in 2022.
The Roc Nation recording artist released his debut studio album, The Autobiography, in 2017. Vic Mensa’s discography also contains his 2013 breakout mixtape Innanetape. In addition, he dropped 2016’s There’s Alot Going On EP, 2017’s The Manuscript EP, and 2022’s Vino Valentino EP.