Vic Mensa Drops 'The Word' Featuring Mick Jenkins

Vic Mensa is back with another collaborative single the word. But it’s just some words. One can dig deepr and deepr into the meaning of his texts.

Vic Mensa and Mick Jenkins use “This Generation” as a dense, layered exploration of identity, ancestry, systemic control, and spiritual knowledge. Mensa opens with cosmic and historical references—from Anunnaki mythology to Malcolm X-like resistance—challenging modern systems like the music industry and political parties for reducing consciousness into commodified soundbites.

He positions himself as a vessel of divine knowledge, carrying the weight of ancestral wisdom and revolutionary fire. Jenkins continues the thread with grounded imagery, comparing survival and creativity to salmon swimming upstream and roses growing through concrete. His verse critiques materialism and shallow conformity, urging for depth, autonomy, and artistic integrity.

The outro, spoken like a lesson to a son, ties the song together with pride in African heritage—particularly Mali’s intellectual legacy—framing modern Black identity as something inherently powerful, ancient, and meant for greatness.

The music video is just as poetic. The artists portray captivity in its most extreme forms. Filmed simply but effectively, it’s a lesson for other hip-hop artists on how to make a strong impression without excessive use of props and bravado.