Vic Mensa Says Jay Z Is One of the Smartest People He’s Ever Met

Vic Mensa shook up the game yesterday (April 22) when he officially signed to Roc Nation. Before the ink even dried, Vic was up at LA's Power 106 and gave the scoop on the deal to Justin Credible and the LA Leakers."I've been the hugest Jay Z fan my whole life and even past just being a fan, I have a lot of faith and belief in how they do things at Roc Nation," said the Chicago MC. "Being with a company like that and more than just a company, being with people who are innovators like that. That's what's biggest to me, keeping this fresh and interesting."

Along with discussing his upcoming album Traffic, his relationship with Chance the Rapper, working with Kanye West and running through Barack Obama's yard in Illinois while evading the police, Vic gave a rundown on how he linked up with Hov. "The first time I ever met Jay actually was really brief," he started. "It was the day he was going to the Met Gala and that was the day he was in the elevator with Solange...It's just enlightening to speak to him about this game and pick up that game. Jay is one of the smartest people I've ever met in general and to be able to sit down and press play for him is a blessing."

Lenny S, one of the top dogs at Roc Nation, took to Instagram to explain how his relationship with Mensa and SaveMoney started and how that led to Lenny signing Vic to a deal:

A while back, I caught wind of an artist from Chicago who I thought had undeniable talent + lots of potential. (B4 the hype). I had @spanish_ran get in contact with @codykazarian who was a part of the mgmt team. I flew to Chi to go see this kid perform. As a music exec, I'm excited about traveling to the Chi to meet this guy for the 1st time. Coming from Roc, I assumed he'd be ecstatic. I assumed wrong. He barely gives me a head nod after Cody intros us. Now the show's over, every1 is gone & still nothin'. As I'm leaving, he stops me + says "yo, thanks for coming homie, where u from again?" I'd be lying to say I wasn't slightly offended. Ha. I sarcastically answered "just a lil rec company named ROC NATION". He replies, "oh, who y'all got there?" If u know me & my ROC pride, I'm offended again. Me: "Not sure if you've heard of them, a few small artists like, JZ, JCole & Rihanna". He says, oh cool + keeps it moving. All Good... Fast fwd a few months. Cody keeps me updated on everything they're doing + without question, I show up. Chi, ATL, Detroit, LA, NY etc. Finally, I meet Dan, the 2nd half of mgmt team while they're in NY filming Wildn' Out. Dan doesn't even give me eye contact during our intro. At this point I'm tight.. Who the fuck r these guys?! Who do they think they r ?! Fuck that! Do they not know who I am & the company I rep?! WTF! Lol. Days later I convince myself to put my stubbornness/pride aside & reach out. Fuck it, this dude is too dope. Why should I lose out just cause it seems like they're not impressed w/ Lenny S or Roc. I hit Cody..He tells me Vic wanted to holla at me. We kick it for months. They tell me nothin can move if I'm not good w/Dan. I sat w/ all of em in LA & I told them every reason y ROC was perfect for em. They didn't care about the hype, $, offers etc. They cared about making a connection w/ music/culture & partnering with a company who understood their vision/art. Same thing Roc believes in. We shook on it. Last piece of the puzzle: Meet w/ Chaka & J. My 20m meeting lasted 3hrs. We talked bout art/icons/rock/HipHop etc & decided our new business partners were SAVEMONEY! 1 of my most proud signings! VIC MENSA!!
A photo posted by Lenny S. (@kodaklens) on Apr 21, 2015 at 1:03pm PDT

Vic didn't leave the studio without spitting a few bars first. Over Future's "Fuck Up Some Commas," Mensa laid lyrical slaughter for nearly three minutes. Check it out below:

Filed Under: Roc Nation, vic mensa

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