Last year, Chicago rapper Vic Mensa dropped his single “Metaphysical,” a track that infused R&B with African beats and vocalizations. Mensa stays with that same energy for the visual, creating a noir aesthetic that features only himself and a handful of black women with indigenous face paintings and goddess-like headpieces. The song itself is about being connected to someone in ways that are impossible to express with words—a feeling that’s almost primal.
With this project, Mensa tapped into his African heritage, including partnering with artist Bianca Pastel for the creation of the single’s original artwork which was a nod to Fela Kuti’s Expensive S**t. “This is a song about desire,” Mensa wrote in a press release. “Admiration. Respect. Uncertainty. Surrender. Musically it’s African, tribal. My father is Ghanian so I’ve wanted to take it there for a long time. I got Stefan Ponce who did ‘Down On My Luck’ for me & Papi Beatz and just spoke my truth into song.”