Key Takeaways:

• JAY-Z’s recommendation helped Vic Mensa shift from being “ideologically right” to in search of peace.
• Dave Chappelle challenged Mensa to weigh fact towards self-preservation.
• Mensa opened up concerning the risks he confronted throughout previous conflicts and the way they formed his development.

In an Instagram video shared on Tuesday (Aug. 19), Vic Mensa opened up concerning the impression of the recommendation he obtained from JAY-Z and Dave Chappelle. The Chicago artist shared how their phrases helped him rethink the way in which he approaches battle and private peace. Seated in a luxurious purple chair, he spoke to an viewers off-camera that sometimes laughed in response to his candid storytelling.

Mensa recalled an precedent days in his profession when he typically discovered himself embroiled in beef. He admitted that whereas he felt “ideologically righteous” in his positions, the fixed antagonism was damaging his life. “Everybody hated me,” he stated, reflecting on how his outspoken nature led to isolation. That segued right into a recollection of an trade with JAY-Z, to whom he defined his stance. According to the XXL Freshman alum, Hov provided a easy however highly effective response: “Would you rather be right or in the loving?”

Mensa stated that comment struck him deeply and made him rethink how his method affected not simply others however himself. “I started to think a lot more about my delivery, to be less antagonistic and less against people,” he defined.

The “U Mad” emcee then recalled a later dialog with Chappelle, who had seen the now-infamous heated debate between artist and DJ Akademiks in 2017. “Man, you cooked this n**ga for all of us,” Mensa recalled the comic saying. When he recounted the JAY-Z story to Chappelle, the legendary comedian pushed again gently, including, “But sometimes you’ll be right, though.” That perspective, Mensa admitted, left him reflecting on the steadiness between talking fact and sustaining peace.

He additionally spoke overtly concerning the private toll of his previous conflicts. “I done had real money on my head, n**gas trying to kill me. Now I’m running around with a pistol all the time,” Mensa revealed, persevering with, “I thought I was right almost every time, but like once it all came down to it, it was never worth it.”