Vic Mensa Unfiltered: Chicago, ICE, Kanye & the Lies We’re Fed

All The Smoke

The Black Effect Podcast Network and iHeartPodcasts

Sports, Society & Culture, Basketball

4.7 • 7.6K Ratings

🗓️ 22 January 2026

⏱️ 69 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Nobody is using their platform to educate, challenge, and inspire quite like Vic Mensa. From viral orange-tree monologues to fearless conversations about politics, identity, and culture, Vic joins ALL THE SMOKE for one of our most wide-ranging and thought-provoking interviews yet. Vic breaks down how he uses social media as a tool for activism, the realities of Venezuelan immigration in Chicago, and how redlining and systemic violence continue to shape the city. He reflects on growing up biracial, his powerful ayahuasca experience, and the role music plays in influencing today’s youth. We also dive deep into Chicago’s legendary music scene, including unforgettable stories about coming up with Chance The Rapper, being in the room while Kanye West recorded “30 Hours,” and the moment Vic’s own career began to take off. Plus, he talks acting on The Chi, sheds light on today’s activists making a real difference, and shares what it was like filming Still With Smoke entirely on an iPhone in Senegal. This one is equal parts history lesson, cultural deep dive, and raw personal reflection.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	This is an IHeart podcast.
0:02.6	Guaranteed Human.
0:04.4	Welcome back, All the Smoke Season 6.
0:06.6	Jack has been a good run, man.
0:09.1	Last run, bro.
0:09.9	It's been a good three days.
0:11.5	We started off with some interviews, and then we did a live stream yesterday.
0:15.0	Yep.
0:15.5	I've got some epic interviews today.
0:17.0	Yeah, some great sit downs.
0:18.3	Man, this is someone that I haven't known,
0:21.7	but just been a fan of just his approach to life
0:25.2	and his realism and his not afraid to speak truth to power
0:31.2	and give people game in this crazy world.
0:34.3	A prolific artist, actor, activist, writer, does a lot of different things. Dad, welcome to the show, man, Vic Minson. Dang, appreciate your, man. That's good. Thank you all for having me, man. Thank you for your time, bro. As I was telling you before he said, I was trying to find bro an orange tree. I was going to have, I was going to buy a whole orange tree so he could have just walked through the door, grabbed him an orange and got into his element.
0:55.5	But even all the smoke couldn't do that.
0:57.1	So we tried. But y'all know each other. How do you guys know each other? Yeah, it was an event in Chicago. Somebody he knew had an Al Harrington had with a ball a lacrosse event. Yeah, yeah. And we got a chance to meet and talk for a minute. But we had some good conversation too.
1:09.8	Yeah, yeah, those guys, Viola, they are kind of like stewarded me in the cannabis business.
1:14.6	That's what I do back in Illinois.
1:16.6	And it was their event and it's where we met.
1:19.6	And I just always have been a fan of your perspectives.
1:21.6	I think that was probably early.
	...

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