If real recognize real, Mick Jenkins and his relentless, poetic flow should be familiar. A decade after his breakout debut, The Waters, Jenkins drops a deluxe version of the album praised as one of the best of 2023, The Patience.
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As the Chicago rapper kicked off the international “Thank You For Waiting” tour with a sold-out hometown show on Friday, Jenkins rewarded his fans with another gift. He further elevated the already critically acclaimed album The Patience with two new songs, “Perm” and “2011.”
The original album, released on Aug. 18, marked a career reset for a freer and fiercer Jenkins. The 11-song tracklist departs from his conceptual style and familiar theme of drinking water from the well of truth.
Instead, a frustrated Jenkins was cooking up something that feeds the soul differently as he plotted the end of his contract with Cinematic Music Group. And he came with the heat.
“I’m just now stepping into what I feel like is full agency over my creativity, my artistry, my business, and even myself as a man,” Jenkins said at the end of the closing track “MOP.”
With “Guapanese,” Jenkins loses his patience with peers chasing money more than artistic greatness, but money talks.
“God forbid they chalk him out and find out it’s no money/It’s a stack of ones just like him, and they hide behind the 20,” he raps.
Mick Jenkins Reclaims His Title As One Of Chicago’s Great Rappers With The Patience
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Even when verbally sparring with his collaborators, Mick drops every layered lyric like a haymaker. With features from Freddie Gibbs on “Show & Tell,” Benny the Butcher on “Sitting Ducks,” Vic Mensa on “Farm To Table,” and JID on the lead single “Smoke Break-Dance,” everybody eats.
The opener, “Michelin Star,” speaks to the undeniably rich quality he’s serving. It’s matched only by the hunger you can feel as Jenkins’ bars bite into every track. He stands ten toes down on the prowess of his pen with the gritty follow-up “Show & Tell.”
The deluxe version’s instrumentals of the 11 original songs emphasize how unique Jenkins’ vision and delivery are. From the soulful piano and strings to hard-hitting rhythms, the “Grey Matter” rapper makes each track his own.
The deluxe album’s two new additions have fans going wild over the intricate bars.
Check out Mick Jenkins’ latest tracks, “2011” and “Perm,” below.
What do you think of the deluxe edition of The Patience?