Mick Jenkins lays out the ideal of Christian love as the overarching theme of his debut album. Romantic love and, lately, self-love are pervasive themes in pop music, but on the song Spread Love, the Chicago MC goes a step further to insist that the “basics” of it not only involve loving oneself but unconditionally “projecting that love onto others.”
Throughout The Healing Component, the rapper dismisses materialism and haterism in poetic verses that mix singsongy cadences with tough, staccato flows. Evoking the classroom conversations about love from The Miseducation Of Lauryn Hill, he intersperses philosophical conversations about the nature of love and faith.
Since his 2014 mixtape, The Water[s], Jenkins has worked to add warmth, melody and jazzier tones to his sound, effectively giving his message of openness the music to match. Chicago creative collective THEMpeople executive-produced The Healing Component, creating and bringing in beats from other producers (including Sango and Kaytranada) that are full of wobbling rhythms, burbling and buzzing bass synths and snappy house and micro-beats.
Too often, Jenkins’s use of melody fails to create sticky songs in a pop sense, but it does offset his gruff baritone and stern messaging. Rather than boosting his tightly conceived verses (and ideas) and emotionally potent delivery, the atmosphere can feel deflating and wishy-washy. More successful is the BadBadNotGood collab Drowning, on which Jenkins thrillingly recalls the politically conscious soul of Curtis Mayfield by singing – beautifully – and rapping over a sinister, repeating bass note.
The fiery Daniel’s Bloom, with its sharp chorus and unflinching but compassionate tale of friendship, is another standout. It shows Jenkins is at his best when taking everyday scenarios and cutting to their emotional core.
Top track: Drowning, featuring BadBadNotGood
Mick Jenkins plays Adelaide Hall on October 18. See listing.
