KANYE WEST

Kanye West is an innovator. Each of his albums rotated the sound vector of the entire music galaxy by 360 degrees. The album “808s & Heartbreak” initiated the autotune revolution and made it clear that rap can be personal and sound as good as pop. “Yeezus” showed that rap can exist in the form of experimental electronics. Kanye always generated new formulas, and as a result, a complex rap album today can sound like an epic.

TRAVIS

In 2012, Travis Scott signed with the label G.O.O.D. Music, founded by Kanye West. Under his genius influence, Travis released several industry-significant records, particularly the core mixtapes “Owl Pharaoh” and “Days Before Rodeo,” as well as the hit numbered albums “Rodeo” and “ASTROWORLD.” Travis is a direct sound successor of Kanye: he adopts Kanye’s ideas and reworks them to sound original.

MIKE DEAN

Travis’s signature sound is the sum of Kanye’s influence and producer Mike Dean’s ability to invigorate synthesizers. Collaborating with Scarface led Kanye to notice Dean and invite him to work on “The College Dropout.” The collaboration got out of control and defined a new global sound.

“Okay, this shit has gone completely out of control” (HYAENA)

GRAMMY

In 2019, “ASTROWORLD,” written by Travis in collaboration with Mike Dean, was nominated for a Grammy in the category “Best Rap Album.” However, the award went to Cardi B for the album “Invasion of Privacy.” This was the first blow for Travis. You can find his reaction on YouTube, where he shouted “Fuck!”

“I didn’t like how “Astro” was treated at the ceremony, okay, I understand, I have to turn into a beast” (THANK GOD)

ASTROWORLD FESTIVAL

Like Kanye, Travis Scott’s personality is close to stunning performances. From concerts inside video games to the best-selling action figure, a signature combo at McDonald’s, collabs with Air Jordan, spectacular performances, and his own festival… On November 5, 2021, at the Astroworld festival, 10 people died in a stampede. Travis didn’t stop the concert.

If only they knew what Scottie would do to jump off the stage and save a child (MY EYES)

HELL SNOW

After what happened, Travis faced widespread criticism and a series of lawsuits, which concluded that the artist was not found guilty of the incident. This topic became a red flag for the press, but no one dared to write about the internal state of a person whose personal celebration resulted in the death of 10 people. Travis Scott did not rush with a new album.

“I’m driving through hell, and I’ve brought snow” (HYAENA)

PROMO

Nevertheless, the album was announced. Unfortunately for Travis, too much hope was placed on the album. Partially, this was Travis‘s doing. Acting as a co-producer, he mentioned being inspired by his early works, leading the audience to believe they were in for something exactly like “Rodeo” and “ASTROWORLD.” The anticipation was multiplied by insights with a mysterious suitcase labeled Utopia in the hands of superstars, the announced Inuit aesthetics, the planned album presentation at the Giza pyramids, and various working album covers, which even included the Russian ruble. People didn’t know what to expect, but they set themselves up for a repeat of his best works.

K-POP

The title alludes not to a musical genre. K-POP is a lollipop with ketamine (K), causing a sharp burst of euphoria and complete relaxation.

The first sign from the album was the ambiguous single “K-POP” featuring hitmakers The Weeknd and Bad Bunny. There’s almost nothing of Travis‘s classic sound, and the track itself is a Puerto Rican groove based on reggaeton with elements of afrobeats and Brazilian funk. The extreme focus of the lead single on commercial success was evident. Everything went against expectations. It all seemed very strange.

UTOPIA

Eyes wide open. 16 renowned producers, including Mike Dean and Kanye West, Metro Boomin, The Alchemist, Guy-Manuel De Homem (Daft Punk), and Pharrell Williams. 21 star guests, among whom are Drake, Beyonce, Kid Cudi, Playboi Carti, Future, James Blake, 21 Savage, Westside Gunn. 19 tracks and, of course, the controversial “K-POP” in the tracklist. Pressing “Play” for the first time in a long while was exhilarating, and it’s worth listening to music for this unique feeling.

UTOPIA is a complex, structureless, overly, but not overly saturated, aesthetic sound adventure that’s not easy to digest at first. Yet on the internet, the album was instantly criticized for everything.

Some for it not being “Rodeo,” others for self-repetition, imitation of Kanye and using instrumentals meant for “Yeezus” and “Donda,” others for lack of meaning, targeting Kylie Jenner and Timothée Chalamet, others for “MELTDOWN” with Drake not being SICKO MODE, others for the absence of southern flair, falseness, and insincerity, others for complex production, others for emptiness, the track with Kid Cudi, whose demo circulated the internet since 2014, and so on. The authoritative electronic magazine Pitchfork slammed “Utopia” giving it a score lower than Peppa Pig’s album “Peppa’s Adventures”

But the truth is that “UTOPIA” is a remarkable album. Travis combined the best musical trends of the last decade into one large musical opus, where even without discovering anything new, he very successfully captured in one snapshot everything that the most progressive musicians of our time have worked on.

The loudest rap album of 2023 begins with a sample from the British progressive rock band Gentle Giant and immediately transforms into an ultra-modern updated boom-bap (HYAENA, LOST FOREVER), with transitions into favorite synthesizer mischief, and progresses broadly, referencing experiments on “Yeezus” (THANK GOD, MODERN JAM, SIRENS, CIRCUS MAXIMUS), leaving room for personal reflection (MY EYES), traditional jabs at colleagues (MELTDOWN), and the dark “Travis Scott-ness” which the album is replete with and what everyone was waiting for (GOD’S COUNTRY, TOPIA TWINS, TELEKINESIS, TIL FURTHER NOTICE).

The album is simply overflowing with all sorts of references to everything that has been in vogue, came into vogue, and remains in it to this day. For example, LOST FOREVER with Westside Gunn is an elegant tribute to the rebirth of old-school sound and the second wind of producer The Alchemist, whose works became numerous critically important records oriented at vintage classic renewal in recent years.

The track with Beyonce “DELRESTO (ECHOES)” – although a strange musical decision, essentially embodies a low bow to the aforementioned “808s & Heartbreak” (with a track interpolation of “Coldest Winter”).

MELTDOWN with Drake makes you reminiscently smile at the early impressions after listening to SICKO MODE, structurally echoing it (using the instrument technique of dividing the track into several parts).

Even “K-POP” on the album sounds completely different, and in conjunction with “LOOOVE,” it so timely and extravagantly dilutes the overall thick atmosphere of resonant synthesizers, transforming the collected “Utopia” picture beyond recognition.

From a musical point of view, UTOPIA is a true masterpiece, the importance of which will likely only be understood in a few years when music gets unrecognizably altered again and again. As of today, we have the most noticeable album of 2023, unparalleled, but it’s not certain it will remain alone. Therefore, we won’t throw around titles like “album of the year.” Let’s just listen to it again.

Mandatory postscript. This article was prepared to cover the musical novelty by Travis Scott. The portal advocates a healthy lifestyle and opposes promoting drugs in any form. Mentioning any substances in this article is solely associated with the literal translation of the title of Travis Scott’s song.