Music

Even while Hip-hop’s 50th birthday has brought classic rap knowledge back to the forefront of everyone’s brains, Travis Scott’s Utopia has stood tall as one of the most highly anticipated releases of the 2020s. Five years ago, Astroworld’s trippy and psychedelic landscape transported listeners to a new planet, creating a hallucinatory world where John Mayer and Tame Impala could co-exist alongside Nav, Big Moe and Uncle Luke’s “I Wanna Rock (Doo Doo Brown).”

By the time Scott cryptically announced Utopia in 2020, his rabid fandom was already at a fever pitch, led by his pack of die-hard followers who dutifully explored Astroworld’s otherworldly dimension while trapped inside during lockdown. But after the tragedy at Scott’s Astroworld music festival the following November, Utopia came crashing down to earth, and its future remained uncertain as the Houston rapper dealt with the seemingly never-ending fallout.

But after endless teasers, Utopia finally began its descent onto the world on Friday (July 28), led by the sleek summery groove of “K-Pop” that dropped last week. While a mix consisting of Bad Bunny and The Weeknd will undoubtedly dominate pop radio, the single was distinctly light considering the dark cloud that hangs over Utopia’s atmosphere. The album is at its most potent when at its most dismal, and while Scott’s detailed backdrops are some of the most impressive of his career, some tracks hit with more emotional force than others. Here are Billboard’s thoughts on every song that appears on Travis Scott’s Utopia.

19. “FE!N,” (feat. Playboi Carti & Sheck Wes)

The surprising truth is that Playboi Carti’s marble-mouthed flow feels slightly out of place on Utopia, and the shallow drug-fueled subject matter of “Fe!n” in turn comes off like a Whole Lotta Red B-side and not like something pertaining to Travis Scott’s dystopian vision. “Fe!n” can’t help but come off like a track included solely for Carti’s equally-as-rabid fanbase.

18. “TOPIA TWINS” (feat. 21 Savage & Rob49)

By Utopia’s 11th track, Travis has reflected on his mortality alongside Bon Iver and Sampha (“MY EYES”) and spoken about paranoia with Beyoncé (“DELRESTO”). To go from that to rapping about “Twin b–hes on a jetski” feels abrupt and misplaced. While “Topia Twins” advocates for summertime fun, Trav and 21 Savage never say anything they haven’t said already. The saving grace here is Rob49, who enters the arena wide-eyed and eager to please as he raps playfully: “Travis, what if they twins and they Siamese but they wanna f–k us both?”

17. “MELTDOWN,” feat. Drake

“Sicko Mode” was a moment unto itself when it was unleashed in 2018. Packing four vastly distinctive producers into its five-minute runtime, the song’s breakneck beat switches gave each producer the space to breathe, all while Drizzy and Trav dodged the potholes with their slick rhymes. On “Meltdown,” Coleman, BNYX, Boi1da, Vinylz, Tay Keith and Skeleton Cartier all enter the fold, but the result instead are sedated beats that trudge through the mud at a similar pace. Drake’s braggadocious verbiage also slows to a crawl, as he offers up some hollow flexes (“Famous hoes lame but they stay on my d–k”) and cheap digs at Pharrell and longtime nemesis Pusha T. While “Sicko Mode” found joy in pushing some limits, “MELTDOWN” feels surprisingly and disappointingly one-dimensional.

16. “GOD’S COUNTRY”

Driven by a disorienting loop of haunting children’s voices courtesy of Kanye West, “GOD’S COUNTRY” has all the eerie makings of a great Travis Scott song, but it’s just too brief to leave an impact. While the term “GOD’S COUNTRY” could take on many different meanings, Travis chooses to party instead, (“Wakin’ up, I see the light, I been drunk and it’s all right”) which is slightly disappointing.

15. “I KNOW?”

“I KNOW?” offers a welcomed change of pace following Beyoncé’s emotional catharsis on “DELRESTOS (ECHOES),” and serves as the connective tissue to Utopia’s latter half. Operating almost as an interlude, “I KNOW?” feels like an invitation to his day one fans to just vibe with him for a moment, as if to remind them that the polished autotuned crooning they came to know and love is still very much alive.

14. “THANK GOD” (feat. KayCyy & Teezo Touchdown)

Coming on the heels of the disorienting opener “HYAENA,” “THANK GOD” finds Travis Scott fully navigating his comfort zone. Thanks to KayCyy’s tightly wound trap beat, Scott seems to almost elevate the rhythmic drive of 2018’s “Butterfly Effect,” using “THANK GOD’s” grinding bass to accept his faults and celebrate his personal growth in the years since Astroworld. “The way we evolved and knocked down walls, this s–t’s outrageous,” Scott raps almost wistfully. While he’s full of gratitude for what came before, Scott uses “THANK GOD” to recognize the need to move forward.

13. “TIL FURTHER NOTICE” (feat. 21 Savage & James Blake)

To be clear: “TIL FURTHER NOTICE” is a great song. Metro Boomin and James Blake’s kaleidoscopic production serves as a stellar layout for Scott and 21 Savage, who use the galactic beat to ruminate on their complicated love affairs, but it doesn’t quite serve its purpose as a closing track for an album filled with so many emotional highs. With that being said, knowing Travis Scott listens to Coldplay feels significant.

12. “SIRENS”

Having Travis Scott rap vigorously about “juggling” sexual urges after sampling New England’s “Explorer Suite” is the type of chaos that made the Houston polymath such a compelling talent in the first place. “SIRENS” glitchy drive make for a disorienting listen, but it will leave you dazed and satisfied if you’re able to stomach it. Not to mention Scott’s energy on the microphone will make you wanna beat your chest.

11. “K-POP” (with The Weeknd & Bad Bunny)

Arguably the lightest song on Utopia, “K-POP” feels like an intermission, a joyful romp that gives Bad Bunny and The Weeknd the space to highlight their talents. The Weeknd’s closing verse is especially playful, as he diverts away from his current brand of post-apocalyptic storytelling for the fun, drug-fueled antics of Starboy and even Kissland-era Abel, in a way that brings on feelings of nostalgia.

10. “CIRCUS MAXIMUS” (feat. Swae Lee & The Weeknd)

Serving as the namesake track to Scott’s Utopia companion film, the hustle and bustle of “CIRCUS MAXIMUS” does its job of keeping the listeners engaged for Utopia’s final half. While Scott raps incredibly well, it’s The Weeknd’s uplifting hook that shoots the song into the stratosphere.

9. “PARASAIL” (feat. Dave Chappelle & Yung Lean)

Sonically, “PARASAIL” is a drastic departure from Utopia. Driven by a muddy guitar loop and a compelling speech from Dave Chappelle, Yung Lean and Travis Scott are an Auto-Tuned match made in heaven, as the duo wail about their self-loathing and the struggle that comes with searching for forgiveness. It’s a welcomed change of pace on Utopia that takes the album from the clouds and grounds it back down to earth, as Yung Lean and Travis reflect on the harsh reality of being human.

8. “LOOOVE” (feat. Kid Cudi)

While the joint venture between Kid Cudi and Travis (known as The Scotts) never came to fruition beyond one self-titled song, “LOOOVE” offers a compelling (and in some ways heartbreaking) look at what could have been. Both rappers elevate above Pharrell’s suffocating beat, resulting in a bouncy, fun track that bobs and weaves flawlessly.

7. “LOST FOREVER” (feat. Westside Gunn & James Blake)

One of the most highly anticipated songs from Utopia, Scott’s lethargic rework of Check Senrick’s “Don’t Be So Nice” from 1976 provides a surprisingly perfect platform for Westside Gunn, who gives a lengthy and impressive verse focused on the spoils of fame. With added ghoulish vocals from James Blake, “Lost Forever” feels like a mismatched song that shouldn’t work but does.

6. “HYAENA”

“HYAENA” reaffirms that no rapper can open an album like Travis Scott. While Scott spits some of the best bars of his career, his choice to open his album with a sample from Gentle Giant’s “Proclamation” is as attention-grabbing as a Scott record can get. While they officially disbanded in 1980, Gentle Giant was long regarded as ahead of their time, with their cult-like following often praising the group’s sophisticated musical structures. In this way, “HYAENA” is already a unique flex, with fans often offering the same praise of Scott. The rapper then creates even more chaos by throwing other delightfully bewildering ingredients into the melting pot: including a closing sample from Funkadelic’s “Maggot Brain” and a braggadocious comparison to Chelsea Handler.

5. “MY EYES” (feat. Sampha)

Serving as one of the deepest emotional cuts on Utopia, Bon Iver’s oozing synths and buried vocals give way to emotional epiphanies from a nostalgic Scott, who yearns for childhood more than ever despite the fame and riches. While Sampha sounds amazing, it’s Scott’s grace as a rapper that carries the song. Even when the beat switches to something more upbeat, every word feels thoughtful and dutifully chosen. The track gives space for Travis Scott the human to say his peace and in turn, he offers one of the only direct lines referencing the Astroworld Tragedy.

“If they just knew what Scotty would do to jump off the stage and save him a child,” he raps. “The things I created became the most weighted, I gotta find balance and keep me inspired.”

4. “DELRESTO (ECHOES)” (feat. Beyoncé)

What can truly be said about how great “DELRESTO” is? It’s admittedly a stuffed song, filled with backing vocals from Bon Iver and production from Allen Ritter, James Blake, Mike Dean, Hit-Boy and Beyoncé herself. But while “DELRESTO (ECHOES)” could have been a bogged-down mess, the song takes flight thanks to Beyoncé’s Renaissance-era groove, which fit in well with Utopia’s dystopian vision. Scott seems happy to give Queen Bey the reigns and offers his own hazy Auto-Tuned speculations, while the latter keeps the good times rolling.

3. “SKITZO” (feat. Young Thug)

Thugga and Travis Scott have always been an incredibly menacing duo, and sonically feel almost like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. “SKITZO,” with that being said, offers some of the best production on the project — but its sole issue is that Young Thug isn’t around that much. To hear them trade off even more flexes in the track’s back half would have been insanely rewarding, but Scott elevates his lyricism to impressive length, and carries it through to the finish line nonetheless.

2. “MODERN JAM” (feat. Teezo Touchdown)

Revamping a decade-old rendition of Kanye West’s “I Am a God,” the Yeezus cut tees up one of Utopia’s most exciting moments. “MODERN JAM” – thanks to a relentless and seedy beat from Daft Punk’s Guy-Manuel de Homeme-Christo and Mike Dean – sounds like a bad molly trip, and finds Travis Scott serving as pastor “roof shaker” and “annihilator” to a crowded dancefloor. The result is a Travis Scott who sounds like he’s having the time of his life, while Teezo Touchdown also offers one of the best verses of his career, adding to the chaos by channeling a coked-out André 3000.

1. “TELEKINESIS” (feat. Future & SZA)

Not only does Ye’s “Telekinesis” beat push Travis Scott fully outside his comfort zone, but it’s Future’s verse that really steals the show, and is arguably better than anything that appeared on his last few albums. He reflects on his relationship with Ciara without being petty, speaks on his paranoia without any glint in his eye, and in turn offers the most candid portrayal of King Pluto we’ve seen in years. Throw in an equally emotive closing verse from SZA, and you’ll leave “TELEKINESIS” with tears in your eyes.