In ‘UTOPIA’ Travis Scott answers his critics

Graphic by Andrew Lin

“UTOPIA” sold nearly 500,000 physical units in the first week after its release, and it would have sold over 700,000 if not for shipping delays.

With three classic albums in his discography, Travis Scott had a lot to live up to, especially after “ASTROWORLD” (2018) sold 4 million units in the U.S. alone. By then, Scott had firmly asserted his niche in mainstream hip-hop, but tragedy struck while he was on tour in 2021. 

Following the Astrofest crowd crush that killed 10 concertgoers, Scott was heavily criticized by the media, despite concert management company Live Nation’s culpability for the incident. Expectations for “UTOPIA” were high: If it was of poor quality, Scott’s public image could be further tarnished. 

He delivered.

Compared to “ASTROWORLD,” “UTOPIA” has a darker, grittier sound akin to Scott’s first two records. And, with a bigger team behind the album, the production sounds more polished and professional. 

His new album, released in late July, has less consistency between songs compared to Scott’s first three albums, but that contributes to its charm. With a lack of a clear narrative throughout the album, each song is unique enough to stand on its own, so there isn’t a boring moment in the album’s 73-minute runtime. 

Aside from the album’s improved production value, Scott displays some of his best vocal performances ever here. Guest artists, including frequent collaborators Drake, James Blake and SZA, deliver verses that reinforce or even define the mood of the songs.

When the album was initially released, the names of featured artists were hidden on streaming services, making their appearance in a song a genuine surprise. This is something more artists should do. The sense of mystery adds to the excitement and makes the first listen much more enjoyable. 

There is a song to satisfy almost anyone’s taste on “UTOPIA.” A few high-energy songs are immediately attention-grabbing on this album, with Scott and fellow rapper Drake’s collaboration on “MELTDOWN” mirroring the wildly popular “SICKO MODE,” complete with a delicious beat switch after Drake’s verse. Directly following in the track list is “FE!N” with a synth-heavy beat laced with pitched-down sirens building up to rapper Playboi Carti’s official debut of his new, deeper vocal style. 

Other notable tracks of this kind are the raunchy “TOPIA TWINS” with Rob49 and 21 Savage; the 6-minute, four-verse “SKITZO” featuring Young Thug; “LOOOVE,” featuring Kid Cudi and a distorted, rhythmic dance beat and “MODERN JAM” featuring Teezo Touchdown, which has clear similarities to Kanye West’s “I Am A God” (2013), including production by Daft Punk. 

“HYAENA,” the album’s opening track, confuses the listener with a strange acapella sample before surprising them with a hard-hitting, grungy beat that perfectly accompanies Scott’s hard-hitting, grungy lyrics.

The album offers a change of pace with a supply of calm songs. In “MY EYES,” Scott addresses his relationship with his former partner Kylie Jenner and the Astrofest tragedy, and his final verse after the beat switch — “If I gave you a day in my life or a day in my eyes, don’t blink” — is a contender for one of his best verses of all time. “THANK GOD” has Scott expressing his gratitude for his life and the opportunity to be a father, yet another beat switch separates the song’s woozy, ephemeral first half with the more grounded second half. Other songs have similarly somber vibes, including “I KNOW ?” and “PARASAIL” featuring Yung Lean and “TIL FURTHER NOTICE” featuring James Blake and 21 Savage.

Despite the abundance of exceptional music already mentioned, the songs on “UTOPIA” that I find myself returning to the most are “SIRENS,” a frenetic, somewhat experimental track that I didn’t like on first listen; “CIRCUS MAXIMUS” featuring Swae Lee and The Weeknd, its thumping drums and constantly crescendoing synths driving the melody of a song dripping with decadence; and “TELEKINESIS” featuring Future and SZA, a former gospel song composed by Kanye West rising into a stellar SZA verse. Though this is true for every song on the album, detailed descriptions of these three songs cannot compare to actually listening to them multiple times. The feelings these songs give are completely different from any music I have listened to in the past. 

The same is not true for some other songs on the album. Though I would argue that the rest of the album is good, it’s nothing groundbreaking. There are dozens of songs that sound like “MELTDOWN” and “FEIN,” and the same goes for “I KNOW ?” and “PARASAIL.” Because “SIRENS,” “CIRCUS MAXIMUS” and “TELEKINESIS” are so distinct, they have a timeless quality to them and never get boring even after repeated listens. They’re almost cinematic, like Scott’s vision fully realized.

For me, “UTOPIA” earns 4.25 Falcons out of 5. It lacks the generation-defining innovation that a 5/5 album must have, but the sheer quality of the music more than makes up for it. I believe this album has a good shot at Album of the Year and I’m excited for the music Scott will put out in the future, whenever that happens.