Houston’s very own, Travis Scott, released his third studio album, Astroworld, this month that has already received critical acclaim and chart-topping success. A montage to a long lost amusement park from his hometown, Astroworld pulsates as a collage of celestial imagery, superb production and a dazzling psychedelic world that’s curated through Scott’s lyrical talent and euphoric vocals.

Undoubtedly one of his strongest albums to date, Travis Scott’s creative approach and surreal artistry has risen the 26-year old emcee to mainstream dominance, recording along side the likes of Kanye West, Drake, Migos, The Weeknd, Nicki Minaj, Frank Ocean and others.

A self-proclaimed singer than rapper, Scott’s preferred auto-tuned style offers a trippy-sounding and cloudy vibe to his music – two components that allow listeners to be lost in a hallucinating penumbra of unexpected musical arrangements, mesmerizing sound and alluring lyricism. Scott’s mastery in the studio is shown exponentially on Astroworld and it’s an approach that allows for an excellent listen from start to finish.

On the opening track, “Stargazing,” Scott crawls over a beautifully spellbinding production that’s both inviting and haunting - an experience that opens listeners to a euphoric and illusionary sound that cascades throughout the record.

Travis Scott showcases his continued dominance in social media and pop culture with the hit record “Sicko Mode” Feat. Drake. Drake’s savvy flow and witty bars, mixed with Scott’s smooth rhyme play, work beautifully over a multi-faceted beat that’s both catchy and inviting.

“Stop Trying To Be God” - By Travis Scott, Featuring Philip Bailey, James Blake, Kid Cudi and Stevie Wonder on harmonica Directed by Dave Meyers (c) 2018 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment. With Cactus Jack and Grand Hustle.

The extravagant and charismatically pleasing, “R.I.P. Screw” highlights Scott’s artistry with a potent and gorgeous aesthetic that meshes among groovy hypnotic chords. While Scott’s collaborations with John Mayer and Thundercat on, “Astrothunder,” illustrates the young producer’s depth with genre-trending ingredients that’s euphorically decadent and elegantly refined.

On the passionately spicy, “Wake Up,” Scott teams up with The Weeknd for a soulful R&B track that’s ripe with auto-tune finesse, romantic honesty and steamy finishes. Scott also rolls his pop endeavors on the heavy vocal, “Stop Trying To Be God,” where Scott crawls though an auto-tuned entrenched vibe that’s backed by Kid Cudi's addictive humming and Stevie Wonders signature harmonica

Scott turns up the heat on the trap hits, “Butterfly Effect” and “Houstonfornication,” that enhances his illusionary and bugged-out approach with stellar execution and a complex tailored flow.

Scott closes out his impressive record with “Coffee Bean” - a critique on his unexpected child and relationship differences with Kylie Jenner. The song displays Scott at the peak of his game with an honest display of lyrical bars; deep cut arrangements and formidable storytelling that allows Scott to bare all humility. A segment that reigns throughout Scott’s archaic funhouse-obsessed concept.

With a neon display of cosmic sounds, strobe-influenced arrangements and absorbingly complex vocals, Travis Scott’s, Astroworld, is a magnificent achievement that’s warm, inspiring and precise. Scott’s skillfully curated sound, both through production and voice, allows this project to be a pleasing aesthetic that bustles with sticky creativity and impressive musical command. As hip-hop continues to raise the bar on expressive, unique and genre-binding music, Travis Scott pushes further. He stands atop as the ringleader of his own visionary and abstract musical carnival – a circus that we’re all paying top dollar for.

Add Astroworld to your summer playlist today.

Travis Scott

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In one of the most anticipated albums of 2018, Drake released his fifth studio album, Scorpion, last month in the midst of controversy, success and a scathing diss track from Pusha T that revealed Drake was hiding a child. The beef between Pusha T and Drake provided the ultimate prologue to what would become one of the central themes in Scorpion that had gossip blogs, newsfeed trolls and the entire hip-hop community buzzing.

On Pusha T’s, “The Story of Adidon,” the veteran emcee ripped Drake by claiming the OVO boss hid the existence of his son to make him the cornerstone of a marketing campaign for Drake’s new Addidas clothing line. The out-of-left-field allegation not only affected Drake’s credibility as an emcee (a diss track that hardly any rapper can come back from), but also Drake’s charming image, business accruement and the public persona - as simply - one of the “good guys” in a genre still filled with lust, glamour and violence.

Despite the backlash on his early fatherhood, Drake’s 25-track opus is a prolific account of the Toronto emcee’s/singer’s egotistical vulnerability, brutal honesty, unapologetic protection with success and the moral and psychological makeup of bad decisions with women. On top of these general Drizzy themes is an album that’s backed by one hell of a production helmed by Noah “40” Shebib, Boi-1-Da and other young production greats that helped give Scorpion its opulent and engaging sound.

The records gorgeous texture, and musical depth, is masterful woven with 40’s moody and euphoric compositions, smooth Afrobeat and a soulful kick reminiscent of Drake’s earlier works such as in Take Care and Nothing Was The Same. The doubled sided album displays two of Drake’s primary musical palettes - hip-hop and R&B – that he helped pioneer as a single genre: one where the synthesis of rapping/singing are the benchmark to his keys of success.

On side A, Drake’s riveting lyricism, signature metaphors and melodic approach expresses the emcees consistent style and mic-gripping execution that’s rich with an anxious charm, savvy punch-lines and provocative hooks.

On the album’s intro, “Survival,” Drake makes an impression entrance with blistering wordplay and ice-cold bars to display his frustrations from an already gruesome month. “Who’s giving out this much return on investment?” he flaunts with prolific conviction. On “Nonstop” and “Elevate,” however, is where that 40 and Drizzy connection works perfectly with club pounding beats, raw & distinctive flows and clean-cut melodies perfect for those summer night vibes. “They been trying me, but I’m resilient, for real” Drake raps with authority on “Nonstop.” “I can’t go in public like civilian, for real.”

Drake stunningly admits to having a son on the album’s 4th stint, “Emotionless,” over a refreshingly soulful sample of Mariah Carey’s MTV Unplugged performance of “Emotions.” “I wasn’t hidin’ my kid from the world,” he boasts. “I was hiding the world from my kid.” Drake further acknowledges his son’s existence with a brief semi-response for Pusha T on the audaciously smooth and soulfully addictive, “8 out of 10,” taunting, “Kiss my son on the forehead then kiss your ass goodbye. As luck would have it, I’ve settled into my role as the good guy.”

In addition to the chart-topping and philanthropic visuals of “God’s Plan,” Drake’s DJ Premier collaboration in, “Sandra’s Rose,” is another soul-sampled and mic-personified beauty that’s icing on the cake for an already eye-opening record. Here Drake’s expertise as a lyrical technician blossoms with Premier’s vivid production and classic sound.

Yet, on Scorpion’s side B is were Drake’s singing and soulful influences come into play with a more haunting and moody feel to the 90-minute record. Drake’s harmonious approach to the album’s second half is juicy, sensually smooth and painfully romantic – deeply influenced from his taste in classic soul and vocalists such as Sade and Phyllis Hyman.

On the sudden slow-jam, “Peak,” Drake brings the tempo down to a hazy candle-lit forum with massaging beats and seductive harmonies. His song’s “Jaded” and “Finesse” are other pulsating tracks that Drake delivers with feelings of late-night cognac, passionate despair and steamy bedroom vibes.

The Toronto emcee also brings out a little puppy love with “Summer Games.” A song about a short-lived summer romance that’s fueled with razor edged synths perfect for dusks at the boardwalk. Another interesting track on Side B is the posthumous feature of Michael Jackson on, “Don’t Matter To Me,” which has a mid-tempo rhythm and euphoric vibe that’s fits masterfully around Michael’s soulful and feathery vocals.

The club centric tracks “Nice For What” and “In My Feelings,” added a contrasting touch to the latter half of the album that revels in New Orleans bounce and tropical vibes. “Nice For What” has already seen a significant chart-topping success as the record’s second single and “In My Feelings” wouldn’t fall far from the tree. With a decadent hook, craving melodies and bars to knock to – “In My Feelings” is side B’s leading track for Scorpion.

Drake ends this odyssean 25-track album with “March 14” that touches upon his fatherhood and experiences of being raised with parents from a failed marriage. The song also dives into his current grappling with his son’s mother, adult film actress Sophie Brussaux, as well as his self-analysis of becoming a better parent.

Throughout all its toxicity, Drake winds back the clock on Scorpion by giving his fans a rubric of what made his career so compelling and universal in the first place: the bad-boy loving punch lines, lyrically precise mind and expressively glowing melodies that reverts back to the aesthetics of his freshman and sophomore albums.

Drake illustrates emotion and raw vulnerability on Scorpion. This time around, as more than its predecessors, Drake's new album relies on a self-examining honest approach that revels in shortcoming tones and bustling fragility. This delicacy of Drake's lyricism and musical style illustrate his own admission of the truth and his definitive role as a young father. It’s one of the many reasons why Scorpion is such an intriguing record in which Drake challenges himself like he's never done before.

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Travis Scott Ascends On His Own Psychedelic Musical Carnival With "Astroworld"

Drake Draws Emotion & Raw Vulnerabilty On Scorpion

The Fox and King | Music, Branding, The Bronx, Est. 2011