Looking back on my life I have always loved music, ever since I was little. My mom loves to tell the story about my third birthday party, where other girls were asking for princess parties. I asked for a Nicki Minaj party (don’t worry my parents said no.) Growing up I continued my appreciation for music, from alternative to country to rap, I loved all of it. Recently I have taken notice of some more rap music including artists like Drake, Don Toliver, and Travis Scott. Since looking more into rap I find lots of joy in following the release of different albums and most recently, the release of Utopia by Travis Scott. 

The album Utopia was released on July 28th of 2023. Utopia has 19 tracks, 17 features, and was produced by 23 people including Scott. For some, the Utopia album has too much of an alternative feel with some odd sounding songs. On the initial listen to the album, I can see how some songs would sound out of the ordinary compared to Scott’s last album. The whole of this album has a totally different vibe to it when you put it side by side with some of the other new albums that have been released in the rap genre recently. Some songs are aligning to the ‘pop-culture’ rap, like the song “F!EN” featuring Playboi Carti. Other songs follow more of the alternative feel, like the song “My Eyes.”  

It was so hard to narrow down my top three songs. In my opinion most of these songs are good for their own reasons. The way Scott writes his lyrics and how they apply to life is also something I will go over in my reviews of the songs.

1. The first place spot goes to “Telekinesis” featuring SZA and Future. I think this song perfectly embodies the way rap is becoming more alternative and the chiller vibes coming from this shift. The song features a few verses by SZA in the end of the song and I think that adds a great touch to the lyrics. There is a large emphasis on the lyrics of this song where Scott sings about searching for purpose in the wrong things and how it left him off worse then before. Another thing I love about Scotts songs is how he creates lyrics that can be interpreted different ways depending on what is currently going on in your life. “Telekinesis” is a great example of that in the way that the song isn’t just about lyrics and it isn’t just about the music itself. It is a perfect blend between a story that people can relate to, and a great song that people enjoy listening to. 
2. My second place spot is “My Eyes” by Scott. This song has no features, but in my opinion it is one of the best songs on this album. This song starts out very slow, but around halfway through the song starts to speed up and we can hear some of the same beats used in the rest of the album. If you are into pop culture at all, some people speculate that this song was written about Scott’s ex-girlfriend Kylie Jenner. This speculation comes from the interview the couple did together when Scott said that Kylie’s eyes are green and yellow. In the lyrics of this song it talks about how the green and yellow eyes are leading him to his demise. Apart from the pop culture aspect of this song, “My Eyes” is the perfect story of love that turns sour. Upon being asked, Reporter Ella Jorgensen (who is not a large fan of rap) said that she liked the songs “cool vibe” in the beginning and the “switch up” in the middle of the song.
3. My third place goes to “I KNOW ?” by Scott. If you aren’t a fan of the alternative sounding rap songs mentioned before, you will like this song more. This song immediately went viral on the media app Tik-Tok. This song follows more of the typical “rap” vibe that we hear in lots of Scotts previous songs and albums, including his last album “Astroworld.” The song is more of an upbeat song compared to the last two mentioned. If you listen to this song and like it then you might want to give “Meltdown (feat. Drake)” a listen. Although these lyrics are hard to relate to, the song itself is great with all of the musical aspects being incorporated.

This album was fantastic, and in my opinion, one of Travis Scott’s best albums. The one thing I would warn you about is to ignore the intro song titled “HYAENA.” To me this song was way to much for an intro. If you appreciate rap music, alternative music, or are just looking for a good album, this is one of the best albums of 2023.