Travis Scott's new album UTOPIA has already become the biggest hip-hop event of 2023. Though the project has divided some fans and critics in terms of its quality it has already become the most successful rap album of the year by far. Earlier this week it debuted at number one on the Billboard 200. But the album didn't JUST debut at number one, it debuted with an astounding first-week sales count of nearly 500k units. That was the third biggest first-week sales of 2023 so far behind only two of music's other biggest superstars Morgan Wallen and Taylor Swift.
Travis Scott was supposed to perform many of the songs from the record live for the first time from Egypt. After the show had to be canceled for logistical reasons it was moved to Rome. The concert took place yesterday in front of tens of thousands of fans. Discussions about Scott's collaborators were ongoing as Kanye West was spotted before the show and even ended up joining Travis on stage. UTOPIA features an absolutely amazing collection of talent. Beyonce, SZA, Bad Bunny, The Weeknd, Young Thug, Future, Playboi Carti, Drake, and MANY more appear in the stacked tracklist. During the show Travis let fans know about another collaborator who almost joined in.
Travis Scott Cut J. Cole Feature At The Last Minute
Travis Scott originally released "MAFIA" as a two-part single in 2021. The songs were dropped just before the tragic events at the rapper's Astroworld festival took place. Scott revealed to fans that the J. Cole-assisted track was originally meant to land on UTOPIA but was cut and replaced with "I KNOW ?" at the last minute.
Travis Scott's entire UTOPIA concert from Rome is now available to watch online. While fans in attendance seemed ecstatic, those watching at home have had mixed reviews. Critiques of the performance included just how much time Travis spent talking and his DJ skipping out on certain songs early. What do you think of J. Cole being left off of UTOPIA at the last minute? Let us know in the comment section below.
[Via]