On February 4, 2024, the Grammy’s kicked off another stellar night in Los Angeles, which was full of cheers and celebration. As the annual awards ceremony began, many of the nation’s star artists filled the tables and stages. We saw performances from names like Olivia Rodrigo, Billy Joel, and even Luke Combs, who all received awards for their releases in 2023. One performer was forgotten in this gala, however, Travis Scott. His album, Utopia, was stunned by the announcement of Killer Mike’s album Michael winning the “Hip-Hop Album of the Year” award for 2023. This decision led to mass outrage over the award and furthered Travis’s “beef” with the Grammy’s Award Committee.
The Houston-born rapper started their career during the Soundcloud stage of rap back in 2008. Travis used bots to promote and view his music to gain plays, which would attract the attention of record label Epic Records. As his music progressed, he would go on to release his first mainstream album, Days Before Rodeo, in 2015. This release was followed by another album, Rodeo, in the same year. With his drop, Travis had reached millions of fans and started to gain stardom. Travis’s trap beats mixed with his autotuned voice caught the attention of many other stars too, as Travis would open for Kendrick Lamar on “The DAMN Tour” in 2017. At this time, Travis had many hits like “Goosebumps” and “Butterfly Effect” which charted Top 50 in the Billboard Top 100 in 2017, per Billboard. He also collaborated on many hits like “Portland” with rappers Drake and Quavo. All of this hype had many fans excited for Travis’s next project, and they were not disappointed.
Travis Scott would release Astroworld in 2018, which was themed after the former amusement park in Houston, Texas. This theme park vibe was mixed with a dark dystopian feel that showed the two sides of Travis. This project featured many hits, but the one that stood out the most was “Sicko Mode” which featured Drake and topped the Billboard charts. His ability to flip scripts midway through songs and lyricism led to many quoting this piece as the album of the decade, putting him up with his idol, Kanye West. When the 2019 Grammy’s rolled around, many thought the award for album of the year was over before it started. This changed, however, when they announced that Cardi B’s Bodak Yellow would win and take home the Grammy. Seeing this, Travis stormed out of the arena and did not attend the after-party, which he was supposed to perform. Responding to this, Travis would fire back on Young Thug’s song “Hot” with the bar “Afterparty, Astroworld out the planet, laid the map out, but they didn’t understand it, When I’m home, know that I f*** on a Grammy.” Cardi B’s album was sensational in itself, but was nothing compared to the artistry of “Astroworld”. With this disappointment, Travis turned back to the lab and spent five years working on this next masterpiece.
After a long wait, Travis would announce his next studio album Utopia for the summer of 2023. His use of dystopian advertising and fashion foreshadowed the album’s theme. Travis stated that he wants to take a step into melodic rock and broaden his musical resume. With all of this hype, Travis would release Utopia on July 28, 2023. This release filled many fans with joy as the wide variety of sounds produced throughout the project created a sense of a high, which was what Travis wanted. His album expresses how everyone has a place, a place of calm, a place of relaxation, or a place where they can hyperfocus. A “Utopia” can be a location, an object, or even a hobby. As the album plays, we transcend into Travis’s utopia with him, feeling his transformation from song to song. As he enters the utopia, his music slows and becomes the melodic rock that we wanted to create. This was what Travis truly wanted in life, and he made this for himself. As the album closes, we start to leave this utopia, like most people do, and we look for what the next one will be. People have many utopias in life and the changing of these help form our personalities as humans, like the closing words say, “Where will you go now, now that you’re done with me?”
As the 2024 Grammys started, the hip-hop community thought it would be a landslide for Travis, to make up for the disaster in 2018. This did not happen, however, as rapper “Killer Mike” would win album of the year, snubbing Travis once again. As many took to social media, many noticed that no one knew who “Killer Mike” even was. The upset Travis still had to perform, and he used this as an opportunity to make his mark. He would perform many songs off of his overlooked album and use it as fuel for rage. As Travis performed, his rage caused him to throw chairs and other props, and led to him yelling “They slept on me TEN TIMES.” He would end his show and leave the stage outraged. Many artists protected Travis and even helped throw shade at the Grammys organization. Famous rapper Jay Z described the organization as “faulty” and “means nothing to the hip-hop community” showing that these awards truly have no meaning and aren’t worth stressing over, per The Washington Post. Knowing Travis, he will only use this as fuel. Like his album, he will leave this utopia and enter a bigger and better project that will only cement him as a superstar in the music industry. Nothing is known yet about what this next album entails, but the masses will be waiting “Till Further Notice”.
