It's hard to argue in 2015 that Kanye West is not the biggest hip-hop artist in the world. That is exactly why getting a cosign from the GOOD Music founder is such a big deal, it is also something that Houston based emcee and producer Travi$ Scott discovered first hand back when Kanye signed him to his label in 2012. While initially signed as a producer, it was only a year later that Scott released his debut project Owl Pharaoh.
On this mixtape, Scott brought along a multitude of talented artists and producers to help collabarate, and ended up creating a project that in my opinion was an exceptional debut. My initial thoughts upon hearing his debut was hisresemblance to Kanye West, especially on West's controversial Yeezus album, a project that saw Scott assist on the production of multiple tracks.
On his newest project, Rodeo, the Kanye West influence once again shines through, but in a very different way. On Rodeo, we see Travi$ Scott, much like Yeezy is known to do, completely alter his sound. Rodeo is, at it's core, a pop-rap album that sees the young rapper draw tons of influence from southern trap production, and put his own pop spin on it. Much like on Owl Pharaoh, he once again recruits a cast of talented musicians who appear throughout the track listing, as we see big names like Kanye West, Chief Keef, The Weeknd and even Justin Bieber on the album. Along with the assistance of other credited producers, Scott does a great job of matching instrumentals with the guests who appear on said tracks, as he manages to get the most out of verses from trap rappers like Quave (of Migos fame) and Chief Keef, and also managing to bring instrumentals that the likes of Future and Young Thug can assist on.
While there's a fair share of "bangers" on the album, Piss On Your Grave is one that initially stood out to me. While not necessarily a brilliant track by any stretch, it is a track with a nice comedic touch. The instrumental starts with a very psychedelic 70's rock band type intro thanks to the sample from Jimi Hendrix's Machine Gun, and quickly makes way for the Kanye West feature. It's hard to listen through the track without yelling along with Kanye West due to the song's simply yet catchy nature. Antidote is another one of the catchier tracks as Scott used auto-tune to his advantage as he sings through out the track and delivers a very solid verse in the last minute of the cut.
The album isn't perfect however, as the closing track Apple Pie is easily the weakest song on the album in my opinion. It's yet another track that sees the use of auto-tune, however the instrumental that blends hard synths with a piano ballad completely misses the spot, not to mention the annoyingly bad hook of "I don't want your apple pie mama." Fortunately, Scott manages to keep the rest of the album fair above the caliber of this track, the only other song that I found myself questioning was On My Dis Side, which wasn't a bad track, but I didn't enjoy it as much as the rest album.
Going into this project, you should not be expecting to be blown away lyrically, because you simply won't find any kind of spectacular lyricism on Rodeo. Instead, what Travi$ Scott delivers is a series of fantastically produced trap flavored beats matched with catchy hooks and a very good sensibility. The opinions on Scott's debut full-length album remain split, but I for one see no problem in enjoying the album for exactly what it is.
Rating: B+
Favorite Tracks: Pornography, 3500, 90210, Pray 4 Love, Piss On Your Grave, Antidote, Flying High
Least Favorite Tracks: Apple Pie
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