After the mainstream success of his last album “Utopia,” Travis Scott re-released his 2014 mixtape “Days Before Rodeo.” While originally released to various social media platforms in 2014, Scott finally released the album to streaming platforms on Aug. 18. The album provides a look into his exciting rise to fame as well as the rather dark side of his lifestyle.
Travis Scott is an American hip hop artist known for meshing his unique auto tuned sound over a wide range of creative beats. For a while, I wasn’t very big on Travis Scott and only listened to a few of his songs here and there, but his music has grown on me recently. I’ve enjoyed various tracks on his second studio album “Birds in the Trap Sing McKnight,” as well as his third studio album “Astroworld.” With the announcement of the public release of “Days Before Rodeo,” I was excited to listen to his older music now with a lens of knowing what his future had to show.
The album sees a wide variety of featured artists. We see Scott collaborate with artists he would later partner with, such as Young Thug and Migos. We also see some more unlikely collaborations such as the late Rich Homie Quan, Detroit native Big Sean, and perhaps the most unlikely being the English pop rock band “The 1975.” With such a wide range of artists for Scott to bounce off of in the album, it makes for an enjoyable listening experience.
“Drugs You Should Try It,” is the standout track on the album for me. Scott lets the listener inside on a more romantic side of his life, which does not appear much on the album. He ties the relationship with his partner to the experience he has of trying various drugs. The song starts with a backmasking of the outro. For many other artists, this strategy would be hard to pull off, but there’s something about Scott’s distorted vocals and the uneasiness at the beginning of the song that just clicks. Early in the song, Scott says “We up all night from dawn to dusk, it’s always poppin. I fell in love, fell outta love, we both had options.” He emphasizes the unhealthy lifestyle he and his partner have. They often find life by partying every night and getting inebriated. The idea of making poor decisions and then waking up having forgotten all about them may be just what Scott yearns for. This idea is revisited later in the song, “I play the drums, she rolls the drugs, I rocked the club, we both throw up.” Scott says as it expresses how their relationship is rooted in their use of drugs and long nights spent clubbing. His love for his partner could be very similar to his love for drugs and how even though bad things come out of both, he still returns to both because he can’t quit.
“Skyfall” was another good track on the album. While often interpreted as an anthem for getting high, Scott said publicly that it was actually about older artists becoming less popular and a loss of the younger generation. This meaning is seen in many bars in the song. One example is when Scott says “I’m so ‘head of my time, could I show up any sooner?” Scott’s rise to fame was one not many people could see coming, and as a result of such rapid growth, he was forced to leave a less popular life behind him. This theme of being misunderstood is seen in various songs in not only this album, but also later into Scotts career in various songs such as “I KNOW” off of his most recent album, “UTOPIA”.
Popular hip hop artist Young Thug also appears on this track where his vocals echo a similar theme. For example, Thug says “All of this pain, but i’m tryna disguise.” Thug could be expressing his stage presence is hiding a more hurt side of himself. Thug’s disconnection, like Scott’s, leads Thug to feel a lack of connection to the rest of his fans and peers. As a generation, a stigma is placed on opening up and talking about feelings, something of which Thug may benefit from. Overall, “Skyfall” has some deep cutting lyrics while keeping a repetitive but refreshing chorus.
I thought “Mamacita” didn’t quite hit right. The track has an annoying hook, as the heavy autotune Scott traditionally uses does not sound as good as it normally does. While Young Thug and the late rapper Rich Homie Quan provide some fun features in the song, they lack a conscious theme and don’t reflect well on each other. The song comes off using aggressive language and an unusual fetishizing of refugees. Overall, “Mamacita” lacks something for me to resonate with and sounds too similar to the rest of the songs on the album.
Overall, I thought the mixtape was a good release for Scott. It allows listeners who maybe haven’t been following Scott for as long to hear some different music. For long time fans, it echoes the early days of Scott’s flow and could bring a sense of nostalgia. While the album has some standout tracks, there are some songs where it is clear there is room to improve. Knowing where Scott is now, it was clear he just needed time to grow as an artist. I would recommend listening if you have a chance.
“Days Before Rodeo:” ★★★★☆
