The incomprehensible mumbling in Camila Cabello’s “I Luv It” outro, the deep voice in Travis Scott’s “Fe!n” and the baby yells in “M3tamorphosis.” It’s impressive to realize all of these voices come from the same rapper: Playboi Carti.
On March 15, Atlanta’s rapper Playboi Carti released his third album, “MUSIC,” which debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200 chart. It also had the biggest streaming week for an album since Taylor Swift’s “The Tortured Poets Department.” Carti’s album includes collaborations with artists like Kendrick Lamar, The Weeknd and Lil Uzi Vert.
The artist has a 10-year-long career, breaking into the mainstream with“Whole Lotta Red,” which debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200 chart in 2021. However, rather than his own songs, his most successful tracks came from features on Drake and Trippie Redd’s releases.
I completely forgot about him until his feature in The Weeknd’s 2023 “Popular,” after which every artist wanted to feature him. For example, he was featured in “Carnival,” by Kanye West and Ty Dolla $ign, “Type Shit,” by Future and Metro Boomin and reunited with The Weeknd for the recent smash hit ”Timeless,” from The Weeknd’s last album.
From 2021 to 2024, he only released “All Red” as a solo single, but he has been featured in around 10 songs from other artists. Thus, it makes sense for me to believe that “MUSIC” was the artist’s attempt to prove he can take the stage on his own with a solo album.
“The artist has a 10-year-long career, breaking into the mainstream with“Whole Lotta Red,” which debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200 chart in 2021.“
If I’m being honest, “Music” lacks narrative cohesion, reflective lyrics and dynamic production. The album is extremely long, lasting 1 hour and 16 minutes with 30 songs. Carti is a criminal and openly misogynistic. He doesn’t try to hide it in his songs; in “Fine Shit,” he sings “Don’t say you’ll die for me, lil’ bitch, just die.”
Still, his straightforward tone sounds devilishly humorous in songs like the standout “Evil J0rdan”: “I think she’s a fling / I think she’s a playmaker / She should be on my team / She should get her a ring / Shit, it can’t be me / But she can be on the team.”
What astonishes me about Carti’s records is his characteristic vocal diversity across genres and catchy lyrics that make him a uniquely remarkable performer. The tracks “Radar” and “Like Weedy” provide a clear example of his singular artistry. I was in disbelief when I found out these songs had no other collaborators, as Carti excelled at delivering chameleonic vocal performances.
However, “Music” only reinforced my idea that he needs other artists to capture the spotlight. Almost half of the album’s songs are collaborations. At times, it seems like he’s just a feature in his own songs. For example, in the album track “We Need All The Vibes,” with Young Thug and Ty Dolla $ign, he only sings one verse at the end.
Carti’s greatest strength — his musical versatility — turns against him in this album, stripping away the distinctive identity he would need to sustain a career of his own. On “Charge Dem Hoes a Fees,” with Future and Travis Scott, it becomes hard to tell when Carti begins singing, as his vocals blend almost indistinguishably with Future’s.
Ultimately, the artist gets lost among so many voices, both his and his collaborators.
Playboi Carti is an exceptional artist. I’m excited to listen to his unique appearance in every release in which he’s featured. However, for the reasons I outlined, I find it hard to think of him as a solo artist. Let’s accept it: Some artists, like some people, are born to be protagonists, while others are supporting characters. With no means to undermine his vocal range or aesthetic vision, Playboi Carti is of the latter — and maybe there’s nothing he can do about it.
Tomy Helman PO ’28 is a music columnist from Florida, Argentina. He’s interested in culture and politics and currently speaks Spanish, English, French, Indonesian and Italian.
Facebook Comments