It’s been a long road from Playboi Carti’s Whole Lotta Red to Music. King Vamp ended the drought with his first album in four-plus years on March 14.
The loaded 30-track album features superstar guests from The Weeknd to Travis Scott, and showcases Carti’s full artistic repertoire. Billboard Unfiltered returned on Wednesday (March 19) with a new episode covering Carti’s new LP from all angles.
“I think this Music album is probably the best showcase of all the different sides to Carti,” staff writer Kyle Denis said. “You get his pop sensibility side on records like ‘Backr00ms,’ and you get some of the rage rap stuff … I love how throw-everything-at-the-wall it was.”
Denis “sighed” every time Travis Scott popped up for a feature. “The best Travis verse for me that was on ‘Backr00ms,’ and that one wasn’t on the album,” he added. “I love how Kendrick kind of slid into Carti’s world. I think that was the highlight for me, seeing him adapt to the vamp stuff.”
Denis “had a great time with Music,” but thinks that it was way too long at 30 tracks. “There’s a great 16-track album hidden somewhere,” he said.
Music is expected to debut atop the Billboard 200, and all 30 tracks could possibly enter next week’s Billboard Hot 100.
Senior charts and data analyst Trevor Anderson highlighted “Evil J0rdan” as when the album really started to take off for him, and noted Kendrick Lamar’s performance in Carti’s world holding his own. “I think he does a good job of playing in the background, but obviously making his presence known,” he said.
He wonders if Carti can have that pop breakthrough run as a hitmaker, but couldn’t land on one track he thought would take off. “‘Rather Lie’ could be a radio record,” Denis said. “Both Kendrick joints will probably do fine. ‘Fine Shit’ is one that popped out to me.”
Lizzo returned last week with her “Still Bad” single as she plots her comeback for 2025. That didn’t come without an X rant, in which she clapped back at haters of the track and called out the mistreatment of Black women artists.
“This is not the first time she has had records that haven’t connected. Right after ‘About Damn Time,’ she tried to push ‘To Be Loved,’ and that didn’t really pop off in a way remotely comparable to ‘About Damn Time.’ I don’t think the culture’s moved beyond corny pop songs,” Denis said. “There’s always going to be an audience for that.”
Watch the full episode above.
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