'Watch' is an encouraging lead single for Travis Scott's next album, with a strong feature from Lil Uzi Vert.
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“This is the last ride ever gonna, that I’m ever gonna take at AstroWorld…” Travis Scott‘s lead single for his third studio album AstroWorld, expected to release sometime later this year, opens with this stuttered sample taken from a broadcast by a Texas news station way back in 2005. The clip sees a young girl excitedly board a ride at Six Flags AstroWorld, which closed its doors for good in October of that year. As a native of Houston, Texas, who would have been only 13 when it shut, it seems Scott’s upcoming record is a sincere tribute to the demolished theme park.
‘Watch’ isn’t exactly new territory for the American trap artist, and it’s nowhere near as funky as ‘Pick Up the Phone’ (the debut track from his last album, Birds in the Trap Sing McKnight), but the production from Pi’erre Bourne captures the carnival vibe that this forthcoming record is surely going for. There’s great beats here for Scott, Lil Uzi Vert and Kanye West to rap over, the lyrics centred on the comparing of Rolex sizes. It may sound shallow subject matter, which it undoubtedly is, but it makes for a catchy hook that feels appropriate for the summer season.
Surprisingly, it is Uzi who proves the standout performer. His delivery isn’t as nasally as it can be, which is for the best. Scott has a decent verse too, but hearing Kanye West lately has been an uneasy experience to say the least. West’s verse seems to have been recorded fairly recently, considering that it alludes to the backlash received from his announced support of Donald Trump (“One year it’s the Illuminati, next year it’s the Sunken Place”). Kanye has two new albums coming out in June, a solo record and an collaborative effort with Kid Cudi, so it’ll be fascinating to see how far he goes with this new brand of provocative. Travis Scott, meanwhile, seems to be on the right track.
‘Watch’ is out now via Epic Records.
