An Introduction to MUSIC

The last time that the world heard a full release album from the enigma that is Playboi Carti, we were still in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, President Joe Biden was closing his first year as president, and many of us had yet to reach high school. Five years after the release of Whole Lotta Red, we have arrived at Carti’s next installment, MUSIC. The 30-track super project has been highly anticipated since the leaks and teases posted across social media in the past few months. After much confusion as to what time on March 13 or March 14 the album would release, it became available on streaming officially on March 14, 2025.

Although the fan base in Carti’s camp is stereotyped as being delusional fans who will celebrate any new content from their champion, the reception to MUSIC was surprisingly mixed. Some were happy to get a full album after five years of waiting, and others were left dissatisfied with the average quality, given how long the album was worked on and teased.

As Charles Lyons-Burt of Slant Magazine writes, ” The album is long and messy, but it demonstrates the rappers staggering range.”

The Highs and the Lows

There is no point in mincing words when it comes to album, the opening track “POP OUT” is a rough introduction. The heavy industry noises is just off-putting, and the mixing makes any lyrics indistinguishable from the other abrasive sounds. The next track “CRUSH” marks the first feature on the album, and actually is one of the highlights on the album. The production quality is very high, and the synths are actually tuned pretty well. “PHILLY” makes more use of Travis Scott’s vocals, and slows down the production if only for one song. “RATHER LIE” feels almost out of place in this album, but not in a way that harms the album. The Weeknd and Carti play well off of each other’s vocal inflections, and Carti’s lyrics are more clear than usual here. Kendrick Lamar’s presence on “BACKDOOR” was interesting, if not a bit out of character. “WE NEED ALL DA VIBES” had a great double feature from Young Thug and Ty Dolla $ign, and the production brought good energy. “HBA” was a highly anticipated track and lived up to the expectations by most accounts.

“I think my favorite song on the album was “RATHER LIE”, said Prithvi Madhankumar, a listener of the album. “The Weeknd’s feature was probably the best on the album.”

There are a few more moments on the album that have fun moments, but unfortunately most songs beyond the ones mentioned above range from mediocre to almost bad. Most of “MOJO JOJO” feels like it could have been cut and added to “EVIL JORDAN”. “OPM BABI” brings back the same abrasive noise as the album’s opener, and “LIKE WEEZY” sounds off from the rest of the album.

The Verdict

“The album has remarkable production for most of the songs,” said Madhankumar. “With a few exceptions where Carti is spamming sound effects. Overall, I’ll probably listen to 3 songs.”

For those in Carti’s camp, there is a hard truth to swallow with MUSIC; the album is just okay. There were some notable moments on the album, but the differences between the good and the bad of this album are just too great for those moments to elevate the project as a whole. There is also something to be said about the time in-between albums. People waited five years to get something new from Carti, so there were bound to be expectations and desires that wouldn’t have been satisfied, even if the album was nearly perfect. At the end of the day, MUSIC isn’t a bad album, it it’s unlikely that it will be considered the best of Playboi Carti’s catalog.