Kanye West photo courtesy of Gualo Hawes
When Kanye West joined Travis Scott on stage for the UTOPIA release show in Rome last summer, Scott made sure to give his mentor his flowers.
“There would be no Travis Scott without Kanye West,” he said before they embraced, as Scott’s CIRCUS MAXIMUS tour stop Wednesday night (Jan. 31) in Orlando saw this wholesome moment come full circle.
The pair have heavily collaborated with one another over the past decade, telegraphing their reunion through various cryptic social media posts. Scott has been open about West’s influence on his sound (his fingerprints are all over UTOPIA), taking a moment to reassert Ye’s impact on him and music as a whole.
“I wouldn’t be here on this stage without my brother, man. He opened up these doors for me… Make some noise for the greatest of all time,” Scott said at Orlando’s Kia Center, per reports from Kurrco and Complex.
In the midst of Scott’s nationwide trek, West — donning a hockey mask a la Jason Vorhees — took the stage to perform a few classic cuts (“All Of The Lights,” “Father Stretch My Hands,” “Runaway” and more”) as well as the title track off his upcoming album, VULTURES. Aided by ¥$ collaborator Ty Dolla $ign and Bump J, VULTURES’ first of three volumes is confirmed for release on Feb. 9. Its official tracklist was shared on a shirt worn by Kanye’s daughter North West earlier this week.
Scott’s CIRCUS MAXIMUS tour is slated to conclude on Feb. 5 in Louisville, Kentucky. Teezo Touchdown, the fellow Texas native who appears on UTOPIA’s “Modern Jam,” supported the 45-date jaunt as a special guest on its first leg from October through December.
The “My Eyes” rapper continues to roll out out his fourth studio album months after its July 2023 release. Sharing the visuals to “TOPIA TWINS” with 21 Savage and Rob49 as well as “I KNOW?” this month (alongside features for Savage, Playboi Carti and Kid Cudi), Scott’s been busy building the ever-perfect sonic world he set out to create years ago.
This would all be for naught, though, without Ye’s undying inspiration and tutelage. He’s the “greatest of all-time” after all, according to Travis.
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