Understanding Playboi Carti

I was listening to an interview with the late founder of Off-White and former Louis Vuitton Creative Director, Virgil Abloh.

In it, he said that Playboi Carti is the modern-day Miles Davis. I love Miles Davis. I had heard a few Playboi Carti tracks before but never gave them a deep listen. After hearing Abloh say that, I opened Spotify and started exploring Carti’s music.

The first track I played was Location. The opening verse went:

Yeah, what? What?
You cannot hop in my car (Yeah, yeah)
Bentley coupe ridin’ with stars (Yeah, yeah)
Yeah, what? What? (Yeah, yeah)
I keep a Glock like a cop (Yeah, yeah), uh, ayy, yeah (Yeah)
She give the top in the drop (What?)
Yeah, ayy (Yeah)
Diamonds, they wet on my arm (Diamonds, they wet on my arm, what?)

Not gonna lie, my first reaction was: wtf am I listening to? This man didn’t say a single thing that made sense this entire song. I couldn’t understand how Virgil could compare a jazz legend like Miles Davis to Playbpi Carti.

Later, I was talking to a friend who’s a big Playboi Carti fan about this. He told me that Carti’s appeal isn’t in the lyrics, it’s in the vibe and energy. His voice itself is an instrument. He plays with sounds, ad-libs, whispers, baby voices, creating something chaotic, mystical, and countercultural. His work is polarizing. You either love it or hate it.

Earlier this week, I listened to Carti again with that perspective. And this time, I started to get it.

His music is catchy as hell.

I found myself bopping my head without even thinking about it. The sounds in his songs don’t really resemble anything else I usually listen to.

Then I listened to Magnolia, and had it on repeat for an hour. It still might not be my favorite genre. I love lyrical music. I love instrumentals. But now, I can appreciate trap for what it is.