_{Photo from theverge.com}

By Takunda Mafundikwa

Travis Scott ascension from rapper to household name has been astronomically fast.  A few years ago, you couldn’t have told me he would be having the success he is currently having — I simply wouldn’t have believed you. However, the stars aligned in his favor and he’s had one of, if not the best 2020 of any entertainers so far. When the pandemic struck, live shows were done for and artists had to find new ways to bring that live show experience to people and that’s exactly what Travis and Fortnite, the third-person-shooter survival game, were able to accomplish.  

A Houston rapper who dropped out of college and pursued a career with Kanye West, Travis’s rise to stardom happened seemingly overnight. Rappers are the new cultural rockstars and Travis is nothing short of a legend. When his Grammy nominated album Astroworld (2018) was at the top of the charts, Travis partnered with Fortnite (arguably the number one game in the world at the time) to bring to life a one of a kind at home experience. So in early April, to attend the concert one would simply have to own one of the major gaming consoles, download your free copy of Fortnite, and that was your ticket to the show.  

“Travis’s energy has always been one word: rage.”

Fortnite is known for their map, third-person-shooter style play and unique game-celebration-dances that mimic popular culture. The concert starts with players on the map and in the center of the map is a stage surrounded by gold Travis heads that match the ones on his album cover AstroWorld. Travis’s energy has always been one word: rage. That’s exactly what I felt as I watched this performance. A kind of rage that made me wish I was in the throes of a moshpit pushing against people and just raging at a concert.  

“The giant Travis moves across the map destroying properties and the land around him, but keeping up with the music sort of like a music video.”

The show begins with whirling sounds from an interdimensional portal that’s set on stage. A comet flies in, bringing a giant shirtless Travis Scott character. Just like any other Travis show, the energy is chaotic. The world begins to fall apart as he performs his hit song Sicko Mode. Giant holographic digital astronauts dance in the background as a planet begins to orbit in the sky in sync with the bass. The giant Travis moves across the map destroying properties and the land around him, but keeping up with the music sort of like a music video. As a player you can follow Travis around the map, or you can choose to stay put and angle your cameras so you can see what’s going on.  

It transitions into Goosebumps, another one of Travis’s hit records. The scene transforms into a post-apocalyptic theme park. The giant Travis turns into a half-human/half-cyborg hybrid and continues to perform. As he goes through a medley of songs the scenes keep changing themes. From the post-apocalyptic world, to psychedelic, to underwater, and then back to space themed. The crescendo of the show is when eerie space sounding synths play as Travis flies at supersonic speeds through space followed by a bright bang. As quickly as it started, the show ends.  What Travis Scott and Fortnite were able to do was something that helped set the stage for online concerts. They took initiative in setting the standard for future online concerts. The CGI event was interactive and the first of its kind, and the craziest part was it was free. Being CGI so many more visuals were able to be brought to life and encompass the Travis experience. The energy Travis was able to bring was the same he usually brings to the shows. What made this different was how intimate it felt. Travis and Fortnite where able to make me a part of the experience, to immerse myself completely in the experience. Whether you choose to stand idly and angle your cameras or jump across the map, you attended a Travis Scott rager.