"The Scotts" (stylized in

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) is a song by American hip hop super-duo The Scotts, composed of rappers Travis Scott and

Kid Cudi Scott Ramon Seguro Mescudi (born January 30, 1984), also known by his stage name Kid Cudi ( ), is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, actor and fashion designer. Born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, Cudi would move to New Yo ...

. It was released in various formats, including on

7-inch vinyl In music, a single is a type of release, typically a song recording of fewer tracks than an LP record or an album. One can be released for sale to the public in a variety of formats. In most cases, a single is a song that is released separat ...

cassette Cassette may refer to: Technology * Cassette tape (or ''musicassette'', ''audio cassette'', ''cassette tape'', or ''tape''), a worldwide standard for analog audio recording and playback ** Cassette single (or "Cassingle"), a music single in th ...

and as a

CD single A CD single (sometimes abbreviated to CDS) is a music single in the form of a compact disc. The standard in the Red Book for the term ''CD single'' is an 8 cm (3-inch) CD (or Mini CD). It now refers to any single recorded onto a CD of any si ...

through Epic, Cactus Jack and Wicked Awesome on April 24, 2020. The song release was supported by four different visuals on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

. The song debuted atop the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, for the chart dated May 9, 2020, becoming Scott's third US number-one single, following " Sicko Mode" and "

Highest in the Room "Highest in the Room" (stylized in all caps) is a song by American rapper Travis Scott. It was released as a single on October 4, 2019. It was released in a variety of formats, including on 7-inch vinyl, cassette and as a CD single. In its first ...

", as well as Cudi's first US number-one single. Both artists had previously collaborated on Scott's "

Through the Late Night "Through the Late Night" (stylized in all lowercase) is a song by American rapper Travis Scott featuring fellow American rapper Kid Cudi. The first of several collaborations between the two rappers, it was released on September 2, 2016 as a trac ...

" and "Way Back" on '' Birds in the Trap Sing McKnight'' (2016), Cudi's "

Baptized in Fire "Baptized in Fire" is a song by American rapper Kid Cudi featuring fellow American rapper Travis Scott. It was released on December 1, 2016, as a promotional single from the former's sixth studio album, '' Passion, Pain & Demon Slayin (2016). ...

" on ''

Passion, Pain & Demon Slayin' ''Passion, Pain & Demon Slayin'' is the sixth studio album by American rapper Kid Cudi. The album was released on December 16, 2016, through Wicked Awesome Records and Republic Records. It succeeds Cudi's alternative rock album ''Speedin' Bullet 2 ...

'' (2016), and Scott's "

Stop Trying to Be God "Stop Trying to Be God" (stylized in all caps) is a song by American rapper Travis Scott from his third studio album '' Astroworld'' (2018). The song features additional vocals from Kid Cudi, James Blake, Philip Bailey of the band Earth, Wind ...

" on '' Astroworld'' (2018). On September 3, 2021, Kid Cudi stated via Twitter that a full length "The Scotts" album was in store for the future, though he noted that he did not know when it would happen, only that it would at some point. In December 2022, Cudi revealed he was no longer working on the album, effectively announcing its cancellation.

Background and promotion

On April 20, 2020, it was reported that Scott teamed up with ''

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'' to start a virtual tour through the game called "Astronomical" starting on April 23 until April 25. The rapper would premiere and play a new song at several different times during the game. Players of the game got to hear snippets of the song before its official release. In total, the concert was witnessed by an audience of over 12 million players. On April 23, Scott revealed the cover art of the song on his

Instagram Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...

and announced that the song would feature

. The song title is a reference to Scott's stage surname and Cudi's real first name, who inspired Scott to take the name in the first place. The cover art of the single was created by American artist

Kaws Brian Donnelly (born November 4, 1974), known professionally as Kaws (stylized as KAWS), is an American artist and designer. His work includes repeated use of a cast of figurative characters and motifs, some dating back to the beginning of his c ...

Critical reception

To Charles Holmes of ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'', the song felt "like a symbolic passing of the torch" after Scott's longstanding admiration for Cudi's work but eventually thought that "the results are mixed" despite having been "very hyped" beforehand. ''

Rap-Up ''Rap-Up'' is a magazine launched in 2001 by founder Devin Lazerine. The publication was originally a website devoted to hip hop, until Lazerine decided to pitch the possibility of a magazine to several publishers. The magazine is focused on the ...

'' described the song as an "explosive banger" with Scott igniting "the two-minute track while Cudder keeps the fire burning".

Chart performance

"The Scotts" debuted at number one the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...

on the week of May 9, 2020. The song became Scott's 3rd number one single and Cudi's first. The song also made Scott the sixth artist in history to have multiple songs that debuted at number one following

Mariah Carey Mariah Carey (; born March 27, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and record producer. Referred to as the " Songbird Supreme", she is noted for her five-octave vocal range, melismatic singing style and signature use of the whi ...

Britney Spears Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the " Princess of Pop", she is credited with influencing the revival of teen pop during the late 1990s and early 2000s. After appearing in stage productio ...

Justin Bieber Justin Drew Bieber ( ; born March 1, 1994) is a Canadian singer. Bieber is recognized for his genre-melding musicianship and has played an influential role in modern-day popular music. He was discovered by American record executive Scooter ...

Drake Drake may refer to: Animals * A male duck People and fictional characters * Drake (surname), a list of people and fictional characters with the family name * Drake (given name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * ...

and

Ariana Grande Ariana Grande-Butera ( ; born June 26, 1993) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Her four-octave vocal range has received critical acclaim, and her personal life has been the subject of widespread media attention. She has received ...

Personnel

Credits adapted from

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. * Jacques Webster (Travis Scott) – vocals, songwriting, composition, recording engineering, uncredited co-production *

Scott Mescudi Scott Ramon Seguro Mescudi (born January 30, 1984), also known by his stage name Kid Cudi ( ), is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, actor and fashion designer. Born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, Cudi would move to New Yo ...

(Kid Cudi) – vocals, songwriting, composition * David Biral – songwriting, composition, production * Denzel Baptiste – songwriting, composition, production * Mike Dean – songwriting, composition, master engineering, mixing engineering, uncredited co-production * Oladipo Omishore – songwriting, composition, production * Patrick Reynolds – songwriting, composition, production * Jimmy Cash – recording engineering * Ali Adel - music video editing

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Scotts 2020 singles 2020 songs Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles Canadian Hot 100 number-one singles Number-one singles in Greece Number-one singles in Portugal Travis Scott songs Kid Cudi songs Songs written by Mike Dean (record producer) Songs written by Travis Scott Songs written by Kid Cudi Epic Records singles Cactus Jack Records singles Songs written by Dot da Genius Songs written by Plain Pat Song recordings produced by Take a Daytrip