KEN CARSON, Playboi Carti’s disciple, stepped out from the limelight. Ken Carson has established himself as the face of Opium with his vision, unique sound, and futuristic rage beats on his new album.
“I made a hundred K in a hundred ways, ‘cause that’s what I keep it.’ ” Carson’s song, “Jennifer’s Body,” has been recently blowing up on social media gaining traction for his latest album A Great Chaos. It has been deemed album of the year by many people, including myself.
Playboi Carti is a musical artist, fashion icon, and the founder of Opium (a music label he founded). Opium was founded in 2019. The first member of the Opium label was none other than Carson. You may know Carti from the song, “Sky,” which is associated with the lyrics, “Wake up (yeah, wake up) It’s the first of the month (Slatt, slatt).”
You may also know Carson from the song “Magnolia” which is associated with the dance “Milly Rock”, where Carti goes “In New York I Milly Rock”.
I first discovered Carson through the music video “Yale.” During my first listen to the song, I was blown away by the unique rage-like beat. After digging through Carson’s discography, I soon discovered that he was signed to Playboi Carti’s brand-new label Opium. With Carti being as influential and talented as he is, I knew Opium was the next big thing for music. With Ken Carson being the first member of Opium, he had the potential to become the main face of Opium.
A Great Chaos was released on Friday, October 13 and the album consists of 18 songs. With each song having a unique delivery and beat, you go through a roller coaster of emotions.
The first track of the album, “Green Room,” has a rave-like beat that’s melodic. In this track, Carson talks about his rise to glory and how he went from “broke to rich.” “Green Room” is the perfect introduction to an album as you could only feel like a proud father watching his son achieve greatness.
The tracks “Fighting My Demons,” “Singapore,” and “Paranoid” have been the main selling points of the album. With each song having catchy lyrics such as “I’ve been fighting my demons yeah,” and “Yeah I’m paranoid, I got white diamonds and they colder than Illinois,” they’ve gained popularity for the album after appearing on social media. With these songs currently trending on TikTok and Instagram reels, these songs alone have gained millions of streams for the album.
The album ultimately ends with the song “i need u,” which has been released as a single since February 14, 2023. The song initially blew up on TikTok by the account “diddy bop.” He used the song to make a new unique dance that everyone was participating in. With all the chaotic rockstar-like songs on the album, it’s refreshing for the album to end with Carson’s truest version of himselfsinging, “Like oxygen, without you, baby girl, I can’t breathe.”
