Delresto (Echoes)

"Delresto (Echoes)" is a song by American rapper and singer Travis Scott with fellow American singer and songwriter Beyoncé. It was released through Beyoncé's Parkwood Entertainment, Scott's Cactus Jack, Columbia, and Epic Records as the second single from his fourth studio album Utopia, both being released on July 28, 2023. The song was produced by Scott with additional production by Beyoncé, Hit-Boy, Mike Dean, and Allen Ritter; all of whom wrote the song alongside James Blake and The-Dream. The song also features uncredited additional vocals from Justin Vernon of Bon Iver.

"Delresto (Echoes)" received positive reviews from critics, who praised Beyoncé's vocal performance and the song's production. In the United States, "Delresto (Echoes)" debuted at number 25 on the Billboard Hot 100 alongside entering at 14 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. The song charted in fourteen other countries, including Canada and the United Kingdom.

Background

In a 2015 Complex interview, Scott stated that he wanted to collaborate with Beyoncé. He said: "You know, I'm from Houston, she's from Houston. I feel like we—we're definitely in due time to do some music." In 2019, it was revealed in a Vibe interview with R&B artist Tone Stith that both Beyoncé and Scott were still looking to collaborate, as Stith's song "Good Company" began as a demo for Beyoncé and Scott before being completed alongside Quavo and Swae Lee. Later, on Beyoncé's 2023 Renaissance World Tour, she performed the song "America Has a Problem". As the song played, images of a newspaper titled "The Echo" were displayed on the concert screens. These images served as a hint towards "Delresto (Echoes)", and were later identified as a major component on the single's cover artwork.

Composition

"Delresto (Echoes)" is a hip house song that has been described as having a "vibrant and progressive instrumental". It draws comparisons to Beyoncé's latest album, Renaissance, due to its similar "house-inspired rhythms and musical aesthetics". In this track, Scott takes a more subdued role, allowing Beyoncé to steer the song and layering in his own "hazy Auto-Tuned speculations as a backdrop". The song samples "Warped Woods", composed by Mattias Hakulinen and Pontus Askbrink, from the soundtrack to the video game Ittle Dew.

Music video

The music video is directed by Nicolas Winding Refn. The music video is a segment in the film Circus Maximus. The video takes place in the near future when Scott is in a blue taxi where his masked driver drives around in Copenhagen, Denmark. Beyoncé does not appear.

Reception

"Delresto (Echoes)" received positive reviews, with critics especially praising Beyoncé's performance. Gabriel Bras Nevares of HotNewHipHop characterized the track as "euphoric" and identified it as a standout from Utopia. He elaborated that "the track feels complete without exaggerating its opulence". Complex considered Beyoncé's feature as the "biggest surprise" of the album, similar to the singer's appearance on Drake's Care Package track "Can I". Recording Academy writer Michael Saponara called the song "one of Utopia's buzziest cameos", praising the production of the song and remarking that "while Beyoncé does much of the heavy lifting on "Delresto (Echoes)" Scott's verse still stands out". Writing for Billboard, Mackenzie Cummings-Grady listed it as the fourth-best song on Utopia. She observed that even though the song seemed stuffed, it was still able to "take flight thanks to Beyoncé’s Renaissance-era groove, which fit in well with Utopia's dystopian vision". Barnaby Lane of Insider highlighted "Beyoncé's angelic tones", which complete "the track's stripped-back sound and Scott's own short verse".

Charts

Notes

References