Playboi Carti was joined onstage by Skepta at his Rolling Loud California performance this past weekend. In a hype performance featuring pyrotechnics, strobe lights and striking stage design, the Tottenham grime star came to perform ‘Toxic’, their fresh collaboration from Carti’s highly anticipated new album, “Music”.
Carti’s set mainly saw him debut his new material, performing almost the entire 30-song tracklist, as well as some old hits from his older catalogue.
The Weeknd also made a surprise appearance, performing both “Rather Lie” from ‘Music’ and his Carti collab, ‘Timeless’, from The Weeknd’s new album ‘Hurry Up Tomorrow’.
THE MOSHPIT!! #IAMMUSIC https://t.co/xZS6M0hZAI
— Big Smoke – (@Skepta) March 17, 2025
In the new song ‘Toxic’, Skepta raps “I broke America, big in the East, I’m big in the West, I’m big in the South’. These lyrics hold true to Skepta’s transatlantic success – he’s one of a few UK rappers who have managed to make a name for themselves stateside as an overseas success.
His fourth studio album ‘Konnichiwa’ secured a spot on the Billboard 200, which is a grand feat for a UK grime artist. Skepta and Carti have joined up before on ‘Lean 4 Real’, from Carti’s breakout album ‘Die Lit’. Through collaborations with rappers like Carti, Kid Cudi, ASAP Rocky and Future, he’s kept an open line to the US market and positioned himself as a representative of British rap. His most successful American collab would be ‘Praise the Lord (Da Shine)’ with ASAP Rocky, which landed him on the Billboard Hot 100.
Carti’s new album, ‘Music’, has received generally positive reviews and taken the streaming world by storm, becoming Spotify’s most streamed album in a single day during 2025. It’s been a long wait for his fans, as the album has been frequently teased, and retitled since he dropped his last album, ‘Whole Lotta Red’. Many fans despaired that the record was stuck in “development hell”.
The new album features a star-studded lineup of collaborators including Kendrick Lamar, Travis Scott, Future, Skepta, The Weeknd, Lil Uzi Vert and Ty Dolla Sign. It also features well known producers such as Cardo, Metro Boomin, Southside, F1lthy, Ye, Cash Cobain and the production duo Ojivolta, among others. Sales numbers for it haven’t yet been certified but it’s expected to pull in 250,000 album-equivalent units, not including physical sales.
You can watch Carti’s full Rolling Loud California performance below.
