"God's Country" is a song by American rapper

Travis Scott Jacques Bermon Webster III (born April 30, 1991), known professionally as Travis Scott (formerly stylized as Travi$ Scott), is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer. Scott has had five number-one hits on the U.S. ''Bil ...

from his fourth studio album ''

Utopia A utopia ( ) typically describes an imagined community or society that possesses highly desirable or near-perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book ''Utopia (book), Utopia'', which describes a fictiona ...

'' (2023). It was written and produced by him,

30 Roc Samuel Jordon Gloade, known professionally as 30 Roc, is an American record producer and songwriter. He began his career in 2014 as an in-house producer for Mike Will Made It's EarDrummers Records, but has since expanded into solo production ...

and Dez Wright. As the song was among the tracks on ''Utopia'' that were originally recorded for

Kanye West Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer and record producer. One of the most prominent figures in hip-hop, he is known for his varying musical style and polarizing cultural and political commentary. After ...

's album ''

Donda ''Donda'' is the tenth studio album by American rapper Kanye West. It was released by GOOD Music and Def Jam Recordings on August 29, 2021. The album features a broad range of guest performances from artists, including The Weeknd, Jay-Z, Maril ...

'' (2021), he also received writing credits.

Composition

The song includes a looped vocal passage which is sampled from Polish composer

Krzysztof Komeda Krzysztof Trzciński (27 April 1931 – 23 April 1969), known professionally as Krzysztof Komeda, was a Polish film score composer and jazz pianist widely regarded as one of the most influential Polish jazz musicians. He is best known for writin ...

's "Lullaby, Part 1". In the lyrics, Travis Scott highlights the notion of togetherness, emphasizing his family and moving away from public attention. Stylistically, he uses an "exclamatory" tone similar to that of Kanye West's.

Critical reception

The song received generally positive reviews from critics, particularly for the use of its sample. ''Variety'''s Yousef Srour and Jem Aswad commented, "The biting screams on 'God's Country' call to mind Ye's shrieks on ' I Am a God'". Paul Attard of ''

Slant Magazine ''Slant Magazine'' is an American online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New Yor ...

'' described the song as a "psychedelic trip that's made even more surreal" by the sample. Andre Gee of ''

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

'' said the song's vocal sample "evokes a horror movie about possessed children who lurk on the outskirts of sundown towns" and that Scott has a "solid" verse. Aron A. of ''

HotNewHipHop ''HotNewHipHop'' (HNHH) is an online publication that covers daily news about hip hop and pop culture, including streetwear, sports, and Sneaker collecting, sneakers. In addition to its editorial content, HotNewHipHop also produces the video seri ...

'' wrote the song "brings slinky child-like vocal samples through knocking bass. It's eerie yet playful and carries across the project." Ben Devlin of ''

MusicOMH ''MusicOMH'' (stylized as ''musicOMH'') is a London-based online music magazine which publishes independent reviews, features and interviews from across all genres including classical, metal, rock and R&B. History ''MusicOMH'' was founded an ...

'' wrote it "features a positively haunting vocal sample over which Scott delivers some of his most characterful lyrics". ''Complex'''s Eric Skelton and Ecleen Luzmila Caraballo picked "God's Country" (along with "

Sirens Siren or sirens may refer to: Common meanings * Siren (alarm), a loud acoustic alarm used to alert people to emergencies * Siren (mythology), an enchanting but dangerous monster in Greek mythology that lured sailors to their deaths. Places * Si ...

") as the "biggest skip" of ''Utopia''. Similarly, Vivian Medithi of ''

HipHopDX ''HipHopDX'' is an online magazine of Hip hop music, hip hop music criticism and news. ''HipHopDX'' has over 3.5M monthly readers, the website encompassing hip hop news, interviews, music, and reviews. The website's founder and CEO is Sharath C ...

'' commented that the sample "screams immediate skip." Mackenzie Cummings-Grady of ''

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 advertis ...

'' placed "God's Country" at number 16 in her ranking of the songs from ''Utopia''.

Music video

An official music video premiered alongside the song. At the start, Travis Scott takes a camera from people in a car and apparently uses it to film the daily lives and activities in a neighborhood. The visual features shots of fast bikes, basketball, dancing, and community members (mostly children) singing the song.

Charts

Certifications

References

{{Travis Scott songs 2023 songs Travis Scott songs Song recordings produced by Travis Scott Songs written by Travis Scott Songs written by Kanye West Songs written by 30 Roc Christian hip-hop songs