Allegations of violence surrounding high-profile artists — a 2022 domestic-abuse charge levied against Lil Uzi Vert met with a plea of no contest, and a 2023 felony aggravated assault charge against Carti was later reported as dismissed — imply that abrasive views on these records come from somewhere real and worrying.

MUSIC is the elusive rapper's first album in five years, but his presence has loomed heavy over hip-hop — and the fanbase whose ears he retuned for extremity.

Twenty minutes later, the show was back on, with the Weeknd crooning “Rather Lie” and “Timeless” surrounded by Carti’s Opium crew while pyro and chugging guitars flared around them. Carti fans come for the chaos — is the rest of the music industry ready for him on the A-list?