It seems like every artist is trying to make “the song of the summer” these days, but Don Toliver just did it in January. After running TikTok with his 2023 hit “No Pole,” Toliver dropped his fifth studio album, “Oc-
tane,” on Jan. 30, 2026.
The Houston rapper’s newest album is exactly what it says on the tin: powerful and dynamic. With 18 solid tracks, the standout songs have gained popularity for a good reason.
First on the album, “E85” sounds like driving down the highway with your windows down in the middle of summer, disobeying any and all posted traffic laws.
The feeling probably comes from Toliver singing about being “on the highway thinking that I love her,” referencing his longtime partner, fellow artist Kali Uchis.
“E85” feels carefree and liberating, like you’re laughing with your best friends “like Dumber and Dumber.”
It feels like you’re floating until everything is interrupted by a sample of Justin Timberlake’s “Rock Your Body.”
The transition from “E85” to the second track, “Body,” certainly isn’t an unwelcome surprise. Most of the songs, “Body” included, are just Toliver obsessing over his partner and their relationship.
In the second track, Toliver compares himself to Cassius Clay, which is renowned boxer Muhammad Ali’s real name.
A sport like boxing requires you to practically obsess over your opponent’s body, and Toliver is all over his girlfriend like a boxer is with their opponent.
The beat is enough to make “Body” one of the best songs on the album. “Octane” isn’t a lyric-heavy record, but the solid production means it doesn’t have to be.
You can hear the Travis Scott influences in the album’s sound, especially since Scott is a producer on quite a few of “Octane’s” songs.
None of the songs drag by any means, but the production takes a bit of a lower-key vibe after “Body” until track 17, “Gemstone,” when Toliver comes in with a sample of a performance by Auburn University’s marching band.
“Gemstone” is the perfect hype song. It starts off with Toliver asking the listener “why would I play if I know this sh** slap?” And it does, indeed, “slap.”
The hard-hitting beat and marching band motif are enough to have any DJ “run that back.” “Octane” closes out with “Sweet Home,” a song that feels like Toliver waving goodbye to the listeners.
He’s going to spend his time in “sweet home, Houston, Texas, all summer long.” If you want to spend the summer with him, Toliver’s “Octane” tour will pass through Chicago on June 11.
