Travis Scott and Security Guard Seen with 'Utopia' Album Handcuffed To Wrist

Travis Scott is inching closer to the release of his first album drop in 4 years, and taking extra precautions to make sure it doesn't leak ... literally handcuffing the damn thing to his muscle-bound security guard.

The rapper was spotted out in Hollywood Thursday leaving a vinyl record spot -- but he wasn't alone -- watched closely by his guard, who flashed a briefcase handcuffed to his own wrist with the word "Utopia" written on it as he held the door open for TS.

This ain't just a cool fashion statement, it's also an insanely creative piece of marketing ... because a source tells us the highly-anticipated album is indeed inside. We're told the whole reveal for Travis' return to music is pretty damn imminent -- sometime this summer.

Another hint Travis is up to something, check out the shoes he's wearing, with "Utopia" on the back ... gotta imagine there's another collab with Nike on the way.

For those unaware, fans have been waiting almost 5 years for Travis to bring out some new music ... and as we reported, he played "Utopia" for the Houston Astros earlier this week ahead of their game against the Cubs -- talk about team perks!

BTW -- producer Mike Dean posted, then quickly took down, a screenshot this week of his editing bay of what appears to be "Utopia," and The Weeknd, who was featured on 2018's "Astroworld," threw up a couple of lollipop emojis before the thing was scrubbed.