Tyler, the Creator on Gay Rappers, Profanity, and His Artistic Idiosyncrasies | SEASON 2

Today, March 6, 2020, Tyler Okonma—best known as Tyler, the Creator—turns 29 years old.

The polymathic rapper first rose to prominence as a founding member of the alternative hip-hop collective, Odd Future, whose debut album was released in 2012. And although multiple members of the now-inactive group have experienced fruitful solo careers—Frank Ocean and Earl Sweatshirt among them—Tyler, the Creator's has arguably left the most recognizable influence. With five studio albums, a clothing line, a music festival, and much more on his resume, Tyler has been cited as a major inspiration to Gen Z icons like Billie Eilish and BROCKHAMPTON's Kevin Abstract.

Occasionally controversial but always a brilliant artist, Tyler has made himself known as not only a masterful musician, but a filterless class clown of the real world. Below, here are nine of Tyler, the Creator's most iconic moments.

A Walking Paradox

With just a cockroach, a noose, and a perspective control lens, Tyler introduced his solo rap career with one of the most unforgettable music videos of the decade (self-directed under his alter ego, Wolf Haley).

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Happy Birthday, Patti Smith: The Rock Icon Turns 73

The poet and singer-songwriter's legacy already makes her one of the greats.

Photo by: Gift Habeshaw / Unsplash

In 1967, a young poet named Patti Smith moved from New Jersey to Manhattan, New York.

With no money to her name, the aspiring artist worked at various bookstores around the city, including a brief stint at the famed Strand Bookstore near Union Square. Through these jobs, she met photographer Robert Mapplethorpe, who, a few years later, would snap the cover shot for Smith's debut album Horses, a record that would help define New York City punk for decades to come. Even today, on Smith's 73rd birthday, her story and music remain crucial components of New York's expansive rock scene.

Smith documented her intense—and at times tumultuous—romantic relationship with Mapplethorpe in her 2010 memoir, Just Kids. During their many years living together, they juggled their respective art forms while struggling to dig themselves out of poverty. For a period of time, they lived at the iconic Chelsea Hotel, a historic landmark referenced in songs by Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Graham Nash, and Bon Jovi. Smith was a longtime fan of jazz and classic rock artists like the Rolling Stones, though it took some coaxing for her to realize her potential in making music of her own. She befriended Bob Neuwirth, a singer-songwriter and associate of Dylan's, who encouraged Smith to put her poetry to melodies. She gave her first public reading in 1971; from there, her career gradually inclined.

Though Smith and Mapplethorpe's romance eventually ended—he came out to her as gay after a trip to San Francisco to explore his sexuality—they remained lifelong friends. Smith dated Blue Öyster Cult keyboardist Allen Lanier, and she was once even considered for the role of lead vocalist in the band. In the early '70s, Smith began writing album reviews for publications like Creem. She didn't keep up the gig for long, however, deciding she wanted to make her own records instead of critiquing the work of others. During these years, Smith also contributed a few lyrics to Blue Öyster Cult songs and released a handful of poetry books.

Smith began performing rock music in the mid-'70s, recruiting bassist Lenny Kaye, guitarist Ivan Kral, drummer Jay Dee Daugherty, and pianist Richard Sohl to comprise the full Patti Smith Band. They released their first single in 1974, "Hey Joe / Piss Factory," featuring a spoken-word introduction that references Patty Hearst, an American heiress who was infamously kidnapped. Smith's rhythmic, conversational delivery on the songs emblemized her transition from poet to full-fledged rock star.

Patti Smith : Hey Joe - Piss Factory 7"www.youtube.com


Horses, featuring arguably one of the most iconic album covers of all time, arrived the following year. In Just Kids, Smith wrote about the black-and-white photo's spontaneous nature and Mapplethorpe's use of natural light in his apartment. "The only rule we had was, Robert told me if I wore a white shirt, not to wear a dirty one," Smith told NPR. "I got my favorite ribbon and my favorite jacket, and he took about 12 pictures. By the eighth one he said, 'I got it.'" On her reaction to the photo now, she wrote: "I never see me. I see us."

Smith married former MC5 guitarist Fred "Sonic" Smith in 1980, and then took a break from music during the following years to spend time with her family in Michigan and raise her two children, Jesse and Jackson, with Fred. Fred died in 1994 of a heart attack, followed shortly by the unexpected death of Patti's brother, Todd. The impact of these losses inspired her to revive her career: She moved back to New York and began touring again.

During the course of her career, Smith has released 11 solo studio albums, and her writing can be read in over 20 books. She's been nominated for four Grammy Awards and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2007. At 73, her legacy is stronger than ever, being cited as an influence by the likes of R.E.M.'s Michael Stipe, Madonna, U2, Courtney Love, and Florence and the Machine. Comedian John Mulaney recreated the Horses album cover in a promotional photo shoot for "Saturday Night Live."

To those who have felt a connection to Smith's music, poetry, and memoirs, she speaks to struggling artists, young New Yorkers, and broken lovers alike: Those who are passionate enough about their art will always find their own success.

DJ Khaled

Photo by Michele Eve Sandberg/Shutterstock

Music bundling and bloated albums are among the latest attempts by artists to skew album charting, streaming numbers, and sales in their favor.

DJ Khaled is not the first nor the last to join the endless debate about the validity of these kinds of marketing strategies.

After his latest album, Father of Asahd, charted at number 2 (behind Tyler the Creator's IGOR) Khaled threatened to sue, claiming his album sold more than Billboard stated. The controversy stems from Khaled's bundle deal with Hype Power: With a purchase of the DJ Khaled Official Energy Drink Vibes Berry Colada, customers also receive a download link of his album.

According to Khaled, Billboard agreed to recognize the bundle deal as a part of the album sales but then backtracked, arguing there were "anomalies" in the financial records. Khaled accused Billboard of hypocrisy since they recognized Tyler the Creator's merch bundles as a part of record sales.

The threatened lawsuit reopens the conversation about record sales and how institutions like Billboard quantify and justify an album's "number one spot" on the charts. The debate continues to put artists at odds and in competition with each other. Similar to Khaled, Nicki Minaj claimed that Travis Scott's Astroworld did not deserve to beat her album, Queen, on the charts after his tour bundles boosted his album sales.

Although many sided with Scott, Minaj's highly anticipated album and unsuccessful comeback have Billboard reassessing their rules regarding bundle deals with merchandise. While the music industry has been able to keep up with the shift from sales to streaming, the questionable tactics used to influence record numbers are a key issue that could be blown wide open if brought to court. Only time will tell, but either way, we can all agree Khalid's chaotic 15-track album with 29 features doesn't deserve any more attention than it's already received.

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Tyler, The Creator Redefines Rap on "Igor"

"Don't go into this expecting a rap album. Don't go into this expecting an album. Just go, jump into it."

Tyler, The Creator is back, and this time he's shattering every preconceived notion you had about what a hip hop album could be.

On his fifth studio album, Igor, the 28-year-old emcee officially carves out his own sonic space. This album doesn't sound like anything that Tyler Okanma has ever done before. In fact, it doesn't really sound like anything anyone's ever done before. It exists in a liminal space that Tyler has created at the intersection of hip hop, funk, jazz, blues, soul, and something not so easily defined – raw, creative expression.

Igor consists of "All songs written, produced, and arranged by Tyler Okonma," and is a refreshingly daring, musically robust, and strangely beautiful journey through the mind of a conflicted artist in search of freedom. For one, Tyler seems to be in search of the freedom to not be defined or cloistered by his sexuality, which is alluded to on "I THINK," "A BOY IS A GUN," and, perhaps most explicitly, in the Frank Ocean-assisted, "RUNNING OUT OF TIME," on which he depicts the tension felt by the speaker due to being in an open relationship with a man. In a rapped conversation, Tyler spits, "Take your mask off / Stop lyin' for these ____s / Stop lyin' to yourself / I know the real you."

Then again, a case could also be made for interpreting this record as a concept album that tells the story of Igor, a gay man who just wants to be openly loved and accepted for who he is. So, let's not be too hasty to jump to conclusions about Tyler Okonma's personal life as it's not fair to assume that poetry is always confessional.

The album as a whole also appears to assert itself as an attempt at freedom from artistic expectations. Minutes before the album dropped, Tyler fired off a tweet, saying, "Igor. This is not Bastard. This is not Goblin. This is not Wolf. This is not Cherry Bomb. This is not Flower Boy. This is Igor. Pronounced EEE-GORE. Don't go into this expecting a rap album. Don't go into this expecting an album. Just go, jump into it." And by the end of the album, for all of its lushly layered, genre-defying, and unexpected twists and turns, it is evident that Tyler has achieved this freedom.

IGOR


Dustin DiPaulo is a writer and musician from Rochester, New York. He received his MFA in Creative Writing from Florida Atlantic University and can most likely be found at a local concert, dive bar, or comedy club (if he's not getting lost somewhere in the woods).