Album Review — “Flower Boy” by Tyler, The Creator
Tyler, the Creator first grabbed the attention of the music world in December 2009 with his debut album “Bastard”, followed by his first official release with “Goblin” in 2011. Whether it was down to the shock value of the lyrics or the dark, intense and gritty theme of the albums, you can’t deny the unique talent.
Tyler’s sound has since come of age. At 27, his character has not changed, but has matured. He has moved from his aggressive, rebellious and controversial content to a musical journey; every song holds its own story, while being part of the same world Tyler is bringing us into.
Each album of his has a story to it; he is known to take on the role of a different character or alter ego. Flower Boy is no exception; the album is like an audiobook. The songs are chapters which you must follow in order until you reach the conclusion at the end. You can identify the influences of Eminem and MF Doom in his early work; the controversial lyrics mixed with the alter egos and craft of story telling. However, his previous album, “Cherry Bomb”, and now “Flower Boy” seem to show Tyler is finding his own voice.
The opening track “Foreword”, opens up about various concerns and sensitive topics. Tyler tackles issues such as whether his fans will turn against him the longer he continues being creative. The outro, sung by Rex Orange County, describes depressive emotions and suicidal thought patterns by questioning if anyone will miss him when he’s gone. It immediately introduces another side of Tyler which he has not shown the world before, demonstrating his growing maturity.
Popular fan choices on the album are songs such as “See You Again”, “Boredom” and “911/ Mr. Lonely”. Each song portrays emotions of loneliness, a desire for love and collapsing friendships.
The main talking point of this particular album is Tyler revealing his sexuality. He has been banned from the UK and Australia for making statements that encourage hatred, including homophobic slurs early in his career. However, it seems he is now ready to come out as gay himself. “Garden Shed” hints at Tyler guarding his feelings for men, only sleeping with women to brag to his friends and hoping his homosexuality will be accepted. The metaphor of the song title relates strongly to the common phrase of “coming out of the closet” as Tyler eases and teases us into the answers to the question on everyone’s lips. He raps
“Garden shed for the garçons/ Them feelings that I was guardin’/ Heavy on my mind/ All my friends lost/ They couldn’t read the signs/ I didn’t wanna talk and tell ’em my location/ And they ain’t wanna walk/ Truth is, since a youth kid, thought it was a phase/ Thought it’d be like the phrase; “poof,” gone/ But, it’s still goin’ on”.
“Garçons” referring to “boys” in French. He continues with a clever play on words and subtle hints.
“Big fan of the beige tan/ Polka dot nose, how it goes/ Had to keep it on the subwoofer”
“Beige tan” refers to a Caucasian skin tone as Tyler reiterates his preference in white boys, which is also described in “I Ain’t Got Time!” when he states
“I’ve been kissing white boys since 2004”.
“Polka dot nose” expresses his views that freckles are attractive. “Subwoofer” is a speaker that projects low bass frequencies, describing his desire to keep his relationship and sexuality on the down low.
What makes this album stand out amongst the rest of his work? Not only is the variety of sounds pleasing to the ear, but the subject matter reaches a new stage of emotional intelligence and conveys his messages with cleverly thought out wordplay. Listeners can learn and grow along with this intriguing character as he introduces a new found versatility to his art.
Overall, we can argue this is his best work to date. Tyler exposing a more vulnerable and sensitive side to himself allows his fans to resonate more with his deeper emotions along with his usual unapologetic sense of humour and upfront personality.
Tyler has inspired others through his message of being yourself and not caring what the world thinks of you. He exemplifies his words through his actions, always has, always will. Whether you view him as rude and inappropriate, or interesting and charismatic, he makes it clear he will be himself regardless. This is what makes us admire him. This is why he is not afraid to open up more and try new things. This is what makes the album what it is.
