At 3 a.m., October 28, 2024, Tyler the Creator dropped his highly anticipated album, “Chromokopia”. Tyler originally commented that there was not a new album coming anytime soon, but a few short days later, he dropped the teaser, “St. Chroma,” on YouTube.
The teaser gained popularity quickly, showing Tyler in a new haircut said to be of African origin, which plays into the album as he explores his African descent. He is also seen wearing a mask of his own face.
After the teaser, Tyler began to regularly post, teasing the new album. As a warning, there are mature themes in this album and article that will be discussed.
Tyler defines this album as his most truthful and honest work, where the mask he wears plays a big part in the album. Knowing his feelings and emotions that went into making these songs makes listening to some of the tracks in this album even more heart wrenching.
The first track of Chromokopia starts with Tyler’s mother telling him to not dim the light he holds inside of him, setting the tone for the rest of the album.
After the track starts, with the sound of marching, chanting and an eerie whistle in the background, Tyler begins to rap in a hushed voice. The chorus of the track sings, “Can you feel the light inside? Can you feel that fire?” In the track, Tyler talks about figuring himself out throughout life and keeping the light in him alive, or to “gracefully bow out.”
The song transitions into the next track, which is essentially Tyler flexing his money and talking about his confidence.
He then transitions, saying, “I’m paranoid now cause [——] weird and really bums,” to the next track Noid. There he talks about how he feels paranoid that he’s being watched and how he takes protective measures to feel safe. He also mentions how he dislikes paparazzi and how fans constantly ask for pictures, leaving him longing for privacy.
In the following track, “Darling, I,” Tyler talks about how he is not used to just one relationship, thus coming out as polyamorous, meaning to date multiple people at the same time. He feels that he can’t get everything from a singular person. He raps about how music feels more fulfilling than any love.
In the third verse he expresses his feelings that he wants his partners to explore different experiences, and states that he does not own them, so it’s not fair for them to just be with him.
The next track, called “Hey Jane,” is especially interesting because Tyler talks about finding out that a woman
he slept with was pregnant. He talks about the anxiety at the idea that he is a father, and the song interestingly it turns to what seems to be the woman’s perspective. She sings that she can raise the child on her own.
With those final words, it turns to the next track, “I Killed You.” This is a track that has a lot of deeper meaning to it. Tyler talks about black hair culture and how societal expectations look down upon it. He specifically talks about black women and how they feel pressured to make their hair the way society wants it to be, abandoning their heritage to fit in.
A very explicit track, named “Judge Judy,” plays next. Tyler talks about his relationship with a girl and the various intimate acts that they experienced together.Towards the end of the track it takes an unexpected turn to the perspective of Judy. Through a sung letter to Tyler, she says that she has cancer that has spread to her brain, and that by the time he reads it, she will be long gone. She thanks him for the times they had together and for not judging.
With that, the most popular track, “Sticky,” plays, with features such as Glorilla, Sexxy Redd and Lil Wayne. The track is a more energetic track where Tyler is barring out confidently. As the song ends softly, it transitions to a slow heartfelt track, and possibly the most emotional of them all, called, “I Hope You Take Your Mask Off”, where Tyler talks about multiple people.
In the first verse, Tyler talks about a kid who pretends to be a gangster out of fear of being seen as weak, and ending up in jail. The chorus sings beautifully, “I hope you find yourself, I hope you take your mask off.”
The second verse next talks about a hypocritical preacher, who is a closeted homosexual. This verse talks about how some people are afraid or ashamed of who they are based on their religion.
After that, the next verse speaks about a woman married to a rich husband with all she could want, but she feels unfulfilled. He raps in the track, “Fantasize about the dreams you left on the shelf,” he speaks about how the woman feels unfulfilled as she gives her dreams up to marry and raise her children. She ends up feeling suicidal with all the work she does around the house. Finally, Tyler turns to talking about himself as he talks about the struggles he had as he grew up, and how he doubted himself.
With those final words, another tearful track starts, called “Tomorrow.” Where Tyler feels the stress of society’s expectation to have children as he gets older. Saying that he feels wrong for not having one while his friends all have their own.
To lighten the mood, the upbeat track, “Thought I Was Dead,” starts playing. The track starts with Tyler flexing his riches and fortune. After “SchoolBoy Q’s,” Tyler turns to those who were hating on him, dissing a popular artist, Ian. Who Tyler believed was destroying the rap genre.
He also stated that he could care less about the recent drama with him and twitter users, who were attempting to cancel Tyler over past tweets and songs.
With a triumphant last bar, Tyler’s upbeat track turns into a soft heartfelt piano. The tear wrenching track “Like Him” starts, with Tyler’s mother comparing him to his father. Tyler softly and sadly sings about his father, expressing “Mama I’m chasing a ghost.” He talks to his mother, reassuring her that it turned out okay without him. The track ends softly with Tyler’s mother apologizing to him, saying that his father wanted to be in his life but she pushed him away.
With the final words of his mother lingering, the album takes an unexpected and funny transition to the next track, “Balloon,” which is essentially Tyler speaking about his bisexuality.
The jaunty track ended, and made a final transition to the last sorrow song “I Hope You Find Your Way Home”. Here he speaks about his success, and how he wants himself and others to navigate their life successfully. The track ends with Tyler’s mother on a call with him, crying happily as she praises Tyler for how far he came.
So in an overall review, this album is truly amazing and emotional. With compelling and catchy lyrics that hit the heart, as well as complex and amazing beats, a true testament to Tyler’s production skills. I truly believe that this album is one of Tyler’s best, and that it will win a Grammy.