CHROMAKOPIA, Tyler, the Creator’s seventh studio album, was released on October 28. Three years lie between this drop and his last, straying from his typical biannual release pattern. Tyler is also deviating from the norm of releasing music on a Friday by sharing his work on a Monday morning.
The music industry contains album drops to Fridays to prevent piracy, maximize sales and improve chart performance. Tyler rejected these benefits because he feels people passively listen to music on weekends.
Regardless of when the album dropped, its introspective lyrics and careful production have had a meaningful impact on listeners.
Track List
- “St. Chroma” ft. Daniel Caesar “Rah Tah Tah”
- “Noid”
- “Darling, I” ft. Teezo Touchdown
- “Hey Jane”
- “I Killed You” ft. Childish Gambino
- “Judge Judy”
- “Sticky” ft. GloRilla, Sexyy Red, Lil Wayne
- “Take Your Mask Off”
- “Tomorrow”
- “Thought I Was Dead” ft. ScHoolboy Q
- “Like Him”
- “Balloon” ft. Doechii
- “I Hope You Find Your Way Home”
Tyler’s sound is characterized by erratic beats that challenge the rhythmic strum of the synth. His formidable lyrics and voice juxtapose the floating jazz-like notes of flutes, pianos and saxophones. Listening to his music creates anxious anticipation from the constant marching of sound toward its peak.
Formidable lyrics feed further into this feeling. In his latest album, Tyler focuses on introspection and the struggles that come with looking inward. He laments over the feelings associated with working towards a goal, only to be faced with constant threats that come with this newfound freedom.
ST. CHROMA
His album’s first song is ST. CHROMA, leading with the lyric,
“Don’t you ever in your motherf***ing life dim your light for nobody,”
This urges listeners to fight for self-expression, a notion he exemplifies through his spoken frustrations within the music industry.
On Instagram, he teased a minute-and-a-half clip of the ST. CHROMA music video. Tyler leads a group of suit-clad individuals into a CHROMAKOPIA-labeled shipping trailer. When someone detonates the container with the group inside, the video turns to color. This references Chroma the Great, a conductor in The Phantom Tollbooth whose orchestra brings color to the world.
Alter Egos
In different phases of his life–sometimes corresponding with his most recent album–Tyler has taken on various alter-egos. A few of his past personas include Wolf Haley, a confident and abrasive character; Chur Bum, costumed in an open-faced mask and blue fame shirt; and IGOR, a glam-rock, heartbroken persona.
These characters help to dilute assumptions about Tyler’s character based on his music. For example, he gruesomely describes a murder in his song “I Killed You,” but his newest masked persona takes the blame for the crime in place of his celebrity counterpart.
Listening Parties
Tyler’s new persona and music style will debut at his Camp Flog Naw festival at Dodger Stadium during the weekend of Nov. 16 and Nov. 17. He also released dates for the CHROMAKOPIA tour which go on sale Oct. 30.
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